Eagles Blown Out At Home By Roadrunners

LOVELAND, Colo. – The Colorado Eagles were looking to lock their spot in the Calder Cup Playoffs last night by beating Tucson in any fashion. The Roadrunners were on the playoff bubble and fighting for their postseason lives. The Eagles had been on a two-game win streak, one a complete blowout.  What should have been a somewhat easy one for the Eagles became a difficult one. Tucson came out swinging and literally would not slow down until the final buzzer in the last frame. What started as a slow drip became a blowout. 

First Period 

Colorado wanted to get things going right away. About seven minutes into the first, the Eagles were cycling the puck around the Tucson zone. Ben Meyers had it behind the net and waited for Keaton Middleton at the top of the slot. Middleton took a fake shot and passed it to Charles Hudon for a one-timer in the right circle.

With 7:41 left, Tucson would win a key faceoff in the Eagles zone. Adam Cracknell beat Spencer Smallman on the draw and Bokondji Imama pushed it to Steven Kampfer on the point. Kampfer took a shot through the seam and got it past goaltender Keith Kinkaid.

Later, Tucson caught everyone off guard with their second goal. With just under five minutes left, Ronald Knot pushed hard down the boards past Luke Martin. Knot leaned in and tapped it past the skate of Kinkaid to take the lead at 2-1.  

Second Period 

The second period was dominated by the Roadrunners. Just as everyone took their seats, Michael Carcone dribbled behind the Eagles’ net. Carcone sauced it to Ryan McGregor in front and he tapped it in for a 3-1 lead.

The pressure didn’t stop there. Almost halfway through the period, Imama wrapped a pass up to the point to Cameron Crotty, who took a wide open shot. It bounced right to Cracknell and he whipped it right in for the 4-1 lead.

Then with just under three minutes left, Carcone would help Jan Jenik strike. Carcone threw the puck in from the point, right on Jenik’s fook. He spun and forced it past Kinkaid to get it to 5-1.

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Third Period

The Eagles started to gain some momentum in the frame but could never connect. Tucson ran away with the game and chased Kinkaid out of the net to have Justus Annunen try to save the game for the Eagles. Not much could be done at this point, though, as Tucson would only add to the deficit. As the Eagles were trying to kill a five-on-three, Jenik made a cross slot pass to Jean-Sebastien Dea, who nailed in the puck over Annunen to make it 6-1.

With twenty seconds left in the game, Colin Theisen came running behind the Eagles’ net and tossed it perfectly to Curtis Douglas for a one-timer in the high slot. That was the seventh and final goal of the night to have it wrap up at 7-1.   

Bonus: Keaton Middleton Interview

Conclusion

It was a tough night for the Eagles. They were not meeting the puck on their passes and they looked overall sluggish after their first goal. The Roadrunners on the other hand were full of energy and were connecting on their passes. They did not look like a team that had lost three of their last five at all. There seemed to be something off in Kinkaid’s game, as well. He wasn’t stopping pucks that he normally would and coach Greg Cronin saw that as well. The Eagles were also unable to convert on any power play chances. This was after having six power play goals in the last three games. They will have to turn it around quickly as they play again in Loveland later today at 3:00pm MDT.