Eagles Takeaways: Colorado falls 3-2 in shootout

The Eagles held on long enough against the Grand Rapids Griffins to force a shootout, but couldn’t finish the job.

Loveland, CO — It was teddy bear toss night in Loveland! Last year the Colorado native Nate Clurman made 12,000 bears cascade down from the stands. This year, it was Tye Felhaber that brought down the plushy rain. Last night the Eagles came into the game energized and it showed as they beat the Griffins 4–2. After an 0–15 streak with no power play goals, they finally converted on one last night. The Eagles held their own against a very tough Grand Rapids (DET) tonight, losing in the shootout 3–2. Colorado kept the game even the entire way through, despite the Griffins being first in the Central Division.

Takeaways

Tye Felhaber made the night special with his hard work down low and the finish right next to the post. He may not have the strongest shot, but his work ethic on the ice has shown all season long. He finishes his checks, pressures in all three zones, and has one of the most accurate shots on the Eagles. The rain of bears caused a 25 minute delay in the game, but all for the good of the children who will receive these bears. Tonight the Eagles gathered approximately 10,000 teddy bears for the children and families of Northern Colorado.

Colorado was excellent on the penalty kill tonight. They had to kill off three penalties with two of them coming at the same time. Jayson Megna took a tripping infraction and then Chase Bradley got caught for slashing just 22 seconds later. Wyatt Aamodt, Calle Rosén, and Devante Stephens were out of the entire penalty kill and held off the Griffins. They held their diamond formation and their discipline showed with the results on the scoreboard.

The Eagles did a great job of keeping the Griffins to the perimeter of the ice the entire game. This eliminated high danger chances for Grand Rapids and forced them to shoot from bad angles. The defensemen also were willing to sacrifice themselves to block shots a lot more tonight. I counted at least three different players block five shots and sacrifice their body for the team.

Colorado Avalanche prospect Chase Bradley scored the other goal for the home team. Jean-Luc Foudy was later credited with the assist for setting up the play.

Upcoming

The Eagles will remain at home in Loveland to play again at Blue Arena this upcoming weekend for a two game set against the San Diego Gulls (ANA) starting on Friday night at 7 p.m.