Colorado Drops Third Straight in 4-2 Loss at Coachella Valley
Jan 4, 2023
PALM DESERT, CA. – Coachella Valley forward John Hayden netted the game winning-goal on the power play with only 4:59 remaining in regulation to propel the Firebirds to a 4-2 victory over the Colorado Eagles on Wednesday. Eagles forwards Jean-Luc Foudy and Charles Hudon each found the back of the net in the loss, as Colorado dropped its third-consecutive contest. Justus Annunen suffered the loss in net, allowing three goals on 26 shots. Coachella Valley goaltender Joey Daccord claimed his 12th win of the season, making 17 saves on 19 shots.
The Firebirds would jump into the driver’s seat at the 10:34 mark of the first period when forward Andrew Poturalski darted down the right-wing boards before wrapping behind the net and stuffing a shot past Annunen, giving Coachella Valley a 1-0 edge. The Firebirds would go on to outshoot Colorado 11-4 in the opening 20 minutes and carried their 1-0 lead into the first intermission.
The Eagles would again be outshot in the middle frame, but after killing off a Coachella Valley power play, Colorado would seize upon a massive opportunity. After fielding the puck deep in his own zone, defenseman Wyatt Aamodt hit Foudy with an outlet pass that would send him on a breakaway which he would cap off with a wrister from the slot. The goal was Foudy’s sixth of the season and tied the game at 1-1 with only 55 seconds remaining in the second period.
The deadlock would be broken just 6:32 into the third period when Firebirds forward Austin Poganski skated through the right-wing circle and buried a wrister to give Coachella Valley a 2-1 advantage.
The Eagles would take advantage of their lone power play of the night, as Hudon blasted home a one-timer from the left-wing circle to square the score at 2-2 at the 11:36 mark of the final frame.
A late penalty would put the Firebirds back on the man-advantage and they would capitalize when Hayden tucked home a puck from the top of the crease just five seconds into the power play to give Coachella Valley a 3-2 lead with only 4:59 left to play in the contest.
Colorado would pull Annunen in favor of the extra attacker, but the move would lead to an empty-netter for forward Max McCormick, solidifying the Firebirds 4-2 victory at the 18:52 mark of the period.
Colorado was outshot in the contest 27-19, as the Eagles finished 1-for-1 on the power play and 2-for-3 on the penalty kill.
The Eagles will be back in action when they travel to take on the Tucson Roadrunners on Friday, January 6th at 7:00pm MT at Tucson Convention Center Arena in Tucson, Arizona. Tickets for all regular season games are on sale now and start at just $21. You can find more information on ticket packages, theme tickets, and promotional nights, by visiting ColoradoEagles.com or by calling the ticket department at (970) 686-7468.
