Rivermen Too Dawg-Gone Good for Roanoke, Win 6-1 Saturday

Photo Credit: Dennis Sievers/Peoria Rivermen

Rivermen Too Dawg-Gone Good for Roanoke, Win 6-1 Saturday

Six Rivermen score goals, Oskroba records three assists in victory

Peoria, IL – The Peoria Rivermen scored 3:30 into the game and never looked back Saturday night, defeating the Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs 6-1 Saturday night at Carver Arena. The win lifts Peoria past Evansville into second place in the SPHL standings before next weekend’s three-game, three-city stretch.

The Rivermen got the scoring started with a goal early in the game’s first period. With play ongoing in the Roanoke zone, Rivermen center Jordan Carvalho sent a puck toward the net that was stopped by Rail Yard Dawgs netminder Matt Zenzola. The ensuing rebound was batted home on a third effort by Rivermen winger Cody Dion for the 1-0 Peoria lead at 3:30 of the period.

The Rivermen doubled their lead and chased Zenzola from the contest past the midway point of the period. Rivermen winger Will Smith carried the puck into the right wing of the Dawgs end, and dropped a pass to teammate Ryan Siiro. Siiro’s first shot was blocked back to him, and his second attempt was deflected by Smith on the doorstep to beat Zenzola and chased him from the contest at 10:22 of the period.

Peoria extended its lead to 3-0 just 1:08 after Roanoke goaltender Brad Barone had entered the contest. Rivermen defenseman Ben Oskroba sent a long pass from the Peoria blueline to teammate Mike Gurtler, who collected it above the right point of the Ronaoke zone, slipped behind the defense, and put a shot over Barone’s shoulder at 11:30 of the period.

The Rail Yard Dawgs got on the board with a tally late in the first period. With the puck behind the Rivemren net, Roanoke winger David Gandara sent a pass to the net-front, where teammate Steve Mele snapped a one-timer past Peoria goaltender Eric Levine for a 3-1 score at 16:49 of the period.

The Rivermen rebuilt their lead to a three-goal edge with a power-play goal toward the midway point of the second period. With Rail Yard Dawgs defenseman Ben Bauer in the box for slashing, Rivermen winger Jacob Barber sped into the Roanoke zone on a 2-on-1 rush with teammate Connor Gorman. Barber’s pass from the right wing found Gorman at the left post, where he dunked it past Barone for a 4-1 lead at 7:02 of the period.

Peoria extended their lead with an even-strength tally late in the second period. With the teams skating 5-on-5, Peoria winger Alec Hagaman carried into the left wing of the Rail Yard Dawgs zone on a 2-on-1, and ripped a shot far side past Barone at 14:12 of the period for a 5-1 Peoria advantage.

The Rivermen padded their lead with another power-play tally, this time in the middle phases of the third period. With Roanoke defenseman Nick Schneider boxed for holding, Hagaman carried the puck around the back of the Rail Yard Dawgs net and out of the left corner. His pass fed a one-timer for Rivermen captain Dave Pszenyczny, who beat Barone for the eventual 6-1 final score at 7:37 of the period.

Levine earned the win in net, stopping 31 of 32 shots faced in 54:25 of ice time, before he was lifted for injury late in the third. With the win, Levine improves to 10-2-0 on the season.

Notes: Oskroba recorded a career-high three assists before he was issued a game-misconduct late in the second period…With the performance, Oskroba has recorded five points and a +7 rating in his last four games…Hagaman recorded a goal and two assists, giving him a point or more in each of his last 10 games, dating back to November 11 vs Knoxville…Rivermen goaltender Matt Leon saw his first SPHL game action since November 18 at Birmingham when he replaced Levine late in the third period…The Rivermen return to action next Friday night at home when they host the Evansville Thunderbolts at 7:15 PM…The game will be Peoria’s first ever Wiener Dog Race night, with dachshund races staged on the ice during the first and second intermissions…The broadcast of the game can be heard, starting with the pre-game show, at 6:55 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)