Texas Brahmas lose big at NYTEX

Odessa Jackalopes win 5-2

It was an impressive end to a three-game road trip. Unfortunately the Texas Brahmas are not on the road. The Odessa Jackalopes beat the bulls handily in front of a sold out home crowd at the NYTEX Sports Centre tonight and improved their record to 7-2-1. It was the Brahmas first home loss of the season.

Things started off positively for the Brahmas as rookie forward Topher Scott scored his first goal of the season 1:22 into the game. Scott took the feed from Justin Kinnunen and Grant Jacobsen and beat Jacks goaltender Juha Toivonen on the Brahmas second shot of the game. The fans loved it.

The joy was short-lived however, as the Jacks took advantage of their first powerplay opportunity, scoring on Brahmas netminder David Cacciola a minute-and-a-half later when Philippe Plante spanked one past with the assist from Dominic Leveille and Sebastien Thinel. Both goaltenders held for the remainder of the period with the Jacks outshooting the bulls 15-10.

The middle period was a wild and physical affair. The game was halted 10 times on penalty calls and both teams were called for goalie interference. Juha Toivonen was tended to by trainer Robert Molina for several minutes after a collison with Brahmas defenseman Justin Kinnunen. The Jacks took all of the momentum in the second with powerplay goals by Dominic Leveille and Sebastien Thinel and an even strength, unassisted goal from Jonathan Labelle. Pete Rouleau gave fans a little reprieve when he scored a powerplay goal of his own at the 19:29 mark with a little help from Justin Kinnunen and Tyler Skworchinski. The period ended with the score at 4-2 and with Odessa outshooting the Brahmas again, this time 15-14.

The game was sealed 28 seconds into the third period when Mike Lesperance took a pass from Jean Bourbeau fed by Colin Circelli and put it past David Cacciola to provide the final score of 5-2. Needless to say, but I will anyway, the Jacks outshot the bulls 10-5 in the third.

Juha Toivonen stopped 27 of 29 shots to earn his fifth win of the year in net for the Jacks. David Cacciola takes the loss for the Brahmas and his record goes to 1-2-0.

The Jackalopes outshot Texas 41-29. The Brahmas, who came into the game with the third-best power play in the CHL (26.53 percent), were 1-for-11.

The Brahmas go to 4-3-1 and will host the 7-1-0 Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs on Sunday at 3:05pm.

You can view the box score here

You can view photos here

Photo Credit: Robert Keith

The Jacks are back in town!

Paul Gillis' Odessa team in for their third visit to NYTEX this season

The Odessa Jackalopes are back in town for their third meeting with the Texas Brahmas this season. The Jacks are coming off a win last night in which they were responsible for the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees' first loss of the season. Tonight's game is the last of a three-game road trip in which the Jacks have defeated the Laredo Bucks 5-2 and the Killer Bees 5-4.

The Texas Brahmas beat the Jacks in their pre-season match 3-2 in overtime. The bulls also provided the Jacks their first regular season loss with a score of 7-3.

The Jackalopes have the lead in the Southwest Division with 13 points and a 6-2-1 record. They are 6-1-0 on the road with their only road loss being the aforementioned 7-3 trouncing by the Brahmas.

Watch for solid performances by forwards Sebastien Thinel and Dominic Leveille who lead the Jacks in scoring with 17 and 16 points, respectively. Netminder Alexandre Vincent is fourth in the league with a 2.21 GAA and a .929 save percentage. I anticipate he'll get the start tonight although he played last night. Juha Toivonen has been thoroughly solved by the Brahmas in the past two meetings.

The 4-2-1 Brahmas are coming off a 4-2 road loss against the Oklahoma City Blazers last night. They are 2-0-0 at home so far this season and expect to take advantage of a travel-weary Jacks team. The Brahmas have the advantage of being third in the league with a 26.53 powerplay percentage. The bulls went three for seven on powerplay opportunities in the last meeting. The bulls are the second least penalized team in the league and while they still need some improvement on the penalty killing, they've done well against the Jacks.

