'Runners Bounce Bulls, Remain in First
January 15, 2011 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Topeka Pilots News Release
With a 7-4 win on the road over the Amarillo Bulls on Friday night, the Topeka RoadRunners maintained sole possession of first place in the top heavy NAHL South.
Going 2-3-1 against the Bulls on the year and 0-1-1 in the Amarillo Civic Center, the RoadRunners were intent on playing a solid 60 minutes, something that had eluded them in their previous visit to the Texas Panhandle. Topeka scored first, when Daniel Dupell took a pass off the left wing wall from Jacob Poe and drove to the net behind the Bulls defense. Amarillo goalie Nikifor Szczerba tried to poke check it but Dupell deked to his right and slid the puck in to the wide open side at 9:53 for a 1-0 lead. Amarillo answered with a game tying goal just :39 seconds later as Michael Erickson flipped a puck over the pad of Rasmus Tirronen on a 3-on-2 rebound. The Bulls took the lead at 13:43 when Joe Kozlak redirected a shot at the top of the crease into the net just :05 seconds into a power play and the momentum belonged to Amarillo. Topeka tied the game with 3:00 left in the first on a pretty play withKyle Sharkey and Cory Ramsey exchanging crisp passes before setting up Jacob Poe who drilled it home on the 3-on-2 rush. Topeka outshot the Bulls 17-12 in the opening 20 minutes.
The second period seemed to belong to Amarillo. They outshot the RoadRunners 21-9 and controlled the puck more often than not. However it was Topeka who outscored the Bulls 2 to 1 to hold a 4-3 edge after two periods. The 'Runners took a 3-2 lead when Andrew O'Leary drove home a rebound at 14:20, and pulled ahead 4-2 when Davey Middleton redirected a Chris Bond shot at 17:28, scoring his first goal in his first game with the team. Joe Kozlak netted his second of the game with a sharp wrister from the left circle on the power play just :15 seconds later to make it a 4-3 score at the end of 2.
The Amarillo Bulls had reason to be confident heading into the third period, having outscored the RoadRunners 10-1 in the third period in the teams prior six meetings, so it seemed like business as usual when the Bulls tied the game at 4-4 as Brooks Behling snapped a shot past Tirronen on a turnover of a failed clearing attempt at 2:31 of the final frame. As the teams continued to battle, Topeka had to kill off back to back penalties including a :24 second 5-on-3 penalty kill and then failed to convert on a power play of their own. The RoadRunners scored the game winning goal when Andrew White blistered home a perfect saucer pass from Zach Schrotenboer off the left wing at 15:07 for a 5-4 lead. Brian Christie sunk two empty net goals, the first of which came shorthanded at 18:50, the second at 19:29 assisted by Rasmus Tirronen. Topeka's 7-4 win was the first in Amarillo, and the 'Runners move to 3-3-1 against the Bulls this season.
Topeka (24-8-2) wraps up the weekend series with Amarillo (22-7-3) on Saturday night at the Amarillo Civic Center at 7:00 pm. Pregame coverage begins with radio coverage at 6:45 on www.countrylegends106.com and FASTHockey.com for streaming pay-per-view video. The RoadRunners sit in first place with 50 points. Texas (who defeated Wichita Falls 4-3 on Friday) is in second with 49 points, and Amarillo is in third with 47 points. After Saturday's game, the RoadRunners kick off their longest homestand of the season on Thursday with a two game set against Wichita Falls.
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North American Hockey League Stories from January 15, 2011
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