CHL Colorado Eagles

Eagles Drop Home Finale to spOilers

Published on March 15, 2008 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Colorado Eagles News Release


LOVELAND, Colo. - The Colorado Eagles dropped their final home game of the season 4-3 to the Tulsa Oilers, but remained five points ahead of the Rocky Mountain Rage (80-75) who also defeated Saturday night. The loss left the Eagles will a home record of 27-5-0, one win short of tying their best all-time home record set last season.

The Oilers and Eagles skated to a fairly even, 1-1 first period. Tulsa scored the first tally at 5:23 when David Beauregard left a drop pass on a three-on-two break for Kai Magnussen who beat Bryan Bridges high on the glove side from the right hashes. Greg Pankewicz tied it up for Colorado with a 4-on-3 power play goal at 9:55 when he unleashed a rocket from the left faceoff circle. And at 17:31, Fraser Filipic proved why he was voted the CHL's Best Fighter (Pound for Pound) when he got the best of Robin Richards who has six inches and 30 pounds on the Eagles pugilist.

The Oilers scored three goals in the second - two on the power play - to head into the third with a one-goal lead as Colorado got goals from Riley Nelson and Ed McGrane (the latter also on the man-advantage). The Eagles got out to a 2-1 lead just 40 seconds in after Scott Polaski's wrap-around attempt made its way through the crease to Nelson on the opposite side. Tulsa tied it up at 5:08 when Brendon Hodge banked his own rebound off of Bridges' skate from the right of the net after Warren McCutcheon drove the net and tried to stuff it past the Eagles goalie. Paul Kelly put Tulsa up a goal at 7:20 on a 5-on-3 power play when he one-timed a Jeff Christian pass past Bridges from low in the right circle. And Arthur Kiyaga made it a two-goal lead for the Oilers when he registered his first professional goal with a shot from the point through a screen for another Tulsa power play goal.

Bridges was pulled after Kiyaga's tally after stopping 11 of 15 shots in 34:48 of action. McGrane answered Kiyaga's goal with a point-shot of his own just 30 seconds later when he one-timed a Pankewicz pass past Guy St. Vincent. Colorado spent the final three minutes of the period short-handed, and ended the period with an 8-2 disadvantage in power play chances.

Sebastien Laplante stopped both shots he faced in the second half of the middle frame and all five in the third to finish the game a perfect seven-for-seven, but his strong play wasn't enough as the offense couldn't solve St. Vincent the rest of the way.

Colorado will finish the regular season with three games in Youngstown (March 26, 28 and 29).

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Central Hockey League Stories from March 15, 2008


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