Expect a strong performance from the Brahmas tonight in front of the home crowd at NYTEX. Expect a win!

The game starts at 7:05pm. If you have a good reason for not being there, catch it on Nifty-TV.

Photo Credit: Robert Keith

Texas Brahmas take 4-2 loss

Andy Franck, Blazers improve to 7-0-2

In his ninth consecutive start, Oklahoma Blazers goaltender Andy Franck was able to hold off the Texas Brahmas who lost 4-2 in the first of seven meetings between the two clubs this season. Oklahoma City remains unbeaten in regulation for the 2008-09 season.

The game began with fast, aggressive skating from both teams but after just two minutes of play, the momentum of the game was slowed for a glass repair. The Blazers scored first at the 12:35 mark when Kevin McLeod was stripped of the puck by Robin Gomez who took a shot that was stopped by Brett Jeager. But rookie right wing Simon Lambert was able to score on the rebound with an assist by Jason Murfitt. The Brahmas were outshot 14-8 in the period.

The second period was much tougher, physically for both teams. Several players went to the bench with minor injuries including Grant Jacobsen who took a puck to the face and Blazer Jason Seery who suffered a severe cut to his hand. The Blazers took a 2-0 lead on a powerplay opportunity when Oriel McHugh took a cross-ice feed from Jeff MacDermid to put it past Jaeger on the high-glove side at the 3:53 mark. Ted Vandermeer was also credited with the assist.

The Brahmas answered with a powerplay goal of their own at the 6:42 mark when Pete Rouleau tipped a bouncing puck in on the far side of the crease with an assist from defensemen Mike Vellinga and Kevin McLeod. The Brahmas played excellent team defense and the period ended with the Brahmas holding the Blazers to four shots to their ten, giving each team 18 after 40 minutes.

Brahmas defenseman Kevin Mcleod opened up scoring in the third period with an even-strength goal at the 7:16 mark with the assist from Pete Rouleau and Mike Vellinga. It was McLeod's first goal of the season. The 2-2 score held for exactly one minute when Simon Lambert drove the puck into an empty net after Brett Jaeger left the crease thinking the puck was going to round the boards; instead it took an odd bounce, setting up the deflection to give Oklahoma the 3-2 lead. Justin Kinnunen nearly tied it up again but his shot hit the post with 6:40 left to play. The Blazers sealed the win with another powerplay goal; this time by Jeff MacDermid with the assist from Ted Vandermeer and Stacey Bauman with just over three minutes left in the game.

The Blazers improved to 7-0-2 as does goaltender Andy Frank. The former Youngstown Steelhound is now first in the CHL with a 1.52 GAA and second with a .937 save percentage.

There were no skirmishes in tonight's game despite the physical play. Penalties were somewhat light; Texas was called for 12 minutes on 6 minors and Oklahoma City for 14 minutes on 7 minors. The Brahmas were one for seven on powerplay opportunities. They are third in the league with a 26.53 powerplay percentage.

Brahmas Pete Rouleau, Kevin McLeod and Mike Vellinga each had two points on the night. Brett Jaeger took the loss and is now 3-1-1 after 6 games played.

The Brahmas will return home to face the Odessa Jackalopes on Saturday night at the NYTEX Sports Centre.

You can view the box score here

Texas Brahmas face the Oklahoma Blazers tonight

Tough road game at Ford Center

The 4-1-1 Texas Brahmas will meet the 2008-09 Oklahoma City Blazers team for the first time this season tonight at the Ford Center. The two teams will meet a total of seven times this season; four times at the Ford Center and three times at the NYTEX Sports Centre.

The game is expected to be a hard-fought contest between the former conference opponents, with Oklahoma City having made it this far without a regulation loss at 6-0-2. With 14 points, they currently have a four point lead in the Northeast Division over Bossier-Shreveport. The Blazers have played in five one-goal games going 3-0-2 in those contests. They are also 3-0-2 at the Ford Center.

