Peoria prevails in SO, 6-5

PEORIA, Ill – As hockey games go, Saturday night’s game between the Chicago Wolves and the Peoria Rivermen was the equivalent of a knife fight. Four misconducts, nine major penalties, ten lead changes and bodies flying all over the place, oh, and toss a goal waived off in overtime into the mix. Then, with all that, only to end in a shootout and a 6-5 Rivermen victory.
 
Adding to the gladiator feel were 9,025 screaming fans and the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders – seriously, THE Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders – dancing during the intermissions. Carver Arena was up for grabs.
 
It started when early pressure from Peoria paid immediate dividends. Newcomer Chris Langkow, in his first AHL game, scored on a pass from Derek Peltier on the left wing.
 
Langkow, who had set the ECHL on fire, posting nine points in his previous four games, put the puck past Chicago goaltender Pete Mannino at the 3:18 mark of the first period for the 1-0 Rivermen lead. Mark Cundari also added an assist on the play.
 
That lead wouldn’t last, as Chicago scored on a power play just over two minutes later. Spencer Machacek gathered a rebound off the shot of Jared Ross. Machacek took his time but Rivermen goalie Jake Allen stayed in position. Machacek then put the softest of shots into Allens pads. Tim Miller was then able to put the rebound of that shot around Allen to tie the game.
 
Chicago scored again at 9:13 when Jake Allen thought he’d stopped a chest-high Ryan Garbutt shot. Instead, it squeezed between his arm and chest for a 2-1 Chicago lead. A slapper from the left wing by Derek Peltier brought the score even at 2-2 on a power play goal at 11:53 of the first period, thanks in no small part to a moving screen set up by Brett Sonne. Jake Gannon and Sonne picked up assists.
 
The period ended with both teams at each other’s throats. Stefan Della Rovere and Brennan Evans each delivered heavy hits with just two minutes left in the period. Referee Keith Kuval inexplicably assessed Evans with major and game misconduct penalties for checking to the head. Sure enough, as the second period began, more missed calls lead to players taking matters into their own hands. Dean Arsene and Jaime Sifers dropped the gloves and swung wildly, neither player hitting the other.
 
Seconds later Noah Welch, who had fought Sonne earlier in the game, concluded discussions with Graham Mink and they fought. Unlike his first fight of the evening, which was a draw, Welch was quickly dispatched.
 
At 6:46 of the second period during a four-on-four, Darren Haydar was able to jam the puck between Allen’s leg pad and the post to take a 3-2 Chicago lead. That lead lasted less than three minutes when Graham Mink was able to score on the power play from Derek Nesbitt and TJ Hensick to knot the game at three-all.
 
Now another fight – this time Scratchard versus Kulda. Scatchard just flattened Kulda with a beautiful check and Kulda jumped Scatchard. No punches were thrown as Scatchard couldn’t get a glove off but each earned a seat in the sin bin for five minutes.
 
The Rivermen missed several opportunities late in the second period but as play came down in front of Allen, the Rivermen tender did not react quickly enough as play moved behind the net from left to right, leaving the right side wide open for Miller. Garbutt and Haydar had the helpers on this one, which put the Wolves ahead, 4-3.
 
The Rivermen tied it back up at 3:57 of the third period when Nick Drazenovic started a tic-tac-toe play that Dave Spina finished. Scatchard was sandwiched in the middle of that play for an assist as well.
 
Nathan Oystrick put the Rivermen ahead at 13:51 of the third period when he skated into the slot and fired one through Mannino on passes from Nesbitt and Arsene. The goal staked the Rivermen to a 5-4 lead late in the game.
 
This game would not be finished quite that early, though. Two minutes later, Machacek scored again, lofting a pass from Riley Holzapfel from behind the net over Allen’s outstretched stick. Again the game fell into a tie, this time at five-all.
 
We would head to overtime, which would be a wild five minutes.
 
Twelve minutes in penalties for each team, Chicago’s coming after a potentially winning goal was waived off. In the shootout, Andrew Kozak was the only one able to score on Jake Allen. Hensick and Peltier both scored on Mannino to get the extra point for the Rivermen.
 
Chicago went one-for-six on the power play while Peoria scored twice during a dozen man-advantages. Although the Wolves had the bulk of the penalty infractions during the game, penalty minutes were about even, with Peoria tallying 57 minutes to Chicago’s 56. The Rivermen also lead shot on goal, 38-29.
 
Contact the author: Shaun.Bill@ProHockeyNews.com
Contact the photographer at Chris.Loudermilk@prohockeynews.com