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CHL Colorado Eagles

Eagles Lead Cut to One in Shootout Loss

March 11, 2008 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Colorado Eagles News Release


BROOMFIELD, Colo. - For the second game in a row, the Eagles were involved in a 4-3 shootout, but this time they came out on the wrong side as the Rocky Mountain Rage closed their lead in the Northwest Division to just one point (76-75). Sebastien Laplante stopped 40 of 43 shots in regulation, but Scott Reid stoned all four Eagles shooters in the shootout to solidify the second point for Rocky Mountain. The rivals will end their season series in the second game of their home-and-home series Wednesday night at the Budweiser Events Center.

The Eagles jumped out to an early 2-0 lead just over seven minutes in, both on assists from Les Borsheim. The first came just 55 seconds into the game when Steve Haddon dug a Borsheim rebound out of Reid's pads and easily knocked the puck into the net as the Eagles' third line registered their 43rd point on the road this season. Riley Nelson almost made it 2-0 before the seven minute mark when he got behind the Rage defense for a mini-breakaway and got Reid leaning before missing blocker-side. But moments later, Ed McGrane got behind the defense on an almost identical play before beating the Rage goaltender with a forehand-backhand move at 7:12.

The opening period's momentum seemed to switch about halfway through when Brent Cullaton just missed his own chance at a goal, sending a shot over the crossbar of a wide open net. But Rob Chappell was able to cut the Colorado lead in half at 12:01 after Matt Frick stuffed a shot on Laplante against the right post and Frick poked home the un-covered rebound. Rocky Mountain knotted the score up at 2 just over four minutes later on a lucky bounce as Nick Harloff sent a pass from below the goal line that hit the bottom of Kris Wiebe's skate blade as he was falling to the ice and bounced behind Laplante.

A Tyler Butler rocket and some fantastic saves from Reid gave the Rage a 3-2 lead heading into the second intermission. At the 2:56 mark, Butler unleashed a slapshot from the high point that beat Laplante on the stick side and deflected off the post and in to give the Rage their first lead of the game. Halfway through the game Rocky Mountain held a 23-11 edge in shots, but just like the first period, momentum seemed to sway after that. Reid stoned Greg Pankewicz on a back-door play at the 13 minute mark and made two more key saves at the 5:30 and five minute mark - the first on Erik Adams uncontested in the high slot and the second on Riley Nelson from the same spot.

The Eagles battled back to tie the game at 3 in the third period with a 5-on-3 power play goal. Already on the power play, Pankewicz hit Ryan Tobler behind the Rage defense, but Tobler was hauled down to put Colorado up by two men. Nelson made it count at 14:30 when his shot from high in the right circle deflected on the way to Reid and beat the netminder top-shelf. Neither team could score the remainder of the period and the game went into overtime.

Both teams again failed to score in the overtime frame and the Eagles headed to a shootout for the second game in a row. Reid stopped all four of the Eagles shooters (Scott Polaski, Erik Adams, Seth Leonard and Nelson), making Cullaton's forehand-backhand goal as the first Rocky Mountain shooter count as the Rage won.

The two teams will faceoff again for the final time this season on Wednesday night in the second game of back-to-back games.

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