Rivermen Drop Third Straight Saturday

Photo Credit: Pensacola Ice Flyers

Rivermen Drop Third Straight Saturday

Back-to-back losses in Pensacola give Peoria first three-game skid of season

Pensacola, FL – The Peoria Rivermen fell behind on a pair of first period power-play goals before eventually falling 5-3 to the Pensacola Ice Flyers Saturday night. The loss, Peoria’s third straight, drops the Rivermen to 18-9-7 with one game remaining in the season series against the Ice Flyers.

The Ice Flyers started the scoring in the first period with a pair of power play goals. After Rivermen captain Dave Pszenyczny was issued a five-minute major and game misconduct for boarding at the 12:45 of the first, the Ice Flyers cashed in on Nathan Bruyere’s wrister from atop the right circle, which beat Rivermen goaltender Tyler Green at 13:14 of the period for a 1-0 Pensacola lead. The Ice Flyers doubled their lead on a 5-on-3 power play after Rivermen winger Cody Dion was assessed a major and game misconduct for charging following a collision between the hashmarks with Pensacola goaltender Matt Zenzola. After Dion’s penalty and a series of fights at the 13:34 mark of the first Bruyere wristed another past Green from the high right circle at 13:41 for a 2-0 Pensacola lead.

The Ice Flyers grew their lead to 3-0 early in the second. Pensacola center Josh Cousineau skated into the right circle, had his initial shot denied by Green, and put his own rebound home at 4:37 of the period.

The Rivermen got back to within a goal on a pair of power-play tallies in the 2^nd. With Cousineau and Ice Flyers forward Roger Tagoona in the box, both for slashing, both at 4:51 of the second, Rivermen winger Connor Gorman buried a shot past Zenzola from above the right corner at 5:50 to make it 3-1. The Rivermen got to 3-2 at 16:54 of the period, with Pensacola defenseman Evan Moore in the box for cross-checking, when Peoria forward Justin Hoomaian took a loose puck from the high slot, wound up and rifled it past Zenzola.

The Ice Flyers pushed their lead back to a pair at 17:45 of the second, when Pensacola’s Patrick Megannety beat Green to make it a 4-2 game. The 4-2 score would hold for the remainder of the second period and into the third.

The Rivermen got back to within a goal midway through the third stanza. At 10:09, Gorman netted his second of the night when he fired Hoomaian’s rebound by Zenzola for a 4-3 score.

The score would hold until the game’s final two minutes, when Pensacola iced it with an empty-net goal. With Green off for the extra attacker at 17:56 of the third, the puck went down to the left corner of the Rivermen zone, where the Ice Flyers battled it out and to the middle, wrapping it around the post for the eventual 5-3 final score.

Green stopped 33 of 37 shots faced in the game as he took his second regulation loss in his last two outings. The defeats come after the Noblesville, Indiana native had rattled off a five-game win streak in goal.

Notes: Gorman logged his second career multi-goal game, and first since November 18 at Knoxville…Hoomaian’s goal is his second career power-play goal after he scored the first last Saturday against Mississippi…A goal and an assist also give Hoomaian his first career multi-point performance…The Rivermen and Ice Flyers return to action tomorrow afternoon when they rematch to conclude their season series at the Pensacola Bay Center…Sunday’s game starts at 4:05 Central Time…The broadcast of the game can be heard, starting with the pre-game show, at 3:45 p.m. at http://mixlr.com/peoria-rivermen/

Group, single game, and season tickets for Peoria's 35th season of professional hockey presented by Midwest Orthopaedic Center are on sale at the Toyota Box Office in the Peoria Civic Center, or by phone at the Rivermen office, located at 201 S.W. Jefferson Street, or over the phone at (309) 676-1040. For the latest Rivermen news and notes, follow online at www.rivermen.net or through Facebook (www.facebook.com/PeoriaRivermen) - Twitter(https://twitter.com/Peoria_Rivermen)