Expect a strong showing by rookie right wing Simon Lambert who has 11 points (6 G, 5 A) in eight games played and has a +4 rating.

The Brahmas biggest concern may be how to solve netminder Andy Franck, who will get his ninth consecutive start tonight. Head coach Doug Sauter said he would keep Franck until he gets a loss. The star goaltender has been in net for every minute this season (most in the league at 493:58) and has a 1.46 GAA (2nd in the CHL) and a .939 save percentage (3rd in the CHL). Dating back to last season, the all-star goalie is 15-0-3.

The Brahmas are 2-1-1 on the road thus far and will start goaltender Brett Jaeger (3-0-1) tonight. Jaeger has a 2.47 GAA (7th in the CHL) and a .921 save percentage (tied for 6th in the CHL).

Special teams will be key tonight. The Brahmas are second in the league with a 28.6% power play (12 of 42) and the Blazers have had the most power play chances in the league with 84. They are 10th in the league connecting at 16.7%.

The game begins at 7:05pm and can be watched on Nifty-TV.

Image Credit: Oklahoma City Blazers

Aaron Davis traded

Veteran forward goes to the Rocky Mountain Rage

Confirming a rumor that has been circulating for over a week, Aaron Davis has been traded to the Rocky Mountain Rage for future considerations, it was announced today.

Davis, 29, was signed as a free agent during the off-season. In six games played with the Brahmas, Davis scored three points (1 G, 2 A) on 12 shots and served six penalty minutes.

Davis played last season with the Mississippi RiverKings, where he recorded 45 points (21 G, 24 A) in 48 games played. The seventh-year professional earned a spot in the CHL All-Star Game, but an injury prevented him from participating in the event.

Davis has tallied 232 points (82 G, 150 A) in 313 games played during his career, the majority of which has been spent in the CHL.

“I’ve had my eye on Aaron the last couple of years, so I was pretty excited when the opportunity presented itself to get him from Texas,” said Rage Head Coach and General Manager Tracy Egeland. “He’s a point a game guy and a number one center, which is really tough to find.”

The Brahmas roster has been heavy with forwards and it was expected that Dan Wildfong would make a change this week.

Photo Credit: Robert Keith

Jordan Cameron leaving the EC Hannover Indians

Despite strong play in Germany, Cameron leaves on good terms

According to the EC Hannover Indians website, former Texas Brahma Jordan Cameron has requested, and received, permission to leave the team for personal reasons.

This is a loose translation from the German on the team's website:

The Hannover Indians have a new striker under contract. Rob Hisey immediately joins the squad and will make his debut (after the Deutschland Cup break) at EHC Klostersee.

The 24-year-old Canadian is not unknown in Hannover. He played in the 2006-07 season for the Hannover Scorpions of the German Ice Hockey League. For the Oberliga (Upper league). Hisey is an extraordinary addition. He has played since 2005 exclusively in the top leagues in Finland, Germany, Austria and Sweden. Hisey came in on Saturday morning and immediately joined his new teammates on the ice.

The new signing was necessary because top striker Jordan Cameron will be returning to his Canadian homeland. This was requested for private reasons and he gave 10 days notice prior to termination of his contract.

According to Indians coach Joe West:

"Jordan asked me to honor his request. We would have gladly remained in Hannover but he has a young family and his wife wanted to return to Canada. We asked him if he would still commit to the weekend game we had prepared for in Leipzig and he agreed. We thank him very much."

The story can be read here.

During Cameron's time with the Indians, he played in 13 games, scoring 14 points (6 G, 8 A) with three penalty minutes served.

So what's next for Jordan Cameron? The 6' 4", 218 pound right wing was the Texas Brahmas leading scorer in the 2007-08 campaign, notching 64 points (30 G, 34 A) in 57 regular season games. During the playoff run, Cameron played in all 14 games, contributing 13 points (3 G, 10 A).

Will he return to the Brahmas for the remainder of the season or make his presence known elsewhere? Only time will tell, but I can assure you, Brahmas fans have their fingers crossed.

Photo Credit: EC Hannover Indians