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Friday, Mar. 26, 1999
IceRays a success on, off the ice
Second-half suge lifts team's overall grades
By MARK BUTTON
Staff Writer

   Moments after Corpus Christi defeated Abilene, 3-1, in the IceRays' final regular-season game, a sweaty Chris Robertson sat slumped on the bench of his locker.
   "It's really been a fast year," he said looking around the room. "It was kind of like a quick day at work, where you don't have too many problems and things go pretty smoothly.
   "You look up and all of a sudden it's five o'clock."
   Not that it's quitting time now.
   Seventy games down, the IceRays now begin the 1998-99 Western Professional Hockey League playoffs and their quest for the league championship -- the President's Cup. On Jan. 3, the Caller-Times produced a midseason report on the progress of the IceRays, both on and off the ice. The postseason tests begin Saturday.
   First, though, the final regular season report card.
    Corpus Christi IceRays 1998-99 Regular Season Report Card

    Part I -- On the Ice
    * OVERALL: A-
    Corpus Christi finished the year 40-23-6, fourth-best in the WPHL. The IceRays held on to first place in the Central Division for most of the season -- 94 straight days at one point -- but finished second to Waco in the end.
   It was enough to secure a first-round bye, eluding the ever-dangerous best-of-three, first-round series.
   The IceRays improved dramatically since the Jan. 9 All Star break, most notably on defense. Behind the rookie goalie Jason Genik, who took over in goal on Jan. 26, the IceRays finished the season with the league's lowest goals-against average (3.00).
   Genik set WPHL records with his 2.10 goals-against average and .927 save percentage, establishing himself the league's best goalie over the half-season he played. Robertson, with his 109 points on 42 goals, was named the WPHL's Most Valuable Player.
   Coach Taylor Hall's club went 20-9-2 after the All Star Break, finished 11-0-2 in its last 13 home games and enters the playoffs on a six-game winning streak, the team's longest.
    * WIN/LOSS RECORD: A-
    The IceRays had the league's MVP in Robertson, the league's top goalie in Genik and one of the premier defenseman in Regan Harper.
   Based on that, a divisional championship wouldn't seem unreasonable.
   "We had two goals for the regular season," Hall said. "One, make the playoffs. Two, make sure we're playing our best hockey and the end of the year. We've accomplished both."
    * OFFENSE: C
    Corpus Christi averaged 3.61 goals per game, ninth-best in the WPHL. Only middle of the pack, but when the defense is as stingy as the IceRays', three or four goals is plenty.
   Consider shots on goal: Corpus Christi threw 2,747 shots at opposing goalies, the most in the league and 168 more than Monroe, which had the second-highest shot count.
   The IceRays scored on just nine percent of their shots, but just like one of the motivational quotes pasted to Shaun Peet and Brad Wingfield's kitchen wall reads, "You will always miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take."
    * DEFENSE: A
    The league-best 3.00 goals-against average speaks for itself.
   Long forgotten are the late October days when Corpus Christi gave up six goals a night for four consecutive games. In the last 10 IceRays games, they gave up more than three goals just once.
   "I don't know how we ended up the season with the best goals-against average with the start we had," Hall said. "But ever since we had Jason Genik in goal, it has made all the difference."
    * POWER PLAYS: B+
    After 35 games, Corpus Christi's power-play unit scored goals on 23.28 percent of its opportunities, third-best in the WPHL. After 70 games, the percentage slightly improved to 23.41, second-best in the league.
   The IceRays were the second most heavily penalized team in the league. Only Central Texas took more penalties. The Stampede served 2,282 minutes, the IceRays 2,242 minutes.
   Corpus Christi had 252 power plays this season, 14th-most in the league and 140 fewer than league-leading Waco.
   The IceRays line of Robertson, Lorne Toews and Geoff Bumstead accounted for 26 of the team's 59 power-play goals. Rookie defenseman Bob Quinnell and right wing Pavel Evstigneev each scored five power-play goals.
    * PENALTY KILLING: B
    The IceRays radically improved their penalty killing numbers during the season. At the All Star break, the penalty-killers were effective only 78.48 percent of the time, the fifth-worst percentage in the league.
   By regular season's end, the unit had improved to a No. 4 ranking, blanking opponents' power plays 82.61 percent of the time.
