Last series review – Bees split with IceRays

The RGV Killer Bees had their 5-game winning streak snapped Saturday against the Corpus Christi IceRays, but battled back to earn a split last weekend with a 3-0 shutout win in their final regular season game at the State Farm Arena.

Defensemen Connor Pelkey and Marcus Ericsson, as well as forward R.J. Burns provided the goals in the second game last weekend as the Bees scored one goal in each period.

Nick Schmit was impressive in net, turning aside all 21 shots he faced Sunday to earn his 16th win and fifth shutout of the season.

Locked in third

Following play last weekend, the Killer Bees are locked in third place in the South Division. They will face either Amarillo or Topeka in the divisional quarterfinals next week.

“To us, it has always been about the process,” said Killer Bees head coach Joe Coombs. “We need to execute and be the best we can everyday. Where we end up at the end of the year has never been a goal, and once you get in the playoffs anything can happen. Where we finish doesn’t matter; we have to win if we want to move on the playoffs.”

Final go in the regular season

The Killer Bees will close out the regular season this Friday and Saturday in a rematch against the IceRays. Both games are scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at AmericanBank Center. For a small fee, fans can watch both games live by logging on towww.FASTHockey.com.

Coombs has treated the team’s last six regular season games a little differently than the rest of the season, he said.

“I just tried to put some more urgency into the players,” Coombs said. “You have to do things more urgently, more intensely and with more emotion [in the playoffs]. That’s what we have been talking about recently.”

Greiner reaches 50

Ben Greiner assisted on R.J. Burns’ third-period goal Sunday to record his 50thpoint of the season. Greiner’s 50 points tie him for the 10th most in the league. He leads the Bees with: 22 goals, 28 assists, 50 points and plus/minus rating of plus-25.

Looking for 40

With Greiner recording his 50th point of the season last weekend, two other players will be looking to record their 40th points of the season this weekend. Evan Schmidbauer and Anthony Croston both enter the last weekend of regular season competition with 37 points.

Killer Bees vs. IceRays

The Killer Bees are 6-4 against the IceRays. … The Bees have won five of the last six contests against the IceRays. … RGV has outscored Corpus Christi on the season, 21-11. … The Bees have not given up more than two goals in a single game against the IceRays. … Jared Dedenbach and Croston both have five points and are plus-4 in the season series against the IceRays. … Schmit is 5-2 against Corpus Christi with three shutouts. He owns a .59 goals-against average and a .973 save percentage against the IcRays. … Kyle Froese leads the IceRays against the Bees with five points on the year.