The Allen Americans lost to the Wichita Thunder 6-5 in a shootout last before a crowd of 6839 at Intrust Bank Arena. It was one of those strange games where there was plenty of things to like and plenty to dislike about how the Americans played so obtaining one point for their effort was probably a just result. Here are just a few examples of the good, the bad and the ugly from last night.
- Allen gave up the first and only goal of the first period but scored two goals in the opening three minutes of the second period to take a 2-1 lead.
- Allen scored four second period goals but also surrendered four second period goals to Wichita and trailed the Thunder 5-4 at the second intermission.
- Allen's penalty kill was good, not allowing Wichita a power play goal (0-3) but Wichita's penalty kill was even better (0-5) including a long 5-on-3 kill in the third period.
- Allen had 43 shots on goal, the best of the season, but Wichita had 48 shots on goal, the most allowed by Allen thus far.
- Allen was out shot 8-2 in overtime partly because they had to play the first 1:50 of the overtime shorthanded as the result of a game delay penalty at the end of regulation.
- Allen missed all three of their shootout attempts (Shmyr, Pierro-Zabotel, Salituro), Wichita converted their first (Jacobs) which proved to be the game winner for the Thunder.
- Allen's Braylon Shmyr was the #1 star of the game (3G, 1A) and former American Dyson Stevenson was the #2 star of the game (2G, 1A).
- So if you want to see the glass half full you would say Allen had 43 shots on goal, scored five goals including four in the second period, were flawless on the penalty kill (0-3) and had the first hat trick of the season in the ECHL from Braylon Shmyr. If you see the glass half empty Allen gave up the first goal of the game, allowed Wichita to score four second period goals, went 0-5 on the power play including a long 5-on-3, gave up 48 shots, were out shot in overtime 8-2 and went 0-3 in the shootout. Maybe getting a point on the road from that game isn't so bad.
- Goal scorers for Allen were Braylon Shmyr (2,3,4), Dante Salituro with his second goal of the season and Alex Breton with his first. Here are the video highlights with all of the goals and some near misses. Just click on the highlights tab: https://www.echl.com/en/matches/0a85ffcd46a6243bbf6607db/wichita-thunder-vs-allen-americans
- Here is the press release from the Allen Americans: https://allenamericans.com/americans-get-a-point-in-a-shootout-loss/
STEVE MARTINSON'S POST GAME COMMENTS
- There is no other way to describe what happened tonight than it was a poor defensive game on our part.
- We had some soft turnovers which ended up in the back of our net. We hung our goalie out to dry too many times tonight.
- We gave up several back door passes that ended up in goals.
- I will review the tape, make some adjustments and we will be ready to go for the home opener tomorrow night.
REMATCH PREVIEW
- Martinson's comments capture what has to be different in the game tonight. If you watched the game or even the highlights the defensive lapses were obvious. Too many Wichita players left all alone in dangerous areas led to several of the goals. That will have to get tightened up.
- Allen has done great on the penalty kill in the two games against Wichita. The Americans have killed all 10 of Wichita's power plays and have a shorthanded goal to boot. It is a good sign when your penalty kill unit outscores your opponent (1-0) over two games.
- As good as the penalty kill has been against Wichita the power play has struggled. Allen is 0-8 in the two games against the Thunder as the Americans are still looking for their first power play goal of the season. Allen is one of four ECHL teams that still don't have a power play goal. In three games Allen is 0-11 on the power play. If it is any consolation, Wichita is even worse as they are also looking for their first power play goal of the season and are 0-14. If either team can break out it might mean victory tonight.
- A real bright spot for Allen thus far has been two rookies. Braylon Shmyr had four points last night including the first hat trick in the ECHL this season. Shmyr is tied for the league lead in goals with four. Rookie defenseman Alex Breton had a goal and two assists in the game last night. Alex is now #1 in points (1G, 4A) among all ECHL defensemen.
- Coach Martinson talks all the time about how turnovers in the neutral zone create missed opportunities for Allen and additional opportunities for their opponents. This was a problem last season when Allen finished #23 in shots allowed giving up an average 36.25 per game. After three games this season the Americans are ranked #26 in the league, giving up an average of 42 shots per game. The Americans can't give up 40 shots tonight and expect to win.
OTHER COMMENTS
- Not sure if this is an indication of how tough the Mountain Division will be this season but every team has already had a loss with the exception of Kansas City who has only played one game.
- Allen is in a familiar place leading their division in penalty minutes with 69 but Rapid City leads the entire league in average penalty minutes per game at 28.50. The Rush have only played two games thus far.
- When you look at Allen's penalty minute record what stands out is they are nowhere near the lead in major penalties for fighting as they have just one. More alarming is the fact Allen is #2 in the league in minor penalties with 22. Allen also leads the league in misconduct penalties with two.
- Vincent Arseneau finally got to play for the Utica Comets (AHL) after being a healthy scratch for the first six games of the season. Utica lost their game 4-3 last night to Cleveland but Arseneau had two shots on goal and was one of only six players that didn't have a minus night in the plus/minus category. Utica plays again tonight in Syracuse.
- Some perennial strong ECHL teams have gotten off to a slow start this season. Fort Wayne, Florida and South Carolina are all 1-2.
- Had several requests for photos of the inside of the Allen Americans new bus. I will do you one better. Check out this story about luxury bus service for folks traveling between Houston and Dallas. The video in this story is of the bus Allen is now using: https://cw39.com/2018/05/04/new-luxury-bus-service-puts-houstonians-on-fast-track-to-dallas/
DID YOU KNOW: If you attend or watch the game tonight you will undoubtedly notice there is a new liquor sponsor front and center on all of the helmets. The new sponsor is a Texas original named Black Eyed Distilling company that makes handcrafted vodka in Fort Worth. With 100% Texas roots from farm to bottle, it is the first vodka crafted from black-eyed peas. If you are a vodka fan you can check out this award winning company and new Allen Americans sponsor at: http://www.blackeyed.vodka/
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