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CHL Colorado Eagles

Eagles Score Two in Third for Comeback Win

February 27, 2008 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Colorado Eagles News Release


LOVELAND, Colo. - The Colorado Eagles extended their 12-game winning streak inside the Budweiser Events Center (the longest current streak in the CHL) with a 4-3 come-from-behind victory over the Oklahoma City Blazers. In a game where five of the seven goals came from specialty teams, the Eagles got two in the third (one short-handed and the other on the power play) to win just their fourth game of the season when trailing after two periods.

In a physical - sometimes nasty - first period, the Blazers and Eagles exchanged special teams goals to end up even after one. Although the Eagles had the first three power plays, Oklahoma City was the first team to score on the chances when Ryan Watson sent a shot from the left circle past Sebastien Laplante for the Blazers' 12th short-handed tally of the season at the 13 minute mark. Dave Iannazzo countered for the Eagles on the same power play 38 seconds later after Sean Connors kicked Ed McGrane's shot from the right dot to his right, and directly onto Iannazzo's stick.

Oklahoma City doubled up the Eagles in the second with goals from Dallas Flaman and DJ Jelitto - the second coming on the man advantage. The period's first goal came at 5:37 when Flaman skated the puck into the zone and threw a shot at Laplante from the top of the left circle; Laplante seemed to have never seen the puck as it beat him top shelf. The Blazers made it 3-1 at 11:12 on the power play when Jelitto tapped in a Mike Burgoyne point shot that had fallen at the lip of the crease. The Eagles countered at 12:49 when Seth Leonard skated the puck through the left side of the zone and to the left of the net before sending a pass back up the slot to a crashing Kris Wiebe who threw it into the empty half of the Blazers' net. Connors kept the Eagles down a goal with an unbelievable save with just under two minutes left in the second. Greg Pankewicz drew a penalty behind the Oklahoma City net and then threw a pass back up the slot to a streaking Iannazzo. Connors was lying on his back, but threw up his glove just as Iannazzo's shot was about to cross the goal line and enter the wide open net.

Pankewicz was just warming up as he had a hand in the game-tying and game-winning goals in the third period. At 10:03, skating short-handed, Leonard and Pankewicz broke in on an odd-man rush. Leonard took the puck down the left-wing side of the ice before sending a pass to the Eagles captain between the circles. Pankewicz deked the Blazers goaltender before flipping a back-hander into the net to tie the game at three. Then, under a minute and a half later, Pankewicz's power play shot from the left point hit off the endboards and bounced straight back to McGrane to the left of the Oklahoma City net, and McGrane was able to beat Connors for the game-winner on a sharp-angle shot.

Colorado now heads on the road for two games (one in Odessa, the other in New Mexico) before hosting the Arizona Sundogs on Monday, March 3 - a game that will be televised on Altitude Sports & Entertainment.

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