Game #28: Tucson Roadrunners (2) vs Colorado Eagles (3) OT
Game #28: Tucson Roadrunners (2) vs Colorado Eagles (3) OT
SOG: TUC (23) – COL (24)
PP: TUC (0/1) – COL (0/4)
COLORADO SCORING: Jake Wise (7), Chris Wagner (2), Oskar Olausson (5)
TUCSON SCORING: Kailer Yamamoto (8), Austin Poganski (6)
Roadrunners Earn Point in 3-2 Overtime Loss to Eagles, Move to Fifth in Pacific Division
TUCSON, AZ – The Tucson Roadrunners (16-11-1-0) suffered their second consecutive defeat, falling 3-2 in overtime to the Colorado Eagles (16-8-1-2) on Sunday at Tucson Arena. Despite the loss, the Roadrunners earned a point and moved into fifth place in the Pacific Division standings, now just three points behind San Jose.
Tucson trailed 1-0 after the first period, but forward Kailer Yamamoto tied the game with his eighth goal of the season midway through the second period. Colorado regained the lead halfway through the third period, but Roadrunners captain Austin Poganski answered with the equalizer at 6:08 to force overtime. However, Eagles forward Oskar Olausson scored the game-winner just 52 seconds into the extra frame.
Two Roadrunners recorded multi-point nights. Yamamoto registered a goal and an assist, including setting up Poganski’s game-tying goal. Defenseman Montana Onyebuchi also had a two-assist night, marking his first multi-point game of the season.
YA GOTTA SEE IT
Poganski netted his second goal in three games to tie the game late in the third period. The goal was Poganski’s sixth of the season and extended his point streak to a season-high four games. During that stretch, he has tallied two goals and two assists. His line, with Yamamoto and Hebig, was Tucson’s most effective of the series, accounting for all three of the team’s goals.
DON’T OVERLOOK IT
Yamamoto brought the Roadrunners level with Colorado midway through the second period with a heads-up play. After pouncing on a loose rebound, he snapped the puck toward the crease, where it deflected off the skate of Colorado’s Nikita Prishchepov and into the net. The goal was Yamamoto’s second of the series, extending his point streak to four games with two goals and four assists during that span. It also marked his eighth goal of the season, which ranks fourth on the team.
Forward Cameron Hebig earned an assist on the play by firing the initial shot. Hebig has been a consistent contributor over the last five weeks, recording a point in 10 of his last 13 games, with 11 points in that stretch from four goals and seven assists.
THEY SAID IT
“It was a hard fought series. A lot of penalties, but we have to find a way to battle through that and come out on top. We can build off this, there’s a lot of learning from this weekend, and we’ll come out stronger next weekend.”
Roadrunners forward Cameron Hebig on his takeaways from the Colorado series.
THE RUNDOWN
First Period
Roadrunners goalie Matthew Villalta was tested early, denying Colorado forward Tye Felhaber with a point-blank save in the opening minute. However, the Eagles capitalized on their next quality chance six minutes later. A failed Tucson clearing attempt led to a quick two-on-one for Colorado. Oskar Olausson intercepted the puck and set up Jake Wise with a pass below the slot. Wise fired a quick snapshot past Villalta to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead at 6:50.
The Roadrunners responded five minutes later with their best scoring chance of the period off the rush. Forward Josh Doan maneuvered around Eagles defenseman Calle Rosen and delivered a perfect setup to Egor Sokolov at the top of the slot, but Colorado goaltender Adam Scheel turned aside the attempt to keep the Eagles in front.
With just over five minutes left in the period, a Colorado hooking penalty gave Tucson their first power play of the afternoon. During the man advantage, forward Aku Räty carried the puck into the offensive zone and flipped a pass over the stick of an Eagles defender to alternate captain Andrew Agozzino. Racing toward the net, Agozzino unleashed a hard backhand shot that narrowly sailed over the crossbar, just missing the equalizer.
Tucson was assessed two minor penalties in the final three minutes, giving Colorado a 38-second five-on-three power play. On the penalty kill, Villalta came up big, making a crucial pad save on a blast from Eagles defenseman Jacob MacDonald at the point. The Roadrunners successfully killed off the first of the two penalties, keeping the deficit at one entering the first intermission.
Second Period
The Roadrunners successfully killed off the remainder of Colorado’s power play to start the second period. Just four minutes later, Tucson shut down their third penalty of the game after a post-whistle skirmish led to penalties for Roadrunners forward Travis Barron, defenseman Montana Onyebuchi, and Eagles forward Givani Smith.
Tucson generated a pair of quality scoring opportunities in the first half of the period. Forward Ben McCartney used his speed to carry the puck 100 feet to the Colorado net before firing a sharp-angle shot. Moments later, defenseman Max Szuber unleashed a shot from the point that narrowly missed the post.
The Roadrunners’ sustained pressure paid off, and Tucson tallied the game-tying goal midway through the period. Off the rush, forward Cameron Hebig received a pass above the left faceoff circle and drove the puck to the net. Colorado goaltender Adam Scheel stopped Hebig’s initial shot, but Yamamoto capitalized on the rebound, banking a shot off the skate of Eagles forward Nikita Prishchepov in the crease from below the goal line to even the score at 1-1 with 10 minutes remaining.
Tucson controlled the game after their tying goal, dominating possession and holding Colorado without a shot for nearly 13 minutes. A holding penalty with two minutes remaining gave the Eagles a late power play, but Villalta stood tall. He made his two biggest saves of the game, denying close-range attempts from Chris Wagner and Jack Ahcan to keep the game tied heading into the second intermission.
Third Period
Hebig continued to spark Tucson’s offense early in the third period. Just four minutes in, he battled a Colorado defender one-on-one, powering his way to the net and generating a dangerous scoring chance.
Colorado responded six minutes into the final frame with a dangerous scoring chance. Chris Wagner fired a quick shot on goal, creating a rebound that landed on the stick of Nikita Prishchepov, who had a wide-open net. However, Villalta quickly smothered the loose puck with his glove to keep the game tied.
Shortly after, both teams were assessed minor penalties as Colorado’s Devante Stephens and Tucson’s Ben McCartney were sent to the box for hooking. During the ensuing four-on-four play, Roadrunners defenseman Artem Duda created a quality scoring opportunity by driving to the net and releasing a backhand shot from just above the crease.
Seconds after both penalties expired, Wagner scored for Colorado, firing a shot past Villalta at 9:28 to give the Eagles a 2-1 lead.
Less than five minutes later, Poganski tied the game 2-2 with 6:08 remaining. Poganski took a pass from Kailer Yamamoto above the right circle and beat Colorado goaltender Adam Scheel blocker-side with a perfectly placed wrist shot into the top corner of the net.
Overtime
The Roadrunners came inches away from securing their third overtime win of the season. Just 35 seconds into the three-on-three extra period, Josh Doan ripped a shot off the crossbar. However, Colorado quickly corralled the rebound and sent a long pass to Oskar Olausson, who broke away on a breakaway. Olausson deked and beat Villalta top-shelf to give the Eagles a 3-2 victory at 0:52 of overtime.
The Roadrunners will begin the new year on the road with a two-game series against the Texas Stars at the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park, starting with Friday’s opener at 6 p.m. MST. The game will be available to stream on AHLTV on FLO HOCKEY.
