Condors Rally for 4-2 Win over Colorado
Jan 17, 2024
LOVELAND, CO. – The Bakersfield Condors rallied from two separate one-goal deficits to defeat the Colorado Eagles 4-2 on Wednesday. Bakersfield forward Drake Caggiula and defenseman Markus Niemelainen each registered a goal and an assist, while goaltender Jack Campbell earned the win in net, making 32 saves on 34 shots. Colorado forwards Tanner Kero and Spencer Smallman each found the back of the net in the losing effort, as Trent Miner suffered the loss in net, allowing three goals on 22 shots.
After killing off three Bakersfield power plays, the Eagles would grab the game’s first goal when Kero stuffed a shot from the side of the net past Campbell. The goal was Kero’s fourth of the season and gave Colorado a 1-0 edge at the 13:32 mark of the first period.
Bakersfield would knot things up just 19 seconds later when Niemelainen took advantage of traffic in front of the net when he lit the lamp with a shot from the blue line, evening the score at 1-1.
The Eagles would jump back in the driver’s seat when Chris Wagner served a cross-slot pass to the side of the crease, where Smallman would deflect the puck into the back of the net, giving Colorado a 2-1 advantage with 2:58 left in the opening 20 minutes of play. The Eagles would go on to outshoot the Condors 12-9 in the first frame and carried their 2-1 lead into the first intermission.
Bakersfield would tie things up when forward Greg McKegg skated across the low slot before roofing a shot past Miner, leveling the score at 2-2 at the 8:55 mark of the second period.
The Condors would then claim their first lead of the evening when Caggiula sliced between the circles and smashed a pass at the top of the crease into the back of the net. The goal was Caggiula’s sixth of the season and gave Bakersfield a 3-2 advantage with 6:40 remaining in the middle frame.
Still trailing 3-2 as the puck dropped on the third period, the Eagles would throw eight shots on net in the final frame, while holding the Condors to only four. Despite the lopsided shot count, Colorado would be forced to pull Miner in favor of the extra attacker in the final 2:30 of the contest. However, it would be Bakersfield who would capitalize, as forward Dylan Holloway fed the puck into the empty net to stretch the Condors lead to 4-2 with 48 seconds remaining in the game.
The Eagles outshot Bakersfield by a final count of 34-23, as Colorado finished the night going 0-for-1 on the power play and 5-for-5 on the penalty kill.
The Eagles will be back in action when they take on the San Jose Barracuda on Saturday, January 20th at 7:05pm MT at Blue Arena. Tickets for all regular season games are on sale now and start at just $23. You can find more information on ticket packages, theme nights, and promotional offers, by visiting ColoradoEagles.com or by calling the ticket department at (970) 686-7468.
