Mavericks: Reid In The Lead!

When we last checked in on the Flames’ ECHL affiliate in Kansas City, the Mavericks were only two points back of the last playoff spot in the Western Conference and they had two games in hand! Things haven’t changed a ton, except the gap to catch Tulsa is limited to one point. KC took two-of-three in a series against the Oilers in their effort to chase them down, and are still sitting on two games in hand. The Rapid City Rush are sitting in sixth place with the same 26 point mark, but they’ve got the lower winning percentage due to having played four more games.

GAME BY GAME:

FEB 21st- KC Mavericks 1 @ Wichita Thunder 2 –LOSS

FEB 23rd- KC Mavericks 3 vs Wichita Thunder 4 – LOSS (OT)

FEB 26th- Tulsa Oilers 3 @ KC Mavericks 1 –LOSS

FEB 27th- Tulsa Oilers 1 @ KC Mavericks 3 – WIN

FEB 28th- KC Mavericks 5 @ Tulsa Oilers 2 – WIN

THE SQUAD:

After taking home ECHL Player of the Month honours for January, Mavs star forward Brodie Reid continues to lead the ECHL scoring race! Reid has added a pair of goals and a pair of assists in his last five contests, and he now holds a two point lead on the race to the scoring title. He’s also leading the special teams charge with 5 power play goals and 8 power play assists on the year, tops in the league for both categories, and is sitting on a 1.19 points per game clip.

Brodie Reid isn’t the only Maverick getting acknowledged with league honours, as Darik Angeli was named the February 22-28 ECHL Player of the Week! With a whopping eight assists and a goal, Angeli racked up nine points in just four games.

There’s been no shortage of news in the blue paint since New Years, and it hasn’t much slowed down. Matt Greenfield was signed to a contract on January 9th after Andrew Shortridge was sidelined due to injury. Mario Vrab was picked up as an emergency backup on February 5th, but released on February 8th. Sean Romeo was signed to a Standard Player Contract on January 28th after Joel Rumpel was loaned to Iowa of the AHL the day before. Matt Ginn was acquired in a trade with Greenville on February 12th, and has seen five games of action so far with his new team. Goalie Angus Redmond was signed to a Special Player Contract on Valentine’s Day but loaned to the AHL Toronto Marlies only two days later. Andrew Shortridge has also been called up to the Stockton Heat as of February 25th.

UP NEXT:

The Mavs will hit the road for their next five games, kicking off with a tough test against the 20-win Indy Fuel from the Eastern Conference. They’ll rematch with the Wichita Thunder for one afterwards, then square off with the Rapid City Rush for a three game set to try to keep them at bay one spot back in the playoff chase. Keep it tuned to Matchsticks & Gasoline to track the Mavericks in their playoff chase!

by MilhouseFirehouse