CHL Colorado Eagles

Special Teams Trounce Rush Again in Second Period

November 28, 2008 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Colorado Eagles News Release


LOVELAND, Colo. - The Colorado Eagles got their second win in a row against the Rapid City Rush on the strength of a stellar second period, scoring five special teams goals on the way to a 7-1 win. Andrew Penner stopped 34 of 35 shots -- losing the shootout on a deflected goal -- and the Eagles scored six total special teams goals on the night.

The Eagles and Rush skated to a scoreless first period, but it wasn't for a lack of quality scoring chances. Both Penner and Lanny Ramage were stellar, stopping everything that came their way, and getting help from their goalposts when pucks were just out of reach. Penner stopped all 16 Rush shots in the first and Ramage stopped all nine Eagles chances.

Just like they did last Friday against the Rush in a franchise record-setting performance, the Eagles exploded in the middle frame for six goals (one off of last week's seven). This time, however, it was Colorado's special teams that aided in the effort after going without a goal in the 8-2 win a week earlier; five of the team's six second period goals came via specialty teams, four on the power play.

Ryan Tobler got the scoring started just under five minutes in when he completed a tic-tac-toe play from Riley Nelson and Ed McGrane on a 5-on-3 advantage. But at 8:30, Rapid City got their only goal of the night when Luke Fritshaw took a spinning shot on net from the right wing boards that was deflected in by Kyle Sheen in front as he skated between the net and the right circle.

The Eagles got another power-play tally at 10:59 when Nelson sent a short pass from the right hash to Aaron Schneekloth at the left hash, and the defenseman sent a wrister into the top right corner. Kevin Ulanski got the next goal just under two minutes later when he beat Ramage on a short-handed breakaway.

Colorado kept coming as Tobler set up the next power-play goal after he was stopped on a mini-rush, but got his own rebound behind the net and fed Greg Pankewicz in the right circle to make it 4-1. Then just nine seconds later -- tying a franchise record for fastest consecutive goals -- Tobler got another man-advantage marker to push his league-leading total to 10. And with just nine seconds left in the period, Brett Hammond made it 6-1 with a shot from the slot off a feed from Steve Haddon along the right boards. The six goal second made it 13 in the past two second periods against the Rush.

Miguel Beaudry came out in net for the start of the third period for Rapid City, and stopped eight of nine shots in the final frame. The lone goal to get past him was the Eagles' second short-handed tally of the night at 16:25. Haddon set up his second consecutive goal with another dish from the right boards with Konrad Reeder deflecting it home from the slot.

Both teams quickly boarded their busses after the game and got on the road toward their 2:05 matinee tomorrow in Rapid City -- the Rush's first ever game, and the first professional hockey game in the state of South Dakota.

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Central Hockey League Stories from November 28, 2008


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