Rivermen Ring in the New Year with 3-0 Shutout Win
Published on January 1, 2014 under SPHL (SPHL)
Peoria Rivermen News Release
Kyle Rank made 35 saves on 35 shots Wednesday as the Peoria Rivermen celebrated the beginning of 2014 with a 3-0 shutout victory over the Bloomington Thunder at Carver Arena. The shutout was Rank's second of the season, but first with Peoria and the team's first overall in its SPHL era. In addition, Jeremiah Ketts, in his Rivermen debut, and Nick Prockow each notched a goal and a multi-point night.
With the win, Peoria snapped a three-game losing streak and improved to 11-10-3 on the season, including a 7-2-0 mark against the Thunder. Plus, the Rivermen jumped all the way from eighth to fifth in the SPHL standings.
Following a scoreless first period for the second night in a row, the Rivermen came out firing in the second and scored just 77 seconds in courtesy of Ketts. From the left circle, Prockow sent a cross-ice pass to Ketts in the slot, who was unmarked and sent a one-timer past Thunder netminder Max Strang. The goal was Ketts' first with the Rivermen after he was signed to a three-game tryout on Wednesday morning. Prockow and Charlie Carkin earned the assists.
Peoria extended its lead to 2-0 at 5:36 of the second via the power play. During 4-on-3 hockey, Nick Wheeler grabbed the puck from the point and passed it down to Ketts, who sent a quick pass across the goal line to Prockow at the backdoor for an easy one-timer and his team-leading seventh power play goal this season.
The majority of the third period was played with a 2-0 score until Taylor Larsen added an empty netter with 35.6 second remaining to ensure the victory. Already on a power play with Larsen in the box for slashing, the Thunder pulled Strang for another extra attacker, but fell victim when Larsen exited the box and was fed a pass from Matt Viola in the neutral zone. Larsen then gathered the puck at the bottom of the left circle buried it for his sixth goal of the year. Viola notched the only assist.
Peoria finished the game 1-for-10 on the power play and a perfect 7-for-7 on the penalty kill. However, the Rivermen were outshot, 35-32, for the fifth straight game.
Rank improved to 6-2-0 on the season, while Strang falls to 7-10-0 after he stopped 29 of 31 shots on the night.
The Rivermen begin a three-game road trip in Biloxi, Mississippi on Friday with a 7:05 p.m. puck drop against the Mississippi Surge. The game can be heard locally on CD Country 107.9 FM or online at www.cd1079.net . Fans can also follow along via the live video and audio stream at www.americaonesports.com .
SPHL Stories from January 1, 2014
- Rivermen Ring in the New Year with 3-0 Shutout Win - Peoria Rivermen
- Thunder Win Streak Ends at Peoria - Bloomington Thunder
- Rivermen End 2013 with 2-0 Loss to Bloomington - Peoria Rivermen
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