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Wednesday, October 25, 2000

Tough road trip awaits IceRays
Schedule shakeup means team will log a lot of miles by Saturday
By Matt Young
Caller-Times
Dustin McArthur has a plan for the next four days.
   "I think we'd all better eat our Wheaties," the Corpus Christi IceRays forward said.
   McArthur and the IceRays may need some extra energy as they embark on a stretch that has them playing four games in the next four days.
   The IceRays begin the grueling trek with a home game against Fort Worth at 7:05 p.m. today at Memorial Coliseum, then travel to Central Texas for a game Thursday, then return home to play Central Texas on Friday at the Coliseum before packing up and heading to Lake Charles for Saturday's game.
   "We're going to get some bumps and bruises every night, and then have to ride the bus to the next game," IceRays left wing Cory Evans said. "We'll try to get some sleep on the bus and make sure we're well-rested for every game."
   The schedule is owed to the league's shutdown of the expansion Tucson Scorch shortly after opening day. The shutdown threw schedules into disarray and broke up what was supposed to be a two-game homestand with an extra trip to Central Texas on Thursday.
   "I'm sure physically it won't be easy, but I think by the time we get to the third and fourth games, it will be mostly mental," McArthur said. "It's something we'll have to fight through and gut it out."
   While his players bemoan the schedule, IceRays coach Taylor Hall insists the four-day stretch won't be so bad.
   "When I was a player, I found it easier to play in the third and fourth games of a stretch like this, because you don't have any time to just sit around, and that's good," said Hall, who played professionally for 12 years. "I know guys like to play games much more than they like to practice, and we won't be practicing much during this stretch because of all the travel, so that should make the guys happy."
   His players could make Hall happy if they could cut down on the penalties. The IceRays, who rely on a physical style of play, were called for 19 penalties that led to four power-plays goals in their 7-1 loss to Central Texas on Saturday.
   "We want to play physical, and the rules of hockey allow you to play physical, but we've got to cut down on the stupid penalties," Hall said. "We've got to cut down on the retaliation, keep our elbows down and keep our gloves out of faces. We can still play physical and not get called for so many penalties if we do it the right way."
   After opening the season with three straight wins, the IceRays lost a shootout against El Paso and got thumped by Central Texas in their last two games.
   "Whether our last loss was 3-1 or 7-1, it doesn't really matter, because we still know we're a good hockey team," McArthur said. "We were riding pretty high after we started the season with three straight wins, but maybe the last two games has brought us back down to ice level a little bit. We'll be OK."
   Staff writer Matt Young can be reached at 886-3702 or by e-mail at youngm@caller.com

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