Matt Quinn skates by IceRays goaltender Kris Tebbs after scoring a shorthanded goal
Tebbs finds himself on the wrong side of the net when Jordan Cameron beats him to it
The IceRays game disintegrated in the third period where they earned 36 of their 44 penalty minutes. They were whistled for six minor penalties in less than six minutes by referee J.P. Sylvain. This included three unsportsmanlike conduct calls on three different players and the ejection of defenseman Chris Mei on an Abuse of Officials Game Misconduct while serving a penalty.
The Brahmas had nine power plays, including four two-man advantages in the final 20 minutes.
The Brahmas began the period with the remaining 59 seconds of a five-on-three advantage but were unable to score. Then, on the man-advantage, Scott Sheppard buried a rebound from the left circle at the 1:09 mark to make it 2-1. Grant Jacobsen and Jordan Cameron were credited with the assist.
20 seconds later, Justin Quenneville was called for his first of three hooking penalties in the period and gave the Brahmas another powerplay. Cameron and Jacobsen combined again to set up the play for defenseman Kevin McLeod who scored his sixth goal of the season at the 2:55 mark, giving the Brahmas a 3-1 lead.
The meltdown began at the 7:20 mark when Justin Quenneville was called for his second hooking call along with Jordan Cameron. This resulted in the Brahmas' second short-handed goal of the night, with Matt Quinn burying a feed from Eric Lundberg less than a minute later to make it 4-2.
The goal was the IceRays' 10th short-handed goal against this season, the most in the league.
The IceRays' frustrations began to get the best of them and the unsportsmanlike conduct penalties began. Bob Rapoza was called at the 8:33 mark and Adam Powell 26 seconds later, giving the Brahmas another two-man advantage. Chris Mei was assessed for Unsportsmanlike conduct at the 10:34 mark along with T.J. Reynolds who was called for tripping, giving the Brahmas another five-on-three. Fortunately for the IceRays, their penalty-killers were able to hold off the attacking Brahmas.
The IceRays tried to get back into it when Chris Mei and Matt Smyth set up T.J. Reynolds, who managed to beat Brett Jaeger for an even-strength goal to draw his team within two at the 12:46 mark. It was Reynolds' first goal since Jan. 21, 2006.
However, less than a minute later, Justin Quenneville received his third hooking call and was sent to the penalty box. Chris Mei followed 24 seconds later, setting up the Brahmas fourth five-on-three of the period. Mei served just 42 seconds of his sentence when he decided to let referee J.P. Sylvain know what he thought of the officiating and was given an Abuse of Officials Misconduct and an Abuse of Officials Game Misconduct, earning himself an early trip to the showers.
Grant Jacobsen put the nail in the coffin with a beautiful wrap around goal, skating almost unopposed at the 16:57 mark to provide the final score of 5-2. It was Jacobsen's 10th goal of the year giving him a team-leading 29 points. Jordan Cameron and Mark Carragher were credited with the assist. The Brahmas outshot the IceRays 16-6 in the final period.
It was the Brahmas' fifth win in six games, but coach Dan Wildfong wasn't satisfied by the imperfect play of his team.
"It wasn’t our best game by any means," Wildfong told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "But we got the job done, got the two points, and we know we didn’t play our best."
Regardless, the Brahmas closed out the year with a win and continued their improvement over last season by three wins after 30 games. With 39 points, they remain two points behind the Laredo Bucks and 11 points ahead of the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees in the Southeast Division. The Brahmas are 12 points ahead of the IceRays.
You can view photos from the game here
The Brahmas will once again face the IceRays Friday evening at the NYTEX Sports Centre for a 7:05 PM faceoff.
Photo Credits: Robert Keith
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