Stockton Thunder Raise the Banner on Home Opener, Shutout Colorado Eagles 5-0
The Stockton Thunder opened the season demonstrating why they raised the 2012-13 Western Conference Championship Banner to the rafters as they rolled over the Colorado Eagles in a 5-0 Shutout victory. It took only 30 seconds for the first goal to be scored in the game. Captain Garet Hunt captured a feed from Ryan Constant to put the Stockton Thunder on the board first. Then the fists began to fly after Stockton swarmed the Colorado net. Thunder’s Mathieu Gagnon dropped the gloves on the Eagles’ Alex Hudson. As the first period reached the halfway mark, the big hits by both teams ramped up and Colorado tallied its first shot on goal during a power play opportunity it failed to capitalize on. Ryan Constant delivered a number of board rattling hip checks throughout the period. Bridgeport product, Kirill Kabanov ripped one past Eagles’ netminder Trevor Cann to tally another for the Thunder. Colorado would draw a penalty and Brayden Irwin would put the puck behind Cann on the power play pushing the score to 3-0 at the end of the first. The Thunder dominated the play and Colorado generated very little offense, struggling to maintain puck possession in the neutral zone.
The second period showed the Thunder continue to dominate and the frustration build for the Eagles. The ice became a boxing arena as sticks and gloves went flying for much of the middle frame. Stockton would go on the power play after Colorado was called for delay of game and Mike Keenan wasted no time and took a slap shot from the point to rifle in past Cann, putting the Thunder up another goal and Colorado deeper in the hole. The Eagles would put Adam Brown in net for the remainder of the game. Mathieu Gagnon would again find himself in a tussle with Colorado’s Alex Hudson while Stockton’s Corey Trivino and Mike Dalhuisen would join in the extra curriculars. Before the second period came to a close, Stockton found itself on the power play once again and the Thunder would score it’s third power play goal of the evening when Mike Dalhuisen took a pass from Kabanov to find the back of the net, 5-0.
Colorado, desperate to get on the board, turned up the pressure in the third, but the Thunder’s goaltender Brian Foster stuffed everything that was thrown his way. Colorado’s Trent Daavettila and Kevin Young circled the net, looking for any opening but could not find it as the clock ticked down. Thunder Coach Rich Kromm was pleased with his teams’ play and likes what the new players Kabanov, Dalhuisen, and Gagnon bring to the ice.
“We have some very physical players, Dalhuisen is a very physical player, Gagnon, that’s his game, he plays that way and he showed that tonight. I thought overall as a group we were physical tonight.”
Kirill Kabanov, who had 1 goal, 1 assist and a fight at the end of the 1st period enjoyed the physical play. He said “We sent a message, we played our way, like it says on our door and the guys stood up for each other tonight.”
Brian Foster stopped 29 shots for a shutout performance over the Eagles.
