The Colorado Eagles continued their six-game road trip in Abbotsford against the Canucks tonight in a hard fought game. Trent Miner would have to dig deep for the victory in Abbotsford. With the Eagles going 10–2 in February, they are one of the hottest teams in the league. Colorado currently sits at second place in the Pacific Division behind Coachella Valley, who also play tonight. In their last 20 games, the Eagles have only lost three games. The addition of Ivan Prosvetov in the crease and now Fredrik Olofsson has helped Colorado tremendously. Here are the takeaways from the 4–3 overtime victory over the Abbotsford Canucks.
Keaton Middleton totally redeems himself with his 4th of the year after coming out of the box. Riley Tufte with the pressure in front gets the assist. #Avs #GoAvsGo #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/YsvXhDe1gq
— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) February 29, 2024
Takeaways
— Early in the game, Colorado struggled to clear the defensive zone. After the goal just 51 seconds into the game, the Eagles could not clear the puck. The defensive core was trying to flip the puck out of the zone rather than carry it out. This caused a lot of turnovers and the Canucks took advantage by peppering Miner with shots. In the first period Colorado allowed 20 shots on goal, but reduced it to ten the following frame by carrying the puck out.
— Trent Miner looked out of sorts early in the game, allowing a goal just 51 seconds into the first period. But as the game went along, he became stronger on the posts and quicker laterally. There were several breakaways, including one in the third period, that completely shut the shooter down. Miner would take the Eagles to overtime and save 40 of the 43 shots on goal, or a .930 save percentage. Miner now has a 4–6–1–1 record in the AHL this season.
— Tanner Kero has been on fire lately. He has three goals in four games and has become a key to the penalty kill.
Tanner Kero whips the puck to the back of the net for his 9th of the year. Olofsson gets another assist with Dalton Smith helping out as well. #Avs #GoAvsGo #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/7yHWgCGoET
— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) February 29, 2024
— The addition of Fredrik Olofsson in the last two games has made an offensive impact. He already has two assists in his two games. The coaching staff assigned him to a line with his former Texas Stars teammates, Riley Tufte and Kero. So the need for him to build the chemistry has taken very little time.
— Jean-Luc Foudy has been back from injury for four games and seen the scoresheet twice already. His defensive pressure tonight forced a turnover for Cal Burke to drop the puck back to him and flip into the goal. There were a lot of good things coming from Foudy in the last two games that have led to production.
Jean-Luc Foudy and his hard work pays off! Cal Burke drops a pass back to Foudy and he buries his second of the season! Burke has points in his last 5 of 7 games. #Avs #GoAvsGo #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/0Pi8mdmD6V
— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) February 29, 2024
PARÉ FOR THE GAME WINNER! Malinski carries it in and tosses it to Meyers and then to an open Cedric Paré. Eagles have won a season high 7 games in a row. #Avs #GoAvsGo #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/8Jy4f1qPQr
— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) February 29, 2024
Conclusion
The Eagles are now on the longest winning streak of the season at seven games. With the victory, they still trail Coachella Valley by just two points in the Pacific Division. They are playing with a lot of confidence with the goaltending they have behind them right now as well. Their next opponent, the Calgary Wranglers, will be the hardest games of the road trip. Having a 0–3–1 record against the division rival will only give the Eagles motivation going into Friday and Sunday. If Ivan Prosvetov is facing off against Dustin Wolf, will be a battle that you won’t want to miss.