CHL Colorado Eagles

Eagles Week In Review

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


Week In Review

Wednesday, December 10; Penner Steals Pair of Points in Shootout Win

RAPID CITY, S.D. - Goaltender Andrew Penner got his second start in a row for the Colorado Eagles and saved the day in another shootout victory over the Rapid City Rush, this time, 3-2. Penner robbed Rapid City's Jon Pelle late in regulation to force overtime and then stopped all four Rush shooters in the shootout to make him a perfect 8-8 on the season in the game-deciding showdowns.

The two teams skated to an even first period with a 1-1 tie and a 13-12 edge in shots for the Eagles. Ed McGrane scored on a backhand goal 2:21 in for his 200th point as an Eagle (75-125-200) and the team's first goal in the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center after being shut out in the Rush's home opener November 29. Rapid City countered with a power-play goal by Pelle at 15:21 after Chris DiUbaldo threw the puck on net from the left point and Pelle collected it and put it home from the low slot.

Rapid City made it 2-1 with their second power-play goal of the game at 6:18 of the second when Rich Hansen, stationed behind the net, fed a crashing Chris Lipsett for a marker from between the left circle and the crease. It was the first of four consecutive penalties called against the Eagles in the period, while the Rush had zero penalties called against them. But Colorado countered anyway at 8:08 with their seventh short-handed goal of the season when Aaron Schneekloth snapped the puck past Miguel Beaudry's glove hand and into the top left corner of the net off a 2-on-1 break with Riley Nelson.

The Eagles got another power play chance in the third, but were unsuccessful again, going 0-5 on the night. Rapid City, on the other hand, was awarded an extended power play as the period wound down when Greg Pankewicz picked up a double minor, but Penner peaked to force the game into overtime and earn Colorado a point. The Eagles' netminder made several huge saves on the penalty kill, but none bigger than when he robbed Pelle with 1:17 left; the arena's buzzer and the red goal light were cued, but Penner was able to move right to left and snare the shot with his glove just above the ice against the right goal post.

The Rush got yet another power play in overtime, but couldn't convert -- moving the Eagles' penalty-killing units to 7-9 on the night -- and a shootout ensued. Penner stole the show again, stopping all four Rush shooters, and Kevin Ulanski and Ryan Tobler tallied for Colorado to gain the game's second point.

Thursday, December 11; Rocky Mountain News' Sam Adams Visits Eagles

LOVELAND, Colo. - Sam Adams of the Rocky Mountain News, a columnist known for his witty and whacky humor and his "Open Mic" column and chats, recently visited the Colorado Eagles after practice to get a crash course (quite literally) on face offs from veteran center Riley Nelson and teammate Adam Hogg.

Thursday, December 11; Kid's Haven Baby Races Set for Saturday's Intermission LOVELAND, Colo. - Kid's Haven, the official daycare/preschool of the Colorado Eagles, is proud to present the first annual Colorado Eagles Baby Races during the first intermission of Saturday night's game against the Arizona Sundogs.

Six babies (seven-10 months old) will race from one end of the carpet at center ice to the other as one parent entices them to the finish line. Each "competitor" will have on a numbered bib and their racing profile featured on the video board leading up to the race.

First through third place will receive an appropriate prize from Kid's Haven.

Friday, December 12; Get Your Tickets Now for the 2009 CHL All-Star Banquet

Don't forget to purchase your tickets to attend the 2009 CHL All-Star Banquet on the eve of this year's All-Star Game. The Banquet will take place at the Fort Collins Marriott on Tuesday, January 13, starting at 6 p.m. It will include a chance to meet and mingle with all of the Colorado Eagles and the All-Stars from the rest of the league, along with cocktails, dinner, comedic entertainment and incredible silent auctions.

Tickets for the All-Star Banquet are priced as follows: $55 for a single ticket, $100 per couple and $475 per table. Attire for the event is classified as "Colorado Western - Boots & Bling." To purchase your tickets, please call (970) 686-7468 or print off the mail-in form below.

Friday, December 12; Lady Luck, Gorman Lead Gorillas to Win at BEC

LOVELAND, Colo. - The Amarillo Gorillas got their first ever win in regulation at the Budweiser Events Center, 5-3, behind 48 saves by Mike Gorman and several post-hitting pucks. The Gorillas rode a strong second period and withstood a 21-shot, third period barrage from the Eagles in their surprising victory.

