CHL Colorado Eagles

Amarillo Wins Shootout Over Eagles

Published on January 28, 2009 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Colorado Eagles News Release


LOVELAND, Colo. - The Amarillo Gorillas defeated the Colorado Eagles, 6-5, in a shootout to end several streaks between the two teams. The Gorillas earned a win for the first time in nine games, while snapping the Eagles' eight-game winning streak and goaltender Andrew Penner's 11-game winning streak. Colorado came back from two-goal deficits twice to force overtime, but their league-leading power play went just 1-8 to keep the game close.

The Eagles and Gorillas played to a 2-2 tie after one period with Stuart MacRae getting both goals for the Gorillas and Erik Adams registering a goal and an assist for the Eagles. Amarillo got on the board first when Jake Morissette found MacRae at 4:29 with a pass from the left side of the goal line through the low slot. The Eagles countered just over a minute later when Riley Nelson stick-handled through the right circle before leaving a drop pass for Kevin Ulanski who beat A.J. Bucchino.

Adams made it 2-1 at 9:42 after Adam Hogg took a drop pass from Steve Haddon in the left circle and sent a pass along the goal line -- two feet off the ice -- to the Eagles defenseman standing alone on the opposite side of the Amarillo netminder. But the Gorillas answered just over a minute later to knot it up at 2 when Jonathan Ornelas skated down the right wing, pulled up at the top of the right circle and sent a pass to MacRae skating across the low slot. MacRae swept a nice backhander past Penner for his second goal of the period.

Amarillo added a pair of goals in the second to make it 4-2 after forty minutes of play. Jason Weitzel struck first at 7:21 with a great goal when he skated right through the Eagles defense down the slot before backhanding the puck top shelf over Penner. Travis Lisabeth notched the Gorillas' fourth goal -- on just their twelfth shot -- when he snapped the puck 5-hole past the Eagles goalie for a power-play goal at 17:27. The Eagles had their chances in the period but went 0-4 on the man-advantage, and Bucchino made his biggest stop with just 48 seconds left as he robbed Nelson from in front on the power play.

Nelson found the back of the net -- from a similar spot -- 42 seconds into the third when Ryan Tobler found him with a dish from behind the goal. But Amarillo wasn't done as John Snowden made it 5-3 at the 10 minute mark when he beat Penner blocker side with a wide open shot from between the circles.

Colorado kept coming, though, when Adam Hogg scored from in front at 16:40 to make it 5-4. And with a power play and Penner pulled for an extra attacker, Greg Pankewicz snapped a shot into the top right corner of the cage from the right dot to tie the game at 5 with 16.8 seconds left in regulation.

The extra five minute frame saw each team register two shots and several good scoring chances, but neither team could score to force a shootout.

In the shootout, Nelson and Tobler scored for Colorado, but Morissette, Weitzel and Snowden beat Penner to earn Amarillo the game's second point and their second win in Loveland this season.

The Eagles will play the New Mexico Scorpions in back-to-back games this weekend (Friday and Saturday).

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Central Hockey League Stories from January 28, 2009


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