First-Period Meltdown Sinks Eagles in 5-2 Loss to Ontario
Jan 31, 2023
ONTARIO, CA. – The Ontario Reign erased an early 1-0 deficit, scoring four first-period goals, including three tallies in a span of 2:28, as Ontario defeated the Colorado Eagles 5-2 on Tuesday. Forward Alex Galchenyuk and defenseman Nate Clurman each found the back of the net in the loss. The Eagles outshot the Reign 45-22, finishing the contest 0-for-2 on the power play and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill.
Colorado would strike early when Sampo Ranta dished a pass to the low slot on the rush, which Galchenyuk banged home to give the Eagles a 1-0 edge just 1:58 into the contest.
The tide would turn on the power play when Reign defenseman Jordan Spence buried a wrister from the point to tie the game at 1-1 at the 3:54 mark of the first period. Ontario grabbed its first lead of the night when defenseman Frederic Allard lit the lamp with a shot from between the circles to put the Reign on top 2-1 with 7:41 remaining in the opening frame.
Just 54 second later, Ontario forward Taylor Ward tucked a shot between Eagles goalie Justus Annunen and the post, extending the Reign’s lead to 3-1. The goal would also spell the end of the night for Annunen, who would give way to Jonas Johansson for the duration.
Just minutes after the swap in net, Ontario forward Aidan Dudas would snag a rebound off the leg pad of Johansson and slid the puck home to push the Reign’s advantage to 4-1 at the 15:47 mark of the period.
Still trailing 4-1 as the puck dropped on the second period, Colorado would layer on the pressure in the middle frame, outshooting Ontario, 12-5. The Eagles would also earn their first two power plays of the night in the second stanza, but would not be able to capitalize, as the Reign carried their 4-1 lead into the second intermission.
Colorado would finally summon an answer midway through the third period when Clurman sliced through the right-wing circle before snapping a wrister past Ontario goaltender Matthew Villalta. The tally was Clurman’s first of the season and trimmed the deficit to 4-2 at the11:39 mark of the final frame.
The Eagles would opt to pull Johansson in favor of the extra attacker with 4:30 remaining in the contest, but it would be Ward who would capitalize on an empty-netter with only 3:45 left to play.
Annunen suffered the loss in net, allowing three goals on eight shots, while Villalta turned aside 43 of the 45 shots he faced to earn the win.
The Eagles will be back in action when they travel to take on the Henderson Silver Knights on Friday, February 3rd at 8:00pm MT at Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nevada. 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.
