Tornado drop two in Wichita Falls
by John Tranchina

The Texas Tornado can only hope this is not how things go if they get to the post-season.

In their second straight contest in the unfriendly confines of Kay Yeager Coliseum in Wichita Falls against their potential playoff opponent, the Tornado were unable to complete a valiant third period comeback attempt and lost 5-3 Saturday night.

After dropping a 7-3 decision Friday, the Tornado, despite playing well in spurts, ended up falling twice in a row in their first foray out on the road in two months. After a mammoth 15-game homestand from mid-December through last weekend in which they went 10-4-1 and climbed back into the playoff picture, the Tornado lost their NAHL-high 12th straight contest on the road.

They maintained a six-point lead on Alaska for the fourth and final playoff spot in the South Division, but have to look at this as a lost weekend against the division leader that they would face in the first round of the playoffs if the season ended today.

After managing just one point in two close games last weekend at home against St. Louis, the NAHL’s overall leaders, the Tornado are now 0-3-1 in their last four.

Ryan Fuller scored early in the first period to give the Tornado an early 1-0 lead, but by the time they went into the first intermission, Texas trailed 2-1.

For Fuller, the goal was his seventh in his last nine games and the 66th of his NAHL career, moving him past Texas legend Tom Train into second on the franchise’s all-time list. Fuller generated scoring chances all night and overall gave an outstanding effort.

Sam Goodwin and Andrew Blazek also found the back of the net for the Tornado.

Entering the second period down 2-1, Texas very nearly tied it just 35 seconds in when Augie Hoffman fired a wrist shot from the right face-off circle that beat Wildcats goaltender Mike Jarboe, but rang off the far post.

Less than two minutes later, Wichita Falls surged ahead, as Brett Morrell drilled a slap shot from just inside the blue line that zipped through a maze of bodies in front and squeezed between the pads of Tornado netminder Tommy Callaghan to make it 3-1. Despite surrendering five goals, Callaghan made 37 saves, including several spectacular stops to keep the Tornado in the game.

Wichita Falls continued to press and extended their lead to three on Skylur Jameson’s 21st goal of the season at 7:42. After Hoffman blocked a shot by Nick Shkreli, Jameson scooped up the loose puck in the crease and slid it under Callaghan, who never saw it coming.

Texas got one back with 9:06 remaining in the second on Goodwin’s ninth goal in the last 10 games and 17th of the season. With the teams skating 4-on-4, Ben Van Lare set up the play by stealing the puck at his own blue line and carrying into the Wildcats’ zone on a 2-on-1. He fed a soft cross-ice pass to a charging Goodwin, who whipped a quick wrist shot top shelf past a lunging Jarboe to pull the Tornado to within 4-2.

Callaghan made a big save on Jameson about two minutes later to keep the Tornado in it, stretching to kick out a fierce wrist shot from the left face-off circle off the rush

Heading into the third down by two, Callaghan made another important stop just 24 seconds in when he kicked out the pad to deny Adam Cardwell’s one-timer from the left of the crease.

The Tornado countered with two prime chances of their own, but were unable to capitalize. First, one minute into the third, Sergei Korostin sped into the Wichita Falls zone and unleashed a wicked wrist shot that caught Jarboe in the mask before he bobbled it and managed to hang on.

Then, 20 seconds after that, Korostin had another golden opportunity as he received a nice pass from Fuller in the right corner, but Jarboe turned his one-timer aside.

Back down the other end of the ice, Wichita Falls managed to go up by three again on Sean McKenzie’s 13th of the year at 1:45. After Callaghan stopped Jeff McNeil’s wrist shot from the left circle, McKenzie collected the rebound in the slot and banged it into the open side of the net for a seemingly-insurmountable 5-2 lead.

But the Tornado would not quit and ratcheted up their intensity level. Van Lare nearly reduced the deficit by one with 4:35 gone when his wrist shot from low in the left circle clanked off the near-side post. The puck then landed in the crease and near-mayhem ensued as several different players converged on it.

Texas did get one back at 9:56, when Blazek led a 2-on-1 rush into the Wildcats’ zone. With Van Lare driving the net, Blazek launched a tricky wrist shot from the high slot that Jarboe made a nice shoulder save on, but the rebound bounced into the slot. Van Lare appeared to make a spectacular play by swatting it out of the air and past Jarboe before he barreled into both Jarboe and the crossbar.

The goal ended up being credited to Blazek - his eighth of the season - but it certainly looked like Van Lare was the one who knocked it in. Regardless, a full-on donneybrook erupted after the play, resulting in a drawn-out fight between Blake O’Connor and McNeil, which O’Connor got the better of.