   The IceRays success on the penalty kill can be credited, in large part, to forward Mike Tomlinson, one of the league's best.
    * GOALTENDING: A
    Waco's Kory Cooper won the WPHL's Scott Brower Memorial Trophy for Most Outstanding Goaltender and the Rookie of the Year award.
   A case could be made for Genik, a rookie who played only half as much as Cooper. Genik's goals-against average was 2.10, Cooper's was 2.77. Genik's save percentage was .927, Cooper's was .910.
   Cooper finished the year with a 36-14-4 record. Double Genik's record (21-5-2), and the IceRays rookie would have finished 42-10-4.
    * FIGHTING: A
    Do you want to tell Bumstead or Phil Valk they didn't get an A in fighting?
    * COACHING: B
    Give Hall some credit for his loyalty.
   He stuck with his long-time friend and former NHL teammate Frank Caprice in goal when all indicators showed the 36-year-old Caprice was on the slide.
   Genik was available at the season's start, but Hall stayed with Caprice, then gave No. 2 goalie Scott Barber significant minutes in goal. Barber ranked eighth with a 3.12 goal-against average after 35 games.
   The team in front of Barber, however, was slumping.
   Genik had a chance at the starting job in the first half of the season. Caprice went down with a severe knee sprain and Hall signed the rookie to a five-game contract. Genik went 2-1 and recorded the IceRays' first shutout.
   Then he sprained his ankle.
   "I made mistake," Hall said. "I should have gotten Jason in there earlier. Thank goodness I had a second chance. Jason has proved himself as the best goaltender in this league."
   Take points away from Hall for his mistake. Give him points for holding together an injury-riddled team and preaching defense, defense, defense until the team finally responded.
    * HANDLING ADVERSITY: A-
    Team captain Jody Praznik missed 32 games with a broken ankle and toe. Fourteen-year veteran Craig Coxe sat out 16 games with a broken thumb. Tyler Boucher, anchor of the team's checking line, missed 25 games with various facial and shoulder injuries.
   The team still managed to win hockey games, posting an 8-7-0 road record in the second half.
   After the second round of the playoffs, the IceRays, if they advance, will have to play their home games away from Corpus Christi and Memorial Coliseum. Talk about adversity. How will they handle that?
    Off the Ice
    * OVERALL: A
    The team's success for a first-year franchise was a pleasant surprise. It pales in comparison, however, to the way this high school football city has warmed to hockey.
   "The acceptance of the team by Corpus Christi has been the highlight of the whole venture," IceRays majority owner Rick Brezer said.
   Corpus Christi general manager James Garino and his front office staff have worked feverishly to give Corpus Christi something to embrace. Many general managers stay in the office, ostracizing themselves from the fans.
   Not Garino.
   "Certainly the object of the exercise is to have a corps of management and staff who feel like they are a part of something special," Brezer said. "Clearly Jimmy Garino has some real strengths as a general manager as it relates to public relations, promotions and dealing with the media and the fans. He's a very personable guy."
    * TICKET SALES: A+
    The old WPHL record for sellouts in a season was 14. Corpus Christi sold out all 35 home games this year. Could the IceRays do the same in a 5,000-seat arena? Maybe we'll see.
    * FAN APPRECIATION: A
    From curiosity last July to mild interest in August and September to complete frothing-at-the-mouth mania starting in October, IceRays fanatics have turned a port city into a Puck City.
   Voted "Best Fans" in a recent league-wide poll by players, coaches and general managers, those locals new to hockey and hockey fans new to Corpus Christi have embraced the IceRays like a long-lost friend.
    * ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: B+
    Even movies are cheaper and it will cost more next year.
   But you don't hear a lot of whining about the product -- a winning team that plays tough, aggressive hockey in a raucous environment that has gained a reputation for being the best in the WPHL.
   According to the league's Best of the Best poll, the IceRays have the best fans, the best building atmosphere, the loudest building, the best logo, the second-best uniforms and cheerleaders, all of which made Corpus Christi the second-best city in the WPHL, next to Austin.
   And they finally found a mascot who could skate.
   Staff Writer Mark Button can be reached at 886-3613, through e-mail at buttonm@scripps.com or on the internet at www. caller.com.

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