INDEPENDENCE, Mo. – It’s hard enough to beat a team multiple times over the course of an entire season, however the Missouri Mavericks seemed to throw traditional thinking to the wayside during their inaugural season.
The Mavericks celebrate a win
Not only did the proximity of these two teams make them a safe bet to become bitter rivals, but those who watched the 10 contests between these two franchises could feel the palpable energy in the arenas each night.
An expansion franchise can expect many bumps and bruises along the road; however the Mavericks seemed to find a sense of comfort when a match-up with the Thunder was looming ahead – the first-year squad from Missouri somehow found a way to win all 10 meetings with the Thunder.
Even at the beginning of the season, when the Mavericks lost ten of their first 14 games, their four wins came against (guess who) the Wichita Thunder. While two of the 10 games were decided in either overtime or a shootout, the other eight contests were not as evenly matched.
Let’s take a deeper look inside the numbers:
Mavericks Thunder
| Wins | 10 | 0 |
| Goals Scored | 42 | 14 |
| Shots on Goal | 344 | 257 |
| Power play % | 19.5% | 6.7% |
| Goals Against Avg. | 1.40 | 4.20 |
| Save % | .946 | .878 |
Jeff Christian
Not only was the offense impressive, but the goaltending, which proved to be the Achilles heel of the Mavericks for most of the season, was exemplary, accomplishing two shutouts to go along with the jaw-dropping statistics listed in the table above.
Only time will tell if the Thunder can flip the switch and exact some revenge, h owever one thing is for certain – the tremendous postseason journey for the Mavericks would not have happened without the success that they achieved against their foes from just down Interstate 35.
This is the first in a series of 10 highlights from the Missouri Mavericks’ inaugural season. Stay tuned to Pro Hockey News for more to come.
Contact the author at joe.rozycki@prohockeynews.com
Contact the photographer at les.stockton@prohockeynews.com
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