Barons Fall to Chicago 2-1

Published on October 10, 2010 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Oklahoma City Barons News Release


Barons coach Todd Nelson, whose team has no wins and two goals through two games, remained optimistic Sunday.

After a 2-1 loss to Chicago on Sunday afternoon, a few hours after a 6-1 loss to Houston on Saturday night, Nelson said he liked a lot of what he saw in game two.

"The result wasn't there," Nelson said, "but the thing is that we played a lot better game as a team, and that's what we're looking for. This was night and day compared to last night. Our guys played much better together."

The Barons continued to have problems scoring goals, especially on power plays. The team has scored only once in each game, and both goals have come from rookie left winger Teemu Hartkinainen.

After going 0-for-8 on power plays Saturday night, the Barons were 0-for-7 with player advantages Sunday.

Overall, the Barons have made two of their 60 shots on goal through two games. And in each game they were beaten by rookie goaltenders making their pro debuts.

"We're just not putting the puck in the net," Nelson said. "We had quite a few power play opportunities over the last couple of days, but the power play is a lot of feel, a lot of chemistry. We saw more of that today. We had some good chances. But, bottom line, we didn't get the goals that we needed."

In the first period, the Barons enjoyed a lead for the first time in their inaugural season. With 6:55 left in the period, Hartikainen scored off a rebound.

Chicago did all of the scoring in the second period, as the Wolves took a 2-1 lead 8:30 into the period.

The Barons had a 5-on-3 advantage early for a span of one minute and 45 seconds in the second period. But they did not score.

The coach said he's not worried about the lack of goal scoring.

"The goals will come," Nelson said. "I was more concerned with how we played as a team and how we were playing defensively.

"I told the guys at the end of the game that they should feel better about this game than the first game. Even though we're not satisfied or happy about the result, we made a lot of positive strides."

Nelson will give his players a day off Monday, four days before their next game, hosting Houston on Friday night.

"I think the guys need a day off just to get away from the rink," Nelson said. "And they need to get settled in. A lot of guys are still trying to move into their places. Once they get settled in we can come back Tuesday and start fresh and see if we can't put a string of wins together."

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