Amarillo, TX – The Amarillo Wranglers defeated the Colorado Grit by the final score of 4-3 on Friday night at the Budweiser Bull Pen. A late power-play goal by Ben Ivey in the third period helped complete the comeback for the Wranglers.
The Wranglers and Grit met for the 10th time this season on Friday night, kicking off a three-game set to close out the regular season at the Budweiser Bull Pen. Despite having clinched a playoff spot a few weeks prior, the Wranglers were still fighting for home-ice advantage while Colorado looked to snap a nine-game losing streak. Wranglers goaltender Connor McDonough got the call between the pipes making his 49th appearance of the season with a record of 25-16-5-2, a 2.48 GAA, and a .907 save percentage on the season. Colorado turned to Jack Erickson between the pipes, who in 35 previous starts carried a record of 9-21-2, a 4.08 GAA, and an 8.75 save percentage into the matchup.
Right out of the gate, Colorado made it clear that they had come to play. Just 54 seconds into the game the Grit drew a penalty and quickly scored 2:32 into the game on the power play to take an early 1-0 lead. Landon West was able to stash a rebound past McDonough from Jordan Gudridge and Bowen Burke for the game’s opening tally. But the Grit weren’t done there, as just 24 seconds after the West goal Brayden Junker scored his 1st goal of the season from Hunter Cooke and Christian Carter to extend the Colorado lead to 2-0 within the game’s opening three minutes. While the Grit scored the first two goals, the Wranglers responded well by holding the Grit to four shots on goal since Junker’s goal and getting some opportunities offensively of their own. The Wranglers ended up outshooting Colorado 14-9 despite trailing 2-0 and built up some momentum heading into the second period.
Amarillo got on the board 1:38 into the second period when Jack McDonald forced a turnover in the far circle of the Colorado zone and went five-hole on Erickson for his 13th goal of the season. McDonald’s goal made it a 2-1 game and gave him his 20th point in 10 games on the season series. He has scored at least one point in every game against Colorado this season. Both sides traded chances in the second frame, but ultimately McDonald’s goal was the only goal of the second period and Colorado still held the lead after two periods of play.
Just like the previous two periods, the third period saw a team score a goal in the opening three minutes. This time it was Magnus Gadowsky scoring his first goal as a Wrangler to tie the game up at 2-2. Luke Morris won a faceoff in the right circle and played the puck to the point for Cole Semeniuk, who drove down the wall and found Gadowsky out in front of Erickson for the tap-in score 2:25 into the third. With 13 minutes remaining in the period, Ben Ivey connected with Jack Ivey from the corner to the right circle for a quick shot and score to put Amarillo up 3-2. Jack Ivey’s goal was his 31st of the season and like McDonald, he has registered a point in every game in the season series. The Grit responded to tie the game 3-3 with 5:10 left on the clock as Sheldon Rioux tapped home his 2nd goal of the season from Payton Miller. With time dwindling down, Roman Zap and Noah Grolnic got into a tussle that ultimately ended up in a Wranglers power play with 3:21 remaining in regulation. In need of a goal and with a golden opportunity in their hands, the Wranglers delivered one of the finest moments of the season when Jack Ivey set up Ben Ivey for a one-timer on the right circle for the go-ahead goal with 2:57 left on the clock to put Amarillo up 4-3. The Wranglers shut down Colorado’s bid to tie the game late earning their 31st victory of the season and reached the 70-point mark for the second time in franchise history. Connor McDonough stopped 23/26 shots in his 26th victory of the season.
Amarillo’s win secured a date with the New Mexico Ice Wolves in the play-in round of the 2024 Robertson Cup Playoffs. The Wranglers can still claim home ice if the Ice Wolves lose to the Warriors in any fashion on Saturday night and the Wranglers sweep the remaining two games vs Colorado on Saturday and Sunday. Only two games remain in the regular season as the Wranglers continue their hunt for home ice in the play-in, make sure you get your tickets at panhandletickets.com or tune in on NATV or YouTube.