The Odessa Jackalopes are headed to Oklahoma City to take on the Warriors for the 1st time this season in what will be the most crucial games of the season to date in terms of standings.
The Odessa Jackalopes currently sit in 7th place in the South division standings. They are five points behind both the 5th place New Mexico Ice Wolves and the 6th place Oklahoma Warriors. Last weekend, the Jacks played three games in four days. Friday’s contest, the Jacks hopped out to a 4-1 lead going into the 3rd period, but Shreveport would gain some life in the last five minutes of the game and strike twice. The Jacks defense and goaltending would eventually hang on for the 4-3 victory. Saturday’s game was much less dramatic as we saw the 1st hat trick of the season by an Odessa Jackalope. James Richman scored three goals in one period, this was the 1st hat trick for the Jacks since Emerson Goode scored a hat trick last season. Ironically, he did it in one period as well and in a minute less than Richman. Michael Kadlecik would also notch two important power play goals to propel the Jacks to the 5-2 win. That was the first time all season that the Jacks scored three times on the power play (3/7). Then came the 3rd game against the Lone Star Brahmas on MLK day. The Brahmas hopped out to a 1-0 lead in the 1st, although it was a great period from the Jacks as they outshot the Brahmas 15-13. The 2nd period was a complete 180 as the Brahmas outshot the Jacks 14-2 and tacked on an insurance goal. The Brahmas would score three more times in the 3rd to take the 5-0 win over the Jacks.
Taking a look at the Jacks’ opponent for the next four games, the Oklahoma Warriors have caught fire as of late. They’ve won their last four contests, which have all been against the aforementioned Lone Star Brahmas. They will have another home-and-home series as the Jacks visit Oklahoma this weekend, and then Oklahoma will be in Odessa next weekend to begin a seven-game homestand for the Jackalopes. Similarly to the Jackalopes, the Warriors power play has struggled this season. They currently sit 22nd in the league with a 14.6% power play, while the Jacks are 25th in the league at 13.2%. However, the bright spot is the penalty kill for the Warriors, they operate at an 85% proficiency, which is good for 7th in the league.
This should prove to be a fun weekend series between these two teams, the Jacks are looking for redemption against the Warriors, as last season the Jacks went 0-8-0 against the eventual Robertson Cup winners. The weekend schedule for the games is as follows:
Friday, January 19th, 7:15 P.M.
Saturday, January 20th, 7:15 P.M.
These games can be streamed on the NAHL’s streaming service NAHLTV.
Reminder Jacks fans single game tickets are on sale and season ticket packages are still available. You can find them online or call 432-552-7825 and Tania can help you out. Come be a part of the Jacks family as we celebrate 27 continuous years of hockey in Odessa!