WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah – While battling an inordinate number of penalty calls and a very skilled net minder at the opposite end of the ice Colorado managed to turn the tables on the Utah Grizzlies and win decisively in Game 5 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals at the Maverik Center on Sunday afternoon.
Period one saw no goals scored for either team but once
Jon Puskar
Photo by Terry Sanford
again the Eagles received the only penalties called in the first twenty minutes of play. Jesse Mychan, Sean Zimmerman and Giffen Nyren were each accessed a minor penalty. Despite the lopsidedness in shorthanded playing time the Eagles managed to outshoot the Grizzlies 15 to 13 as the launched a full out attack on net at every opportunity.
In the second period of play the scoring started with Utah tallying two goals slightly more than three minutes apart as Jon Puskar scored a power play goal on a rebound given up by Eagles Goalie, Clark Saunders, at 4:07 into the period and Matt Barry knocked in a backdoor cross slot pass from Connor Hardowa to take a 2 to 0 lead at 7:25 into the middle frame.
Colorado scored the next five consecutive goals. The first three goals were scored in less than two minutes at the end of the second period. Mychan scored at 17:26 followed by Colin Bowman’s big slapper on the power play at 18:39. Mychan added another goal with thirty four second left in the period. for a 3 to 2 lead for the visiting team at the second intermission.
Clark Saunders
Photo by Terry Sanford
Eagles Captain Trent Daavettila put Colorado up 4 to 2 beating Utah’s Ryan Farragher five hole at the 6:36 mark of the final frame. Daavettila closed out the scoring with an empty net goal at 19:53 to send the rowdy Utah crowd streaming for the exits after the 5 to 2 loss.
Colorado outshot the Grizzlies 38 to 34 and Eagles Goalie Clark Saunders stopped 32 of 34 attempts to record the win while Ryan Faragher for Utah saved 33 of 37 shots in a losing effort.
With the Grizzlies leading the Eagles three games to two in the best of seven series – Game 6 will be played at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, Colorado on Tuesday April 26, 2016. The puck drops at  7:05 MDT.
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