It was a long night for Scott Campbell who faced 45 shots - tying a season high for the Thunder

Brahmas, Jaeger notch seventh straight win

Wichita Thunder lose 4-1 at NYTEX

The Texas Brahmas soundly defeated the Wichita Thunder by a score of 4-1 tonight at the NYTEX Sports Center. Brett Jaeger stopped 26 of 27 shots faced and earned the 1st Star of the game for another magnificent performance in net for the bulls.

With the win, the Brahmas record goes to 27-17-5 with 59 points, which bumped the Laredo Bucks back out of third place and provides a two-point lead over Coach Roscoe's boys. The Bucks suffered a wicked 9-4 loss on the road tonight at Corpus Christi.

Each team created offensive chances early in the game, but it was the Brahmas who opened a 1-0 lead at the 11:48 mark in the first period. Defenseman Tyrell Mason made a lateral pass the length of the Thunder zone to Scott Thauwald who ripped a shot from the right boards that made it past Scott Campbell for the score. Matt Pierce was also in on the assist.

The Brahmas out shot the Thunder 22-8 in the first frame (a team high for the season) and took the 1-0 lead into the locker room after 20 minutes of play.

The Brahmas extended their lead 5:29 into the second period on an unassisted goal from Kevin McLeod. McLeod broke up a Thunder odd-man rush with a poke check and then raced up the ice to lead a Texas two-on-one. McLeod then fired a shot that hopped into the net past Scott Campbell.

Wichita had a 10-8 shot advantage in the second but was unable to solve Jaeger. After 40 minutes, the Brahmas led by a score of 2-0.

Early in the final frame, with Nathan Perrott in the penalty box for slashing, the Brahmas scored another short-handed goal, their (league-leading) 18th of the season. Scott Thauwald led a two-on-one and made a cross-slot pass to Ross Rouleau who punched in the goal at the 4:48 mark to make it a 3-0 contest.

Wichita scored its lone goal at the 10:51 mark on the power play. Joel Hanson set up Neil Clark outside of the crease who tipped the puck beyond Brett Jaeger to break up the shutout. Paul Kelly also assisted on the goal.

The Brahmas put the game away at the 18:17 mark when Jason Deitsch walked into a loose puck in the slot and shot it past the left of a defenseless Campbell for the score.

The Brahmas out shot the Thunder 15-9 in the final period and 45-27 in the game, winning their seventh straight game.

Brett Jaeger made 26 saves on 27 shots and earned the win. His record goes to 16-10-1-2. Scott Campbell made 41 saves on 45 shots and takes the loss. His record goes to 6-17-1.

The Brahmas went zero for six on the power play. Wichita went one for seven. The Brahmas were assessed 14 minutes on seven infractions. The Thunder received 12 minutes on six infractions.

The 3rd Star of the game went to Jason Deitsch who scored the final goal of the game. The 2nd Star was awarded to Scott Thauwald who had a goal and an assist on the night and the 1st Star went to Brett Jaeger for a stellar performance in net.

You can view the box score here

Observations:

• The Brahmas have the best (current) winning streak in the league at seven straight. Their five straight home wins also leads the league.
  
• Brett Jaeger's seventh straight win gave him the number one slot in the league with a 2.51 GAA. He is third in the league with a .919 save percentage. He is one point behind Allen's Chris Whitley for goalie Star Points with 37 (11th in the league for all positions).
  
• The Brahmas remain in third place in the league with a 85.92% penalty kill. They lead Tulsa by five goals with the league's best 18 short-handed tallies.
  

The Brahmas will host the Odessa Jackalopes tomorrow night at NYTEX. This will be a good one, so unless you have a good excuse, be there, be loud, believe!

P.S. - The Brahmas will be donning special Reliant Energy sweaters for the game and will host a live game worn auction immediately following the game.

Photo Credit: Robert Keith (Not from tonight's game)