This is the second meeting between these two teams this season, with the first being a couple of days shy of a month ago in a home-and-home series. The Brahmas convincingly won both games with a 5-2 win in the Children’s Health StarCenter in Euless and a 9-3 win at the NYTEX Sports Centre in North Richland Hills.
In the month since the Jr. Stars have bolstered their roster with new additions, found scoring depth throughout the roster, and have come together as a team with galvanizing wins, an observation that Head Coach Tom Train is pleased to see.
The Jr. Stars enter the weekend 5th in the South Division with a 5-8-0-0 record, going an even .500 in the last ten games, and have looked impressive in stretches during that span spreading the scoring throughout their roster. This help has been goals coming from the blue line, with Kyle Russell and Ozzy MacDonald making significant impacts against the Louisiana Drillers last weekend.
The Texas Brahmas are undefeated and 1st in the South Division with an 11-0-0-0 record. Minus the two games against the Jr. Stars, they faced off against the Ice Hawks for six games and the Atlanta Capitals last weekend for three games. Their offense is clicking on all cylinders with a goal differential of +42.
Brahmas forward Erik Vrkoc has won the Bauer Hockey NA3HL Forward of the Month for October with 13 goals and 12 assists for 25 points and leads his team in points. On the other side of the ice, the leading scorer for the Jr. Stars, forward Ilnur Madiarov, has 11 goals and 10 assists for 21 points and claimed the Bauer Hockey Star of the Week for the South Division back in late September.
The battle between these two forwards is going to be a treat for everyone.
South Division Standings:
- Texas Brahmas — 22 points
- Texas RoadRunners — 22 points
- Louisiana Drillers— 15 points
- El Paso Rhinos — 10 points
- Mid-Cities Jr. Stars — 10 points
- Austin Ice Bats — 6 points
- Oklahoma City Ice Hawks — 5 points
- Atlanta Capitals — 0 points
Mid-Cities Jr. Stars Record:
Overall: 5-8-0-0
Last Ten: 5-5-0-0
Home Record: 3-3-0-0
Away Record: 2-5-0-0
Texas Brahmas Record:
Overall: 11-0-0-0
Last Ten: 10-0-0-0
Home Record: 7-0-0-0
Away Record: 4-0-0-0
Mid-Cities Jr. Stars Leading Scorers:
#27 Ilnur Madiarov (11G 10A 21P)
#7 Kyle Russell (5G 9A 14P)
#91 Michael Kennedy (5G 8A 13P)
Texas Brahmas Leading Scorers:
#18 Erik Vrkoc (13G 12A 25P)
#94 Aleksandr Gamzatov (7G 13A 20P)
#9 Michael Imala (6G 14A 20P)