Friday: Oklahoma Warriors 4 @ El Paso Rhinos 3 – The Robertson cup is in full swing! Rhinos are hosting the Warriors this week for the first game of the South Division bracket! Warriors take to the with a strong presence, catching a few penalties in the opening moments of the match. Control of the puck changes hands several times as both teams aim to rally their forces. Through all this fighting it would be the Rhinos’ Gaige Giblin to take the first goal of the night off a powerplay with just under four minutes to go in the opening period. Oklahoma wouldn’t let this go unanswered as Trace Day ties up the game back at 1-1 just a minute later. With just under a minute to go the Rhinos would take back the lead as Massimiliano Monson sinks one more in the net. At the end of the first period Rhinos lead the Warriors 2-1.
First intermission is all wrapped up and we take back to the ice where we see a lull in the action. Only a single penalty is handed out through the entirety of the second period, allowing time to flow freely as the puck zips up and down the rink. Dominik Kiss brings the game back to a tie yet again for the Warriors, this time at 2-2, followed late in the period by Jackson Hone with just 30 seconds to go to set Oklahoma square in the lead at 3-2.
After one more intermission, Hone finds himself in the perfect spot to double the Warriors’ lead over the Rhinos at just over a minute in to the third, earning himself his second goal of the night while increasing the Warriors’ lead to 4-2. Unfortunately for the Rhinos it would be an uphill battle for the rest of the period and with one final goal from Ian Kastamo the Warriors would take Game #1 with a 4-3 win.
Rhinos are up on shots tonight with 36 shots on goal to Warriors’ 24, goaltender Michael Modelski saving 20.
Saturday: Oklahoma Warriors 1 @ El Paso Rhinos 5 – Warriors hit the Sun City ice again tonight after last night’s win to a rejuvenated Rhino herd ready to take revenge. In a similar fashion to last night Gaige Giblin is once again first to score, giving Rhinos the early lead. Players on both side got a little rowdy and contact was no stranger to anyone tonight as the tensions rise. Kamden Kaiser snags himself a powerplay goal in the later half of the period to put us up 2-0 by periods’ end.
Warriors try to brute force their way through Rhino defense at the start of the second where Keaton Martin managed to find an opening for a goal, putting Oklahoma on the board with Rhinos still up 2-1. The middle of the game now is all about stamina as the Rhinos whittle away at the Warriors’ defense. Tommy Shore is first to find a gap in the wall and takes a power play goal at the 6:15 mark. Troy Hunka follows not too far behind for yet another score and Rhinos are now sitting pretty at 4-1 with just a few minutes to go in the second. Monson rounds out the period with one final goal, putting us up 5-1 headed in to the third period.
The third period is merely a formality at this point as Michael Modelski holds the Warriors’ at bay, preventing any scoring and the clock runs down to a whopping 5-1 Rhino victory for Game #2.
36 Shots on Goal tonight by the Warriors leading over a Rhino 27, Modelski earning himself 35 saves.
Sunday: Oklahoma Warriors 1 @ El Paso Rhinos 4 – Game #3 is here folks. Competitive spirits are high as the winner of this game will advance to the semi-finals. Troy Hunka hits the ground running this period taking two goals starting 11 minutes in to the period, giving us a solid buffer while the team adjusts their strategy. Kamden Kaiser follows suit with a power play goal a few minutes later and with no scoring from the Warriors we end period 1 with a 3-0 lead.
Warriors reassess their gameplan over first intermission and come back with a more aggressive plan to try and claw back some points. A few minor penalties are dished out, but no real ground is gained by either side, sending us in to the third period with the score still 3-0, Rhinos leading.
Trace Day manages to put the Warriors on the board early in the third, but it might be too little, too late as the Rhinos still have a two-point lead over them at 3-1. Alexander Stephen put the final nail in the coffin with 10:44 left in the period to give us our fourth, and final goal of the night. Warriors are unable to break through in the remainder of regulation time, giving your El Paso Rhinos a ticket to the Semi-Finals!
Warriors SOG: 36 to Rhinos 24, Modelski saving 35.
