Quick Hits

— Cal Burke is heating up and getting back in a groove. By scoring goals in consecutive games, he has affected how the opponent approaches the zone. Burke is a two-way center that loves to forecheck, backcheck and give you 100 percent on every shift. He has averaged four shots on goal in the last six games to help boost the offense since returning on December 16th.

Cal Burke snaps his 5th of the season in for the 5-2 lead for the Eagles. Right off of the faceoff, Kero and Hunt with the assists #Avs #GoAvsGo #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/nyIjJhm7OD

— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) December 31, 2023

Cal Burke with his 2nd goal of the night and 3rd point. Jack Ahcan provides the cross slot pass and his 2nd assist of the night. Eagles up 6-2 #Avs #GoAvsGo #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/EWedBB6AQL

— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) December 31, 2023

— Sam Malinski showed off the experience he gained from his recall to the Colorado Avalanche. So far this season, Malinski has played 14 games with the Avalanche where he had one goal and four assists. He showed his experience on the first penalty kill of the game tonight with his aggressiveness on the puck carrier. He was smoother in his skating and more confident in his attacks. The NHL had a significant positive impact on Malinski, clear in the first period alone.

— Annunen played his third game in a row and since coming back from injury. He struggled in the first game against Calgary, playing only 32 minutes, but has since performed consistently. He has allowed only four goals in 51 shots, which has given the Eagles a fighting chance. As the game went along tonight, he showed more mobility and confidence in the movement towards the puck.

— The power play unit in tonight’s victory was doing a lot of things right. They were moving the puck and doing it to the right places. Skaters were taking shots on the net at will, taking advantage of the inexperienced Hunter Jones in net. Colorado was following their shots up with secondary rebound shots, getting even more chances. There is a spark there, and we saw it come alive tonight.

Brad Hunt with a hard slapper from the blue line that works its way through the crowd. Assists come from Burke and Kero and the Eagles are up 1-0. #Avs #GoAvsGo    #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/xrK8lw3bvn

— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) December 31, 2023

Conclusion

The Eagles showed a lot of confidence in their puck movement with the momentum of a victory behind them on Thursday. Having another puck carrying defenseman helped their exits out of their own zone a lot with Malinski. Their lack of discipline at the end of the game resulted in six penalties in the third alone, which could have cost them. But they could weather the storm with two players ejected from the game. This team is showing some chemistry under Aaron Schneekloth and it is exciting. The Eagles’ next game will be on Friday, January 5th in Milwaukee against the Admirals.

Matt Stienburg drops the gloves with Adam Raska after an open ice hit. The result would be Stienburg getting 2 for instigating, 5 for fighting and 10 for misconduct #Avs #GoAvsGo    #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/c1XqVFkQYQ

— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) December 31, 2023

The post Burke heats up in victory over Wild appeared first on The Rink.

Quick hits

— Colorado improved in the passing game on Saturday. This enabled the setup of big plays on the points and along the blue line. Shots rained down from the point and the high slot, but the Wild were doing an excellent job blocking them.

— Wallstedt is going to be the Minnesota Wild’s goalie of the future, plain and simple. Wallstedt maintains composure in the net and never looks frazzled at all. He can knock down the shots and quickly eliminate the second chance for the opposing team. He may not eat the puck up, but he can land on it pretty quick. His .937 save percentage through 12 games leads the AHL. Because of the good health of the goalies in Minneapolis, he has not played in the NHL. When he gets to the show, he will be ready for sure.

Ondrej Pavel with a gorgeous chance in front that slips wide of the net. He is skating with more confidence now after that goal a few games ago. #Avs #GoAvsGo    #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/8wOI984Jbx

— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) December 3, 2023

“You can just tell he’s positionally sound, and we’ll try to get him after New Year’s again,” Nathan Clurman said. “But it was an impressive weekend for him, for sure.”

