Wichita center Travis Clayton and New Mexico netminder Miguel Beaudry have been selected by the Central Hockey League as the weekly award recipients for Week 21 of the CHL season. Clayton led the surging Thunder to three consecutive wins to earn Bauer/Nike CHL Player of the Week recognition, while Beaudry was named Vaughn CHL Goaltender of the Week after posting a pair of shutouts and three victories for the Scorpions.Both Wichita and New Mexico are currently battling, along with Indianapolis and Memphis, to join Bossier-Shreveport and Colorado in the Northern Conference playoffs.
Wichitas Clayton had multiple points in each of three Thunder wins the past week, including a pair of two goal performances. In a 4-1 home victory March 3rd over Oklahoma City, Clayton scored twice, including his second shorthanded goal of the campaign. On March 5th the veteran center recorded three assists in Wichitas 4-2 win over visiting Amarillo, then capped his week with another two goal (including the overtime game winner) outing March 7th in a 4-3 home victory against Laredo. Claytons seven-point week moved him into 10th in the CHL scoring race with 73 points on the season.
New Mexico rookie goaltender Beaudry was outstanding in three victories for the Scorpions, making 120 saves on 121 shots. He allowed a single goal against in a 2-1 shootout win over visiting Tulsa on March 2nd, then posted back to back home shutouts over Fort Worth (6-0) and Oklahoma City (4-0), combining for 86 saves in the process. Beaudrys shutout streak has now extended to 162:26, leaving him in position to break the CHLs all time record with another 59 minutes and 36 seconds of shutout hockey. Hell get his chance Tuesday evening when the Scorpions visit Odessa to begin a season-ending four game road trip that also includes stops in Amarillo, San Angelo and Oklahoma City.