CHL Colorado Eagles

Eagles Get Healthy, Get 8-3 Win Over Odessa

Published on December 10, 2010 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Colorado Eagles News Release


LOVELAND, Colo. - With Scott May and Steve Haddon back in the lineup, Colorado's depth was too much for Odessa to handle in an 8-3 win at the Budweiser Events Center. The victory ended the Eagles' modest losing streak -- two games, their longest of the season -- and pushed their all-time record against the Jackalopes at home to a perfect 10-0-0.

The teams played an exciting first period that saw Odessa take advantage of Colorado penalties and the home team tally a late goal to tie the score heading into the first intermission. The Eagles opened the scoring at 10:30 after a quality scoring chance was stuffed in their own end. Daymen Rycroft took the puck the other way on an odd-man rush and had his shot from the top of the right circle deflect off defenseman Garrett Gruenke and past his own netminder.

At 14:28 of the opening frame, the Eagles got into penalty trouble when Braden Desmet was called for a four minute, high-sticking double-minor. Colorado killed the first half successfully, but with 1:51 left in the second minor, Jason Beatty was called for a hook, putting Odessa on a two-man advantage.

It took the 'Jacks just nine seconds to convert, tying the score at 1 when Todd Robinson found Sebastien Thinel with a cross-crease pass for a sharp-angle shot from below the right circle. And with 19 seconds left in Beatty's penalty, Kenny Corupe put Odessa up 2-1 with a shot into a half-open cage.

But with the period winding down, the Eagles tied it at 2 after Beatty took a shot from the left point that was blocked by Dylan Stanley at the top of the circle. The puck, however, dropped right to his feet and he was able to beat Michel Robinson with a long shot eight seconds before the end of the period.

After his late goal in the first period, Stanley made it 3-2 with a quick score in the second stanza. Scott May collected a loose puck deep in his own zone, skated to the blue line and sent a perfect lead pass to Stanley at the opposite blue line, splitting a pair of Odessa defenders and hitting his teammate right in stride. Stanley skated in alone and snapped a shot past the goalie's glove 1:29 in.

But Robinson tied the game right back up for the Jackalopes at 2:11 after an Alex Dunn point shot was deflected on the way to the net and died in the crease to the right of Kyle Jones for a tap-in score. The Eagles then took the lead back with a power-play goal on their first man-advantage chance of the night midway through the period.

At 9:28, May and Kyle Peto passed the puck back and forth at the point before Peto sent a one-timer cleanly inside the left post to make it 4-3. And with just 57 seconds left in the second period, the Eagles got another timely goal when Riley Nelson sent a backhand pass from behind the net to Steve Haddon below the left circle for a top-shelf score and a 5-3 lead heading into the second intermission.

Colorado scored three more times in the third, making it five unanswered goals after the 3-3 tie early in the second period. With the teams skating 4-on-4, May made it 6-3, 3:32 into the third with a backhander from the left dot. That goal forced Robinson from the game (25 saves on 31 shots in 42:22 of play) as Joel Martin took his place between the pipes.

Martin didn't fare much better, stopping five of seven shots in just under 17 and a half minutes of action the rest of the way. Stanley and Adam Chorneyko worked a 2-on-2 rush into the latter's first goal (and point) as an Eagle at 9:09. And at 15:40, Matt Glasser picked up a turnover just inside the offensive blue line -- as three Jackalopes players overskated it -- and broke in alone on Martin on the way to making it 8-3.

The two teams will meet again Saturday night at the Budweiser Events Center for the third of seven total meetings this season.

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Central Hockey League Stories from December 10, 2010


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