ECHL Colorado Eagles

Colorado Eagles Weekly Update

Published on February 4, 2013 under ECHL (ECHL)
Colorado Eagles News Release


LAST WEEK IN REVIEW

Thursday, January 31; DiDiomete Called-up to Chicago

The Colorado Eagles of the ECHL announced today that forward Devin DiDiomete has been called-up to the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League. After joining the Eagles midway through the season, DiDiomete has played in nine games, registering seven points (4-3-7) and 45 penalty minutes.

In 2011-12, DiDiomete played in Chicago as well, but for the Express of the ECHL, a season that saw him lead the league with 281 PIMs. He spent the 2010-11 season in the AHL with the Connecticut Whale, finishing 3rd in the league with 303 PIMs. Of his 240 career games as a pro, 173 have come at the AHL level.

Friday, February 1; Eagles Out-Shoot Condors, 54-17, in 3-1 Win

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - The Colorado Eagles took the first of a pair of meetings this weekend against the Bakersfield Condors with a 3-1 win. Colorado set a season high for shots in a period and shots in a game, as the visitors dominated play from start to finish. If not for Scott Greenham 's 51 saves for Bakersfield, the game could have easily been a blowout.

Saturday, February 2; Eagles Sweep Set in Bakersfield With Shootout Win

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - The Colorado Eagles earned a weekend sweep in Bakersfield with a 3-2 shootout win against the Condors. For the second night in a row, Colorado held a 2-1 lead late in the third period, but Bakersfield was able to score with an extra attacker in the final minute to force overtime, temporarily delaying the Eagles' win.

Sunday, February 3; Rookie Defenseman Cody Sol Reassigned to Eagles

The Colorado Eagles of the ECHL, proud affiliate of the National Hockey League's Winnipeg Jets and the American Hockey League's St. John's IceCaps, announced today that rookie defenseman Cody Sol has been reassigned to their roster. Sol (pronounced: sawl) was originally drafted by the Atlanta Thrashers in the 5th round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft (#125 overall).

A 6-foot-6-inch, 245-pound defenseman, Sol spent the first 21 games of the season on the Eagles' roster, tallying five points (3-2-5) and 93 penalty minutes. His 51 shots still rank 4th on the team among defensemen. In seven games with the IceCaps, the rookie has registered no points and nine PIMs.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Monday, February 4; Colorado Looks to Continue Winning Ways on Road in Las Vegas

The Eagles will take their three-game road winning streak to Las Vegas, looking to get past the game's oddities en route to another victory away from the Budweiser Events Center. Tonight's game has been dubbed as "Over 18 Night" and in addition to the late start time (10 MST), the arena will be filled with other shenanigans geared toward an adult audience (including jerseys worn by the home team that are designed to look like bare-chested men). The Eagles are 3-1-0 against the Wranglers this season, taking each of the past three. In addition, a win will keep Colorado in front of Las Vegas in the Western Conference standings, as each team enters the game with 47 points on the season.

Wednesday, February 6, Friday, February 8 & Saturday, February 9; Eagles Renew Acquaintances With Komets in Three-Game Set

Although this is Fort Wayne's first season in the ECHL, it will not be the first time the Eagles and the Komets have met. That's because in 2010-11, Colorado's last season in the CHL, represented the Komets' first as they were a part of the IHL/CHL "merger." The Komets came to the CHL as back-to-back-to-back IHL Turner Cup champs, and the storied club added another championship last year in the CHL before switching leagues again. In the three all-time meetings between the Eagles & Komets, Colorado holds a 2-1-0 record, winning 6-1 at the Budweiser Events Center and splitting a pair of games in Indiana in which each team totaled eight goals. Fort Wayne enters the week in the middle of the Eastern Conference standings with a record of 25-20-2.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

A NEW #1 - Trent Daavettila has quietly been putting up points just about all season, and is arguably the hottest Eagle at the moment. He's put up 47 points over his past 40 games, and has registered at least a point in 10 of the team's past 12 games dating to the turn of the year. He's also recorded multiple points in four of the past five games. The quiet production has pushed him into the team lead among active skaters with 47 points (14-33-47), tying Michael Forney, and just two points behind Chad Costello .

