“Rampage Roundup” is a weekly feature at The Sunshine Skate to keep you in touch with your favorite future Panthers.
Summary:
The Rampage headed to Iowa last week on a short road-trip, playing the Wild back-to-back on December 11th and 12th.
The December 11th game, with Michael Houser in goal, ended in a 1–4 loss. Following a tight first period, Iowa scored only 24 seconds into the second period but the Rampage countered quickly, with a short-handed goal by Ryan Martindale. The Wild scored a powerplay goal on a Mackenzie Weegar roughing penalty in the third and this swung the momentum Iowa’s way. Despite their loss, the Rampage outshot the Wild 34–20 and it wasn’t until the final 3 minutes of the game that the final two goals fell, the last one being a short-handed empty netter.
The following night the two teams faced off again, this time resulting in a 3–0 shutout win for Dan Ellis. With a goal each period, the Rampage played with more aggression and as a result, more penalties, but managed to complete the PK each time. Connor Brickley was first to score, followed by Mackenzie Weegar’s first professional goal during the second period, assisted by Rocco Grimaldi. Despite Ellis’ 20 saves, the Rampage also had some luck as Iowa had two goals waved off during the second period, putting a damper on their “Teddy Bear Toss” night.
Impact players:
Ryan Martindale (4G, 1A) had the only Rampage point on Thursday with an unassisted shorty.
The loss to the Wild on the 11th ended the point streaks of both Drew Shore and Mark Mancari. However, they both came back on the 12th and each player notched an assist.
Connor Brickley (8G, 7A) had the game-winning goal on Friday, along with goals from Bobby Butler (11G, 10A) and Mackenzie Weegar (1G, 3A). Butler, who has so far had a disappointing December, has only one point in his last five games.
Upcoming games:
Up next, the Rampage take a road-trip once again to Charlotte, facing off against the Checkers on December 19th and 21st. The 9–15–2 Checkers are ranked second to last in the West Division, only ahead of the Wild. This will be a good opportunity for the Rampage (15–8–2) to catch up with the Oklahoma City Barons in the division standings before a very busy January schedule. The team will have to make do without Shane O’Brien during the trip, as he serves his two-game suspension after returning from Florida on Tuesday.
Natalija can be reached for contact on Twitter.
