Heat Rally Late for 5-4 Overtime Win over Eagles
Nov 13, 2018
LOVELAND, CO. – The Stockton Heat scored with 1:22 remaining in regulation and netted the game-winner 2:48 into overtime to rally for a 5-4 victory over the Colorado Eagles on Tuesday. Eagles forward Logan O’Connor scored a pair of goals, while fellow forward Martin Kaut registered a three-point night in the loss. Colorado scored two shorthanded goals in the contest, giving the team at least one shorthanded goal in each of its last three contests.
Colorado would begin the scoring while working on the penalty kill, as A. J. Greer would send the puck toward the net before fellow forward Dominic Toninato slapped it past Heat goalie Jon Gillies at the 4:25 mark of the first period. The goal was Toninato’s first as an Eagle and gave Colorado the 1-0 advantage.
The lead would be extended when O’Conner bullied his way from the left-wing corner to the top of the crease before slipping a shot into the back of the net to put Colorado up 2-0 just 7:53 into the contest.
Stockton’s second power play of the period would yield the team’s first goal of the evening when forward Tyler Graovac jammed home a rebound in the crease to slice the Eagles advantage to 2-1 with 6:41 left in the first period.
It would be a third Heat power play that would lead to the game-tying tally, as forward Spencer Foo snagged a loose puck between the circles and fired a wrister past Colorado goaltender Pavel Francouz to square the contest at 2-2 with only 17 seconds remaining in the opening frame.
The second period would see Stockton notch an early goal when Graovac found himself in the low-slot when a rebound landed on his stick, setting up his second goal of the night and giving the Heat a 3-2 edge just 1:13 into the period.
The Eagles would strike back when O’Connor created a turnover on the penalty kill, sending him streaking down the left wing before firing a wrist shot past Gillies to tie the game at 3-3 at the 13:22 mark of the middle frame.
Just over a minute later, Kaut would release from the penalty box and he would field a pass at center ice that would spring him on a rush through the right circle, where he would snap a shot and light the lamp to give Colorado the 4-3 advantage with 5:33 left in the second period.
The third period would see Gillies give way to Nick Schneider in net, as Schneider would deny the Eagles four shots on goal in the final frame. With time winding down, Stockton would pull Schneider in favor of the extra attacker and the move would pay dividends, as defenseman Adam Ollas Mattsson would beat Francouz with a shot from the left-wing boards to tie the game at 4-4 with 1:22 remaining in regulation.
With the game still deadlocked after 60 minutes, the two teams would then embark on a sudden-death overtime. With 2:12 left in the extra session, defenseman Rob Hamilton would skate between the circles and snap a wrister into the back of the net to secure the 5-4 overtime win for the Heat.
Colorado finished the evening 0-for-2 on the power play, while Stockton scored on two of its five opportunities on the man-advantage. The Heat would also hold the edge in shots on goal, 35-21.
The Eagles will conclude their two-game set against the Stockton Heat on Wednesday, November 14th at the Budweiser Events Center at 7:05pm MT.
Single-game tickets for the 2018-19 season are on-sale now and start at just $18 per seat. Purchase your seats today by visiting the Budweiser Events Center box office, online at ColoradoEagles.com or by calling the Eagles ticketing department at 970-686-SHOT (7468).