FIRST (YEAR) IMPRESSIONS - Adam Brown is also quietly putting together quite a season. Over his past 14 starts, he's allowed more than two even strength goals in a game just once, allowing a total of 13 even strength tallies in the other 13 games. On the season, he has a record of 12-5-1, with a GAA of 2.42 (7th in the ECHL) and a SV% of .913 (8th in the ECHL). He's already cracked the top-10 on the Eagles' all-time wins list, tying Gian Baldrica, and four more wins will push him past Tim Boron, Jeff Blair & Morgan Cey .

KEEP IT ROLLING ON THE ROAD - The Eagles have won their past three road games, accounting for nearly half of their seven total wins away from home all season. They'll need to continue to pick up pairs of points on the road, as just three other teams in the league -- two of which are at the bottom of the standings -- have fewer points away from home ice. Even a .500 record on the road, when combined with Colorado's stellar home record, would place the Eagles among the top teams in the ECHL.

BUILD AN EARLY LEAD - Considering this season's statistical trends, it will be important for the Eagles to build an early lead against Las Vegas tonight. Colorado finds considerable success when getting off to a strong start (16-4-1 when scoring first, 14-3-1 when leading after one, 19-4-2 when leading after two), while the Wranglers have shown a penchant for starting slow and finishing strong (their 20 first period goals & 13 opening goals are by far the fewest in the league, while the third frame is the only one in which they out-score their opposition).

PRODUCTIVE POWER PLAY - Colorado's power play has been among the league's most potent all season long, and it enters the week with a league-leading conversion rate of 23.9%. Its production has been impressively consistent as well, as the Eagles have scored a man-advantage marker in 33 of their 45 games (nearly 75%).

SECRET SHOOTOUT WEAPON - Veteran forward Steve Haddon has taken just three shootout shots in his career, with two of them coming this season. However, he's not only scored on both of his chances this season, but each has ended up as the winning marker. Those two shootout-winners not only represent two of the team's three this season, they tie Haddon for the ECHL lead in the category.

YOU AGAIN?!?! - The Eagles will host the Fort Wayne Komets in a three-game set later this week. While it's the storied Komets' first season in the ECHL, it's not the first time they'll square-off against the Eagles. The 60 year old franchise played 57 years in the IHL and UHL before joining the CHL, where they played the past two seasons. In 2010-11, the Eagles' final season in the CHL, Colorado went 2-1-0 against the Komets, winning the only meeting at the Budweiser Events Center and splitting a pair of games in Indiana.

ONLY THE BEST - The Eagles played exclusively within the Western Conference last season, but this year's schedule included two series against teams from the Eastern Conference, and both, ironically, are league champions. The Eagles went 2-1-0 in a three-game set against the defending ECHL Kelly Cup champion Florida Everblades earlier this season, and this week's three-game set against the Fort Wayne Komets will also be against a team with rights to a championship cup. That's because last season the Komets claimed the CHL's Presidents' Cup, giving them four league championships in the past five seasons (they won three consecutive Turner Cups in the IHL before joining the CHL).

RARE HOME SKID - When the Eagles take on the Komets this week, they'll be under extra pressure to pick up a win on Wednesday. That's because, despite owning one of the league's better home records (15-7-1), the Eagles are currently on a three-game losing streak at the Budweiser Events Center, a building in which they've won 75% of their regular season games all-time. It's just the 4th time in the team's 10 seasons that it's lost three games in a row at home, and just one loss away from the record of four, which has happened just once.

OTHER HAPPENINGS

It's Time For Our Annual Baby Races! - Keep an eye on our web site this week for information on our upcoming Kids' Haven Baby Races! We're making some small alterations to the format this year, but you can still register your tot to compete at our game on Feb. 24.

Fans' Vision All-Decade Team - Voting is now open for the third and final forward spot on the Fans' Vision All-Decade Team, presented by the Eye Laser Center of Northern Colorado. Those who vote, will not only help decide this historic team, but they could win an awesome prize, highlighted by FREE LASIK!

Check out the Colorado Eagles Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



ECHL Stories from February 4, 2013


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central