Loveland, CO - Continuing a trend in Colorado sports this year, another local professional sports club has been swept in a playoff series. Last October the Colorado Rockies lost in four straight games to the Boston Red Sox in the World Series, the Denver Nuggets were pummeled by the Los Angeles Lakers in four consecutive games a few weeks ago in the first round of the NBA playoffs. In NHL hockey, the Colorado Avalanche were swept in a second round series by the Detroit Red Wings. and now the CHL Colorado Eagles lost four games to none in a best-of-seven series against the Arizona Sundogs.
It was another tough contest for the Eagles as they played like a team on the verge of elimination, they out-shot the Sundogs again, this time recording 44 shots to Arizona's 35, yet Arizona goalie Rob McVicar stopped 41 of them for the victory to earn Playoff MVP status.
In retrospect, the Eagles sloppy start, taking four penalties in the first period and giving up two power play goals, put them in a hole that they never were able to fully climb out of. Steve Rymsha, and playoff scoring leader, Cory Urquhart, scored the power play goals for Arizona in period one but Colorado managed to cut that lead in half on a Jason Beatty goal scored with the extra man on a delayed penalty.
Period two was the Eagles best period of the game and maybe even the best period of the series as the home town team led the visitors 21 to 12 in shots and Fraser Filipic scored to tie the game at two apiece at 8:22 of the second period. The Colorado team kept up the pace and had several good scoring chances but the Eagles were unable to get anything else by McVicar in that frame and the Sundogs third goal with only 6.7 seconds left in the period seemed to break the spirit of the defending champs.
When the Sundogs Kyle Hood scored early in the third period followed by a shorthanded goal from Tyler Redenbach a minute later to make it 5 to 2 starting goalie Bryan Bridges was pulled in favor of Sebastien Laplante. Bridges was a surprise starter in this game as Laplante had carried the load through most of the latter part of the season and nearly all of the playoff games. The goalie change did not stem the momentum created by Arizona as that lead held up until late in the period when Ed McGrane scored goal number three for the Eagles. Finding themselves down by only two goals gave the Colorado team a brief moment of hope as they pulled the goalie for the extra attacker, unfortunately the result was an Alex Leavitt empty net goal to seal the deal at 6 to 3.
It was a stunned and disappointed Colorado Eagles team that went through the handshake line and headed toward their locker room but Eagles Coach Chris Stewart, had his players stay on the ice and give respect to the Arizona Sundogs as Rob McVicar received the Playoff MVP award and the Sundogs captain Chris Bartolone accepted the Ray Miron President's Cup for the CHL League Champions.
The ecstatic Arizona players skated the cup and did the traditional pig pile picture to celebrate the victory but an enterprising Sundogs player found a pair of scissors and cut a piece out of the goal net for a souvenir, soon several others followed suit. Until the team receives their championship bling this fall, the piece of Colorado goal net will give them a tangible reminder of what this young team has accomplished.
Perhaps the joy was summarized by one Arizona player as the quote of the night by a player celebrating on the ice was, "I am so happy I can't stop cussing!"
