Tucson Scores Seven Unanswered to Thump Colorado, 7-1
Mar 25, 2023
LOVELAND, CO. – Tucson forward Adam Cracknell notched a goal and three assists, as the Roadrunners scored seven unanswered goals to defeat the Colorado Eagles 7-1 on Saturday. Tucson generated seven goals from seven different goal scorers, as 14 skaters earned a point on the scoresheet for the Roadrunners. Tucson goaltender Tyler Parks stopped 40 of the 41 shots he faced to collect the win in net. Eagles forward Charles Hudon buried the team’s lone goal in the contest, while fellow forward Ben Meyers picked up an assist to extend his point streak to nine games.
Colorado would open the scoring when defenseman Keaton Middleton fed a pass to Hudon at the bottom of the right-wing circle, where he would snap the puck home for his team-leading 25th goal of the season, giving the Eagles a 1-0 edge just 6:59 into the contest.
Tucson would draw even when defenseman Steven Kampfer fired a shot from the point through traffic and past Colorado goaltender Keith Kinkaid, tying the game 1-1 at the 12:21 mark of the first period.
The Roadrunners would claim their first lead of the night when defenseman Ronald Knot skated through the right-wing circle before launching a wrister that would deflect off Kinkaid and trickle into the back of the net, giving Tucson a 2-1 advantage with 4:44 left to play in the opening 20 minutes of play.
Still leading 2-1 as the puck dropped on the second period, the Roadrunners would light the lamp once again when forward Ryan McGregor fielded a pass in the low-slot and blistered it home to put Tucson up 3-1 just 1:13 into the middle frame.
The momentum would continue to build when Cracknell settled a rebound at the bottom of the left-wing circle and tucked it past Kinkaid to grow the Roadrunners’ advantage to 4-1 with 11:16 remaining in the second stanza.
Tucson would round out the period when forward Jan Jenik tracked down a rebound in the low slot before tucking around the side of the crease and lighting the lamp to stretch the Roadrunners’ lead to 5-1 at the 17:20 mark.
Justus Annunen would take over for Kinkaid in net to begin the third period, as Colorado outshot Tucson 16-9 in the final frame. The lopsided number would have little impact on the score; however, as Roadrunners forward Jean-Sebastien Dea would convert on a 5-on-3 power play to push Tucson’s advantage to 6-1 at the 16:33 mark of the period.
The Roadrunners would add one final mark to the scoresheet when forward Curtis Douglas camped out on top of the crease a redirected a shot from the point past Annunen to give Tucson a 7-1 lead with 40 seconds left to play in the contest.
Colorado would outshoot the Roadrunners by a final count of 41-31, as the Eagles finished the night 0-for-4 on the power play and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill. Kinkaid suffered the loss in net, allowing five goals on 22 shots. Annunen finished with seven saves on nine shots.
The Eagles will be back in action when they take on the Tucson Roadrunners on Sunday, March 26th at 3:05pm MT at the Budweiser Events Center. 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.
