Loveland, Colo. ––The Colorado Eagles needed an advantage. After returning to home ice with a split 1–1 series against the San Jose Barracuda, they needed to buckle down and recapture the lead.

With Jack Ahcan absent from the lineup, the team would have to work that much harder to reclaim their advantage at home.

Takeaways

From the start, it was clear the team was hungry for a win. The aggressiveness on the ice paid off, with Tye Felhaber lighting the lamp to put the team up 1–0. The extra momentum carried the team through the rest of the first period, encouraging Jayson Megna to cash in on a bouncing puck with just under three minutes remaining in the first and bring the margin up to two.

Specialty teams dominated the second period. Throughout the game, there were seven penalties between both teams. The Eagles had three power play opportunities, yet couldn’t capitalize. In contrast, the visiting team got on the board with just under seven minutes remaining on the clock.

“I think offensively, the power play has created a lot of chances,” head coach Aaron Schneekloth said. “I think there’s some opportunity for us to get rewarded. Some of those chances we created are just missing, or hitting the post or the crossbar, or just laying in the crease, just a little bit out of reach. So we’re doing a lot of good things. I mean, the first two games we give up short handed goals, which isn’t ideal. So that’s something we talked about cleaning up, making sure we don’t give them any easy opportunities, making the hard right play. And I thought our penalty kill was really good as well. I mean, I know they got a power play goal to win in overtime last game, get a little bit out of structure, but we’re doing a lot of good things out there. It’s playoffs, fighting for every inch. It’s two good teams, and we’re happy we got out with the win.”

Per usual, Trent Miner kept the net on lockdown to the best of his ability. He fended off 29 of 31 shots from the Barracuda, bailing the team out of more than one sticky situation.

While the team played a tight game, they gave up a key goal with a Barracuda empty net. This resulted in a 2-2 tie, forcing overtime.

Last game, the team gave up a goal only 27 seconds into the period. This time, there was a distinct energy shift. After playing nearly the full game, San Jose goaltender Yaroslav Askarov cramped up, so Gabriel Carriere replaced him.

Three minutes after the switch, Matthew Phillips scored his first goal of the postseason, assisted by Megna and Felhaber.

“You know it’s hard to tell,” Megna said. “I think we were just so focused on what we were trying to do as a group. Obviously, when you see a goalie, you want to test them early. I think probably the only thing that was said on the bench is to make sure we get pucks to the net if we have a chance. Fortunately, enough [Phillips] got good luck in the slot.”

Upcoming

The Eagles can close out the second round of playoffs tomorrow, May 7, at 7:05 p.m. AHLTV on FloHockey.com will stream the game.

Interviews