Amarillo, Tx– The Wranglers suffered their first loss of the season with a 4-to-3 tally in the shootout Friday night.
With the shootout loss, the Wranglers have earned at least a point in each game this season.
The night marked the home opener for the Wranglers’ 2022-23 season with the complete team introductions and alternate jerseys. A crowd of over 1,800 would file into the Bullpen to watch the Wranglers battle the mudbugs.
The opening period would not yield any scoring as both Carter Clafton and Simon Bucheler would shut the door. Both teams would showcase their speed to generate scoring chances.
The Mudbugs would eventually open the scoring when Garrett Steele tucked home a rebound from Logan Gotinsky at 8:46 of the second period. Amarillo would quickly answer with a 2-on-0 chance, and Tommy Chunchukov would bury a one-time pass from Connor McNaughton to tie the game.
Moments later, Chunchukov would again find the back of the net with a shorthanded goal to give Amarillo their first lead of the night. Forward Chase Davis would make some noise with a big hit and ensuing fight with Mudbugs defenseman Ryan Austin. Amarillo would strike again late in the period with a Roman Zap goal to give the Wranglers a 3-to-1 lead going into the third period.
Shreveport would answer with a pair of goals in the third by Logan Gotinsky to tie the game. Zack Kent would drop the gloves in the third when he spared with Mudbugs defenseman Liam Fleet. Neither team would find the game-winning goal in regulation, and the game would go overtime.
The overtime period did not result in any chances or goals for either team and for the second straight time, the Wranglers and Mudbugs would go to the shootout.
Shreveport would get a goal from Niklas Miller in the second round of the shootout, and in the third round, Dominik Bartecko would score to keep the competition going. The Mudbugs would get the game-winning goal in round five by Garrett Steele.
Carter Clafton would make 41 saves on 44 shots faced. The Wranglers fell to 6-0-0-1 and picked up their 13th point. Shreveport would secure their fourth win of the year.