Amarillo would strike first, at 14:44, when Jason Weitzel deflected a Michael Handza shot over Morgan Cey's left shoulder as he skated through the low slot. But Colorado answered less than a minute later with a deflection from in front of their own as Konrad Reeder got his 13th point in the past 10 games. Stationed at the right post, Reeder was able to tip Ed McGrane's shot from the right mid-boards over Mike Gorman's shoulder to tie the score at 1.

The Gorillas got three goals and some great goaltending in the second, and took a 4-1 lead into the third period as a result. Stuart MacRae made it 2-1 with a goal at 7:14 when he circled behind the Colorado net with the puck and neither defender picked him up, allowing him to skate unattended into the left circle where he snapped a goal past Cey. Joe Guenther made it 3-1 with a power-play marker at 9:17 when John Snowden's rebound came right to him at the goal line to the right of the Colorado cage.

Gorman kept the momentum going in the Gorillas' favor a minute later when he robbed Reeder of his second goal of the game; the Amarillo netminder was down-and-seemingly-out, but was able to stop Reeder's shot from low in the right circle. Lady luck then came to Amarillo's aid when Aaron Schneekloth's rocket shot from the point clanged off the left post and under Gorman. The goal light went on, but the goal was quickly waived off. Gorman came up big again at the five and a half minute mark, stonewalling Adam Hogg on a chance from in front.

Jake Morissette scored Amarillo's third goal of the second period when he converted on a 3-on-1 rush at 17:50 off a pass from Austin Sutter. Gorman continued his strong play with just under a minute remaining in the frame when he somehow sealed off the goal line during an extended scrum in the paint. And as a symbol of how the period was going for Colorado, they had their second goal of the period waived off with just 34 seconds left when Jason Beatty's blast was nullified by a delayed penalty along the left wing boards a split second earlier.

The Eagles came out flying in the final frame and Reeder was again at the center of it. The spark plug of a forward earned a penalty shot just 34 seconds in after he was hauled down on a short-handed breakaway, but Gorman blockered aside his patented drag move to keep it 4-1. Then at 15:45, while working a 5-on-3 power play, Riley Nelson hit another post with a shot from the left goal line, but Ryan Tobler was able to convert moments later for his league-leading 11th power-play goal (nine of which have come at home).

Colorado kept the pressure on, and nearly closed the scoring gap further, but bad bounces kept sabotaging their efforts. Aaron Schneekloth had a golden chance in front at 12:30, but his backhanded shot was blocked by the lunging face of Nate Hagemo in the crease. Reeder got his second goal at 10:33 when he tapped in a McGrane point shot that had trickled through Gorman's pads. The third period shots at that point were 11-1 in favor of the Eagles.

The storyline stayed the same, however, and the Eagles would hit two more posts before the period ended -- one by Kevin Ulanski and the other by Reeder -- and MacRae would add his second goal of the game at 15:20 after a bad bounce behind the Eagles' net had the puck lying on his tape alone in the low slot.

Saturday, December 13; Power Surge: Eagles, 'Dogs tie CHL Power Play Record

LOVELAND, Colo. - The Colorado Eagles defeated the Arizona Sundogs, 7-5, in a power play-packed contest that saw a Central Hockey League record for most man-advantage markers in a game tied at 10. Ryan Tobler added to his league-leading power-play goal total with a pair as the Eagles also tied a franchise record with five power-play goals in a game.

Both teams scored a couple of power-play goals in the first with Arizona striking first at 6:08 when Chris Bartolone scored a 5-on-3 marker. The veteran defenseman took a cross-ice pass from Joel Irving and sent a rocket over the glove hand of Andrew Penner from just inside the right circle. Colorado answered at 10:37 when Erik Adams threw a shot on net from just inside the blue line that was directed past Marco Emond from the low slot by Steve Haddon. And just over a half minute later, Adams got his own goal on an almost identical play by deflecting a Greg Pankewicz shot to put the Eagles on top. But at 16:28, Arizona evened the score when Irving beat Penner through a screen on a shot from the right dot. All four goals scored in the first period were power-play markers.

