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The real surprise has come with the unexpected bounty of the Mudbugs and the Brahmas, two teams that have struggled with injuries and inconsistent play throughout the 64-game regular season. Two teams that were facing conference powerhouses and came away with a decided advantage heading back to their own barns.
The Eagles hadn’t lost the first two games of a playoff series at the
On Friday night, the Eagles led 3-0 through 48 minutes of play. Then the Mudbugs scored three straight special teams goals and forced the game into overtime, which they won with an unassisted strike by Joe Blaznek. On Saturday night, the teams tied the score up three times before the Mudbugs got a lucky bounce which led to the game-winner from Joe Ori.
The win was not without cost as the Mudbugs have probably lost net minder John DeCaro for the remainder of the post-season with a groin injury that cut short his time in the crease. But having eight-year veteran Ken Carroll as your backup is a major plus. DeCaro went 18 for 18 before coming out and although Carroll allowed three goals, he was solid when it counted the most; holding back the Eagles with 13:48 remaining in regulation.
Then Colorado, a solid road team, traveled to the CenturyTel Center where the Mudbugs went 7-3 in their final 10 regular season games and where they beat the Eagles in a (you guessed it) 4-3 contest on January 30th, the only regular season visit by Colorado. This time, the score was more pronounced. Despite being out shot 25-20, the Mudbugs took Game Three in a 3-1 contest, led by two goals from Travis Clayton.
Meanwhile, the Odessa Jackalopes, who dealt with little adversity in their 101-point regular season, could be on-track for what may be one of the greatest post-season collapses by a team that won a Governor’s Cup.
On Friday night, the Jackalopes and the Texas Brahmas played a seemingly even-matched contest for 40 minutes until the Brahmas exploded with a five-goal third period performance to take Game One with a 5-2 final.
Sudden death overtime was as dramatic as can be on Saturday night when Brahmas all-purpose forward Tyler Skworchinski beat Odessa net-minder Joel Martin with seven seconds left on the clock, sending the home team back to the locker room with their heads hung low and the prospect of the next two games at the NYTEX Sports Centre weighing heavily upon them.
Since their re-birth in the 2007-08 season, the Brahmas are 17-2 in the post-season at home with one loss to
No team has beaten the Brahmas twice at NYTEX in the playoffs. In fact, of the three teams that have played back-to-back games at NYTEX during the last three regular seasons (Bossier-Shreveport,
In addition, the Jackalopes have the dubious distinction of being the last CHL team to have over 100 points in the regular season and not win a playoff series (2001-02).
All that aside – don’t count the Eagles, Jackalopes or even the Mavericks out just yet – there could be some surprises left. Beginning on Wednesday night, you can expect some terrific battles between these six teams as the hunt for the 2010 Ray Miron President’s Cup continues.
Contact the author at robert.keith@prohockeynews.com
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