The Tornado continued to pour on the pressure and just over a minute later, Korostin missed a glorious opportunity as the puck came to him at the right side of the crease. With Jarboe down on the other side of the crease and staring at an open net, Korostin fired it wide, looking to the rafters in disbelief afterwards.

With time winding down and the Tornado pressing, John Bullis had another impressive chance with 2:17 left, but his one-timer from the right circle, after Gustav Bengtson fed him out of the right corner, was thwarted by Jarboe, who made 22 saves on the night.
Coach Dwight Mullins pulled Callaghan for an extra attacker with 1:03 on the clock, but the Tornado were unable to put another one past Jarboe, although they came close with 40 seconds to go. Korostin whipped a quick wrister from the high slot that Jarboe stopped, but the rebound dropped to his feet and Van Lare almost whacked it home, but Jarboe managed to reach back and smother it in the crease.

After a sub-par effort Friday night in a 7-3 loss, the Tornado rebounded to charge out of the gates quickly, getting the game’s first scoring opportunity just 1:35 in, as Korostin fired a wrist shot from the slot, but Wildcats’ starting goaltender Philip Graveline made the save.

Oddly, Wichita Falls then pulled Graveline, who played the night before, just 1:47 into the contest and replaced him with Jarboe.

The move didn’t pay off initially as the Tornado jumped out to the early lead soon after on Fuller’s 18th goal of the season at 3:42. John Kruse raced in on Jarboe off the left sideboards, but the puck bounced over his stick just as he was about to shoot from the top of the crease. Fuller, following up the play, slammed it past Jarboe for the 1-0 lead .

About 30 seconds later, an unusual situation unfolded, as Wildcats winger Adam Sponseller completely lost his cool after an altercation behind the Tornado net with defenseman Tyler Bowman. Sponseller hacked at Bowman all the way back up the ice behind the play, and when the play was whistled dead on a slashing penalty, Sponseller continued to attack Bowman, eventually goading him into a fight - which Bowman got the better of.

After being escorted to the penalty box, though, Sponseller then really lost his composure, as he tossed his helmet into the crowd, his glove and stick over the glass onto the ice and continued yelling at referee Dan Dreger. Eventually, he was ejected and escorted back onto the ice surface towards the door leading to the locker room and threw his jersey at the ref, then hurled his shoulder pads onto the ice before making a few expletive gestures and finally exiting.

The entire performance earned him a total of three different game misconducts and a total of 47 penalty minutes, which will likely result in at least a two-game suspension.

Somehow the classless display seemed to energize the Wildcats and they began to take control of the contest as the first period progressed. They missed a prime chance with 7:45 left in the period when Jameson received a nice pass in the high slot as the trailer on a 3-on-1. He made a pretty deke to his forehand, but just as he swept the puck around Callaghan on its way in, two players rammed into the goalpost and knocked the net off its moorings, nullifying any potential goal.

A minute later, however, Wichita Falls did get the equalizer as Grant Everett connected for his 18th goal of the year on a power play. Kent Detlefsen’s slap shot from just inside the blue line sailed just wide, but ricocheted quickly off the end boards and right to Everett, stationed just off the right post. As he fell down, Everett managed to lift the puck over Callaghan to tie it 1-1.

The Wildcats continued to enjoy the momentum and took the lead for good 1:24 before the first intermission on Detlefsen’s 21st goal of the season, by far the NAHL’s most by a defenseman. His one-timer blast from the high slot - after receiving a pass from Luke Salazar along the right sideboards - beat Callaghan over the shoulder.

So the Tornado, who had turned their season around after a disastrous November and early December, are now faced with a little more adversity on an 0-3-1 streak, but it should also be noted that the teams they lost to are two of the NAHL’s best. But the path doesn’t get any easier, as the club prepares to embark on a road trip to Alaska, with five games over the next two weekends against divisional opponents Fairbanks (next Friday and Saturday) and Kenai River and Alaska.

They don’t return home to the DejaBlue Arena in Frisco’s Dr Pepper StarCenter until Friday, March 7 when they face-off against Topeka (watch or listen to Tommy Daniels and myself with the call on b2 networks).

Until then, the Tornado must battle to remain ahead of Alaska in the race to the post-season and snap out of this little funk they have found themselves in.

THREE STARS

3. Luke Salazar, Wichita Falls (two assists, seven shots on goal)
2. Kent Detlefsen, Wichita Falls (one goal, one assist, five shots on goal)
1. Skylur Jameson, Wichita Falls (one goal, four shots on goal)

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