After the first period saw 10 penalties called, the seconds saw 11 and the play reflected the trend. Irving made it 3-2, Arizona, just 47 seconds in when he threw home a Tyler Liebel rebound for his second goal of the game. Tobler countered at 6:48 for his first of two power-play goals in the period. The play developed as Scott Polaski entered the offensive zone along the left wing -- as Tobler drove the net -- and sent a pass to Kevin Ulanski in at the top of the right circle. Ulanski then threw the puck toward the front of the net for Tobler to deflect home. Those two hooked up again just under two minutes later to make it 4-3 Colorado.

Adam Perry knotted it up again with a 5-on-3 score when he tipped in a Bartolone shot from the top of the circles at 10:41. Greg Pankewicz then put the Eagles up 5-4 when he slid a backhander under Emond as he skated from right to left through the low slot. All five of the goals scored in the second period were power-play markers.

Things finally started to settle down a little in the third and the string of power-play markers was finally broken when Ulanski made it 6-4 at 7:50 when he stormed down the length of the ice along the right wing boards and snapped a shot high past Emond from the right circle. Adam Hogg stretched the Eagles' lead to 7-4 just 17 seconds later when he was able to chip a shot over the Sundogs' netminder from his knees in the slot off a faceoff. Perry scored the game's tenth man-advantage marker -- tying a CHL record for most power-play goals combined in a single game -- when he deflected a Martin Gascon point shot from the left hashes at 18:18.

The Week Ahead

Wednesday, December 17; Northern Conference Heavyweight Clash

The Northeast Division-leading Oklahoma City Blazers (16-4-2, 34 points) will come to town for a battle between the Conference's top teams. The Eagles won the only previous meeting this season on the road, 2-1, in a shootout. Wednesday night's game will be broadcast on Altitude Sports & Entertainment.

Friday, December 19 & Saturday, December 20; Back-to-Back Games in New Mexico

The Eagles will travel down I-25 to take on the Scorpions, currently in third place in the Southwest Division - just two points behind the Sundogs. New Mexico is just 3-7-1 so far this season at home, where their goaltenders have a combined GAA of 5.09 and a SV% of .862. The Eagles won the previous meeting this season, 3-1, at the Santa Ana Star Center.

Notable Numbers

ANDREW WINNER - With the win on Saturday night, goaltender Andrew Penner has tied the third-longest winning streak in franchise history at seven games. His winning streak dates back to Veterans Day (Nov. 11) and he has allowed just 15 goals in those seven games.

PIONEERING - University of Denver alum Kevin Ulanski has notched the Eagles' last two game-winning goals (12/10 @ RPD & 12/13 vs. ARZ), and now sits alone or tied among the top three in several team categories, including: points (3rd, 31), goals (tied 3rd, 11), assists (2nd, 20), power-play goals (tied 3rd, 4), short-handed goals (tied 1st, 2) and short-handed assists (tied 1st, 2). He's also the only player in the league with over 20 games played, but just two or fewer PIMs.

ELITE COMPANY - With two assists on Saturday, Colorado Springs native Scott Polaski moved into sixth place on the franchise's all-time scoring list, surpassing Sean Robertson. His 133 points (51-82-133) trail only Riley Nelson, Greg Pankewicz, Ryan Tobler, Brad Williamson and Ed McGrane.

NOT FOR LACK OF TRYING - Colorado is 11-2-0 when out-shooting their opponents, with both of those losses coming at home behind stellar efforts from the opposing netminder. In their 6-5 loss to Tulsa on November 14, Colorado out-shot the Oilers 58-36 and last Friday the Eagles out-shot Amarillo 51-24 in a 5-3 defeat. That's a shot discrepancy of 109-60 in two tough losses at home.

PRODUCING AT HOME - Both Greg Pankewicz and Ryan Tobler are playing extremely well in front of the home crowd, with 26 of Pankewicz's 33 points, and 11 of Tobler's league-leading 13 power-play goals coming at the Budweiser Events Center. And back on the blue line, Scott Polaski - a +12 overall - is a +11 at home and a -1 on the road.

POWER SURGE - Saturday night's game against the Arizona Sundogs tied a current era CHL record for combined power-play goals in a game with 10; both teams went 5-12 on the man-advantage. Those five power-play goals in a single game also tied an Eagles franchise record reached two other times (2/28/07 vs. NMX & 10/25/08 @ AMA). In the two President's Cup Finals rematches this season, 70.8 percent of the goals have been scored on the power play (17-24).

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Central Hockey League Stories from December 15, 2008


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