Friday: El Paso Rhinos 2 @ Amarillo Wranglers 3 – Rhinos are on the road this week as the Wranglers play host to a two-game series in beautiful Amarillo, Texas. Early game is a bit of a rough one for both teams’ offense as we saw no goals in the first period. The Wranglers’ Grayson Gerhard decides to step up and take a goal right at the start of the second for a 1-0 lead that would go uncontested for the next ten minutes. Once we hit the mid game though, Rhinos kick it in to high gear and start playing some aggressive hockey. Over the next few minutes we see some back-and-forth as Eddie Shepler takes one for the Rhinos, followed by the Wranglers answering in kind and once more for the Rhinos as Luke Lindsay gives us our second goal. At the end of the second we’d witness a 2-2 tie as both teams break for intermission. In a repeat of the first period the third also is scoreless as Michael Manzi and Connor McDonough both play flawless defense for their respective teams and send us into overtime. Ultimately it would be the Wranglers who took Game 1 as they steal a goal at 2:47 into OT. Final score: Rhinos 2 to Wranglers 3.
Saturday: El Paso Rhinos 1 @ Amarillo Wranglers 4 – Rhinos aim for revenge for last night’s overtime defeat as they square off once more against the Wranglers for Game #2. Rhinos are first on the board tonight as Medrick Bolduc earns himself a goal at just past halfway through the first. Wranglers wrap up the period by taking one for themselves as well, ending the first period at 1-1. The second period was all Wranglers who take two goals and increase their lead over the Rhinos to 3-1. With one last goal from Topi Puikkonen, the Rhinos fall once more to the Wranglers in a 4-1 defeat.
