Weekend Preview - CBR Brave

This weekend marks the halfway point of the 2017 AIHL season for The James Melbourne Mustangs. It has been a rollercoaster ride so far, but with a record of six wins and seven losses, the Mustangs are doing enough to remain in the hunt. The top three teams: CBR Brave, Perth Thunder, and Melbourne Ice; have put a bit of space between themselves and the rest of the competition, but very little separates the other five teams. The Mustangs are still in a decent position, and with a stronger, more consistent second half, they can push ahead of the chasing pack.

After another disappointing Melbourne derby, the Mustangs will be desperate to finally get a win over one of the more consistent teams in the competition, when they head to Canberra to take on the Brave in back-to-back games this weekend. The Brave are currently in first place and with six wins from their last seven games, are the form side of the AIHL. Even in the one game they lost, they still managed to put up 67 shots and were only defeated by a phenomenal goaltending effort by Matt Murphy.

If the Mustangs are to be successful this week, they will need to perform at their best and remain composed until the final siren. In their previous meetings at the start of the season, the Mustangs were able to match the Brave for the most part of each game, but then conceded late goals that cost them the victory. The fact that the Mustangs were able to keep the score close is encouraging, as the Brave have recently annihilated their opponents, especially in their last two games where they beat the Sydney Bears 13-3 and 7-1.

The Brave have so many talented players, including the current leading point scorer Geordie Wudrick, and have further increased their scoring capability with the addition of Wehebe Darge. Both players had two-goal games against the Bears last week, with Wudrick on an eight game scoring streak. While a strong defensive effort is going to be vital to the Mustangs chances of success, it is going to be near impossible to keep this Brave team to a low total, as they lead the league in goals per game. This means the Mustangs will need to be make the most of their opportunity with possession of the puck. They will have to hit the target or go to the front of the net looking for rebounds whenever possible, as it is likely to take a few goals to win these games.

There is nothing like another road trip to chase away the post-derby blues, and the Mustangs can expect to be well supported by a typically good contingent of travelling fans heading up to a chilly Canberra this weekend. Hopefully the team can continue their good form on the road and reign in the competition front runners to set up a good finish to the season.