Six unanswered goals and some stellar goaltending helped the RoadRunners keep their hot streak alive by defeating Amarillo 6-2 on Halloween night in the Texas panhandle.
The first period belonged to the Bulls. They outshot Topeka 13-6 and had the 'Runners scrambling on their only power play of the period. Joey DiBenedetto shoveled home a puck in the crease as a Bulls power play expired at 14:10 for a 1-0 lead, then AJ Duggan tucked home a rebound just :06 seconds into another Bulls power play at 18:49 and the Bulls led 2-0 after 1. It might have been 3-0 if not for a great breakaway save by Drew Vogler on a Brady Crabtree chance.
In the second period, the tide shifted. At 5:07 Sly Sutter hammered home his team leading eighth goal of the season after a nice hardworking setup by Sam Rennaker. Topeka tied the game at 14:21 when newly named captain Mike Gornall drove a shot through traffic and between the pads of Bulls goalie Anton Martinsson. The comeback was complete at 18:35 when Cam Strong ripped home a loose rebound during a scrum in the Bulls crease area. Just :17 later, Sam Rennaker rang a shot off the iron and into the net driving down the left wing and Topeka held a 4-2 lead after 2 periods.
Early in the 3rd period, the game was highlighted by solid goaltending at both ends, with Vogler making two tremendous saves during a power play and Martinsson at the other end denying a couple of solid chances. Topeka would grow their lead at 6:39 when Jasen Fernsler stole the puck in the neutral zone, and slipped a pass to Daniel Rzavsky who spotted Strong on the left side. Strong powered a shot seemingly right through Martinsson, sending the Bulls netminder to the bench, replaced by Jacob Weatherly. Five minutes later, the 'Runners piled on another goal as Willie Brown caught a crisp pass from Ryan Polin then juked hard to his right to beat Weatherly, giving Topeka a 6-2 lead which ended up being the final.
Topeka (14-2-1) and Amarillo (5-7-2) square off again Saturday night at the Amarillo Civic Center. See the game live at Skinny's Sports Bar & Grill in Topeka or listen to Arch Ecker's call on Sports Radio 1490 KTOP or on your mobile device with the iHeartRadio app.