CHL Colorado Eagles

Eagles Hand Rush First Loss of Season

October 23, 2010 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Colorado Eagles News Release


LOVELAND, Colo. - A short-benched Colorado Eagles squad knocked off the defending President's Cup champion Rapid City Rush, 5-2, on the strength of a Scott May hat trick and Kyle Jones' 30 saves in net. The loss was the Rush's first of the season as the teams met for the first game of a home-and-home series (they will meet a total of 12 times this season).

The Eagles looked like the defending champs in the opening period, out-shooting Rapid City 17-12 and out-scoring them 3-1 with several other near-goals. Scott May opened the scoring 2:44 in when he picked up an errant Rush bank-pass off the boards at center ice, skated to the top of the left circle, used a defenseman as a screen and snapped a shot past the glove of Jimmy Spratt.

Scott Wray tied the game at 4:13 after a faceoff win in the left circle of the Rush's offensive zone led to a point shot from Scott Kalinchuk and a deflection past the Eagles netminder. Just over two minutes after that, Riley Nelson one-timed a pass from Kyle Peto half a minute into a Colorado 5-on-3 advantage to put the Eagles back on top. And at 9:38, defenseman Kip Workman took a shot from the right point and Steve Haddon banged home the rebound on his second try to make it 3-1 for the home team.

The Rush pushed back in the second period, out-shooting the Eagles 11-8 and keeping much of the play in their offensive zone. And although Rapid City got a power-play goal of their own in the frame to cut Colorado's lead to 1, May got his second goal of the game with a late tally to push the Eagles back up by 2.

Three minutes into the second period, Daymen Rycroft lost an edge at his own blue line, leading to a 2-on-1 break for the Rush, but Jones made a sprawling glove save on Ryan Menei to keep the Eagles on top 3-1. But at 15:59, the Rush would get the aforementioned man-advantage marker when Kalinchuk skated past Workman on the left wing, took the puck toward the net and placed a shot under the crossbar.

Then with 31.9 seconds left in the frame, Rycroft worked the puck up the right wing from his own zone and found May in the neutral zone. His Ohio State University teammate took the puck into the offensive zone and buried a shot from the right circle past Danny Battochio who had entered the game a few minutes into the second period after being a late starting scratch due to an equipment issue.

The third period was evenly played with the Rush holding a 9-8 edge in shots. The Eagles held on as Rapid City pulled Battochio for the final minute and a half, and May iced the game with his third goal at 19:33. He won a footrace down the left wing and put a shallow-angle shot into the empty cage to become the eighth player in franchise history to record a hat trick (the 28th hat trick overall).

The two teams will travel overnight to Rapid City for a game Saturday night.

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Central Hockey League Stories from October 23, 2010


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