Try and try again…. Ben Meyers buries the rebound off a shot from Oskar Olausson and Riley Tufte to take an early lead for the Eagles and make it 1-0 #Avs #GoAvsGo #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/obQQLfTuHg

— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) December 3, 2023

“We were engaged,” head coach Aaron Schneekloth said. “We had every single player that put a jersey on tonight, work and compete. So unfortunate that we ran into an elite goaltender tonight and that’s something for our team to build off for sure.”

— Despite their previous success, the penalty kill surrendered two goals. This once again made the difference in the game. On Friday, the Eagles could only kill two out of four of the penalties. On Saturday, they killed four of six. An improvement, yes, but discipline became an issue on Saturday and it cost them the game.

“I thought the PK was outstanding,” Schneekloth said. “Tonight, regardless of the goals, I thought our structure was there. I thought our commitment was there. The 5-on-3 I felt really gave us some life and some momentum. They did a great job killing it.”

Keaton Middleton doing the dirty work down low on the offensive side of the puck and taps the rebound in after Ben Meyers shoots from the blue line. #Avs #GoAvsGo    #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/ST66VnTsPB

— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) December 3, 2023

Conclusion

The Eagles will meet the Tucson Roadrunners next weekend for a Pacific Division battle. Tucson currently sits five points ahead of the Eagles in the division. These games are extremely hard fought (literally), with lots of penalty minutes to go long with it. Colorado will encounter the obstacle of Matthew Villalta in net. Historically, he excelled against the Eagles while playing for the Ontario Reign, and his current stats are outstanding. Colorado must give it their all and hope for the best against him.

The post Eagles can’t solve the Wallstedt mystery appeared first on The Rink.

Quick hits

• The Eagles had a tough time connecting passes on the tape during last night’s game. Passes were either ahead or at the feet of the player. It was challenging for the Eagles to organize plays when given the chance. It was especially prevalent on the points, which led to fewer shots from the blue line and less pressure.

Stieny defending his teammate pic.twitter.com/rTu4zXBhaA

— Colorado Eagles (@ColoradoEagles) December 2, 2023

“I felt we had a good week in preparation leading up to it and parts of that game I really liked what our team was doing,” head coach Aaron Schneekloth said. “And then there are parts of that game where we definitely need to have better execution a little better and compete for a bit better for protection on our nets. So you’re always gonna find areas that you’re disappointed in and after a loss. The big thing for us is just making sure we can find a way to put 60 minutes together, especially here at home in front of this crowd.”

• Colorado needed to stay out of the penalty box. Nate Clurman, who has recently been getting healthy scratched, committed a hooking infraction just three minutes into the game. The Wild capitalized on the power play with just 34 seconds left, leaving the Eagles chasing the game the entire time. Ondrej Pavel was called for a questionable holding call in the second and the Wild immediately scored on the man advantage. The penalty kill for the Eagles was 85.7%, but they certainly struggled on Friday.
• Colorado looked a little weak on their rushes to the net. They were not following their own shots to the net, as goaltender Jesper Wallstedt was giving up second chances. The Eagles missed an opportunity to tire Wallstedt out by not aggressively pushing toward the net for potential rebounds.

Riley Tufte with the work down low on the PP to finally get one through for the Eagles with the help of Spencer Smallman and Ben Meyers #Avs #GoAvsGo    #EaglesCountry @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/yNZKtJ8Jl5

— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) December 2, 2023

“I mean, that’s, that’s part of it,” Schneekloth pointed out. “I felt like you know, there’s a nice stretch in the second period where we were playing in their zone, taking a penalty. It’s in the back of the net, and now we’re chasing the game even more than what we were before. And you could sense some frustration from our players as well. That’s where we got to be a mature team, find a way to reset and get your game on track and not let it get away from it.”

Conclusion

Colorado could not gain the lead the entire night, as they lost 5–1. The rematch against the Wild in Loveland will take place on Saturday night to wrap up the two-game set. If they hope to maintain sixth in the Pacific Division and win the second game, they will need to become more aggressive in their offensive zone and split the weekend.

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