By ROY LANG III, Journal Sports
The Shreveport Mudbugs filed back into town this week from their holiday excursions, but it wasn’t long before they boarded a bus and hit the road once again.
The Mudbugs enjoyed their time at home with family and friends, but now it’s time to pick up where they left off. And this week’s trip to last-place Corpus Christi (6-17-5) could pose a challenge.
The two-game set against the IceRays begins Thursday night and is sandwiched between the trips home and the beginning of a month-long homestand.
“We didn’t look that rusty (in Tuesday’s practice),” Mudbugs head coach Jason Campbell said. “I was pretty impressed.
“We just need a little bit of refocus. We talked about where we’re at when the players got back. We’ve been on a nice little roll and we need to be dialed in and ready to keep doing it. It started (Tuesday) morning. It’s just a mental refocus.”
Prior to the break, the Mudbugs were rolling. They had won seven of eight games and had climbed into third place in the North American Hockey League’s South Division.
Shreveport’s recent success is directly attributed to a spike in its offense. Over the first 18 games of the season, the Mudbugs (14-10-4) averaged less than two goals per game (1.94). Shreveport scored more than three goals just twice in that stretch.
Since Nov. 11 (10 games), the Mudbugs have averaged 3.4 goals per game and have topped three goals in half of those contests. Shreveport has also allowed fewer goals (2.2) in the last 10 games than the first 18 (2.67).
Campbell said his team has not only started finishing the quality chances around the opponents’ net, Shreveport is also creating more opportunities – specifically from the defensemen, who are beginning to find a way to sneak shots past the first layer of defenses.
“We’ve been playing with the same guys for a while now, so we’re starting to get comfortable,” Mudbugs captain Garrett Steele said. “We’ve been working on getting pucks to the net. If you watch (our goals), they aren’t pretty goals, but they all count the same.”
Following this weekend, the Mudbugs will play on George’s Pond at Hirsch Coliseum on every weekend during the month of January.
Mudbugs at Corpus Christi
Thursday and Friday (7:05 p.m.)
American Bank Center
Contact Roy at roylangiii@yahoo.com