Rivermen Unable to Stage Comeback, Fall 3-1 in Huntsville Friday

Photo Credit: Chris Shimek/Huntsville Havoc

Rivermen Unable to Stage Comeback, Fall 3-1 in Huntsville Friday

Piacentini’s pair lifts Huntsville to third straight as Rivermen drop second in a row

Huntsville, AL – The Peoria Rivermen fell behind in the first period and were unable to stage a comeback as they fell 3-1 to the Huntsville Havoc at the Von Braun Center Friday night. The loss, Peoria’s second in a row, drops the Rivermen into a second-place tie with Evansville six points behind first-place Pensacola before tomorrow night’s rematch with the Havoc in Huntsville.

The Havoc started the scoring with a power-play tally just past the midway point of the game’s first period. With Rivermen defenseman Dave Pszenyczny boxed for slashing, Huntsville Scott Trask’s redirect attempt at the netfront was turned aside by Peoria goaltender Tyler Parks. The ensuing rebound was popped over Parks’ outstretched left pad by Huntsville winger Kyle Sharkey for the 1-0 Havoc lead at 13:24 of the period.

The Havoc opened up a three-goal lead with a pair of goals early in the second period. With the teams skating 5-on-5 and the puck in the Rivermen zone, Huntsville center Sy Nutkevitch’s drive toward the net was redirected by Havoc winger Tyler Piacentini, and it trickled past Parks and inside the left post of the Peoria net for a 2-0 Havoc lead at 3:49 of the period. Piacentini pushed the Huntsville lead to 3-0 just minutes later when he fired teammate Skyler SMutek’s feed past Parks and into the net at 6:58 of the stanza.

The Rivermen got on the board with a power-play tally of their own late in the second frame. With Huntsville winger Alex Botten in the sin bin for boarding, the Rivermen rushed into the Huntsville zone. Rivermen winger Cody Dion sent a pass to the high right wing of the Havoc zone, where teammate Alec Hagaman fired a shot toward the Havoc net. The puck was redirected on the doorstep by Rivermen winger Ryan Siiro, and past Huntsville netminder Mike DeLaVergne for a 3-1 score at 18:59 of the second period. The third period was played without score, and the Havoc held on for the 3-1 final.

Parks took the loss in net for Peoria, stopping 33 of 36 shots faced in goal to drop his season record to 8-3-0. The loss marks Park’s second straight defeat in net, and his first loss this season in a game he started.

Notes: Rivermen winger Mike Gurtler’s league-leading eight-game point-scoring streak was snapped…Siiro’s goal gives him four points in as many games against the Havoc this season…The Rivermen return to action tomorrow night when they finish their weekend series against the Havoc in Huntsville…Game time Saturday night is set for 7 p.m. from the Von Braun Center… The broadcast of the game can be heard, starting with the pre-game show, at 6:40 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)