'Runners Wrap up Road Swing with Sweep
November 7, 2011 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Topeka Pilots News Release
The final weekend of the RoadRunners 10-game road trip resulted in a sweep of the Springfield Jr. Blues, capped off with a 4-3 win Saturday night.
For the second night in a row, Topeka scored first. Jake Lynes snapped a low one-timer home at 7:52 off a nice pass out of the right wing corner from Ryan White. Springfield tied it up as Chris Sitler slipped a rebound behind Josh Hillegas at 13:08 and the game was tied at 1-1 after 20 minutes.
The only goal of the second period put the 'Runners up 2-1 as Gage Hough fired a shot just over the leg pad on the glove side at 10:13. The period saw the games only penalties, two on Springfield and one on Topeka . Neither side scored on their power plays.
In the third period, a Jr. Blues turnover proved costly as Jake Lynes ripped a shot high on the glove side for an unassisted tally and a 3-1 lead at 2:28. The Jr. Blues battled back though as Chris Sitler scored his second of the game at 11:26, moving through the high slot and shooting against the grain. A somewhat controversial goal tied things up as Gavin Tufte shoved the puck into the net at 16:37. The referee did not signal "goal" initially, instead wishing to confer with his linesmen for a few moments finally signalling it was indeed a good goal. WIth the game tied at 3-3, the intensity ramped up accordingly. 'Runner forward Robbie Davis fought his way into the Jr. Blues zone and despite fighting off two defenders, managed to drop a pass to Sean Gaffney who promptly blasted a low shot into the net for a 4-3 lead with 1:05 to play. Springfield called a time out and pulled their goalie for the extra attacker, and kept up some offensive zone pressure, but a late faceoff win by Brian Christie with 1.7 seconds left sealed the win and the sweep. The 'Runners finish their 10 game road trip with a solid 6-3-1 record, all the more impressive when taking into account the number of games missed due to injuries. Key players such as captain Cory Ramsey, Andrew O'Leary, Linus Johansson, Julian Van Lijden, Johnny Roisum, and Joe Van Antwerp have all missed games due to injury and affiliate players such as Blake Box, Judd Loewenstein, and Jake Kamrass have all stepped in to help fill the void.
Topeka (12-6-2) returns home Friday and Saturday to face Amarillo (14-1-2) to kick off a six game homestand. After playing 18 of 20 on the road, Topeka will enjoy 20 of the next 24 at home. Amarillo is on a 10-0-1 run, and has beaten Topeka in each of their two meetings so far this season. Friday night is a "Veterans Day" theme, with the RoadRunners donning specially designed jerseys to honor our veterans. Game time each night is 7:05. Saturday night is Sun Resorts "Poster Night".
North American Hockey League Stories from November 7, 2011
- NAHL Announces Combat Hockey 3 Stars of the Week - NAHL
- Military Appreciation Night on November 19 - Texas Tornado
- Monsters Weekly - Fresno Monsters
- 'Runners Wrap up Road Swing with Sweep - Topeka Pilots
- Wildcats End Skid With Split - Wichita Falls Wildcats
- Rays Report - IceRays Win Streak Ends at Six Games - Corpus Christi IceRays
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