Colorado-Tulsa: Eagles Give Vets A Rocky Mountain Salute

No one ever writes about the semi pro teams. In this sports world where everyone is focused on the controversy brewing in the BCS and the insanity in the pros, last night put all of that on hold. Last night wasn't about the college ranks or the pro ranks. It was about the men and women who put their asses on the line to give us the right to fall on it in front of a sellout crowd.

In front of their 199th sellout crowd in the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, Colorado, the Colorado Eagles started their game against heated rivals Tulsa with a ton of fireworks to spare. Just 26 seconds in the first period of the game, Greg Pankewicz took a pass from Kevin Ulanski and Scott Polaski and scored the first of many goals for the Eagles. Aaron Schneekloth nailed a backhander to the top shelf to continue the onslaught for Colorado.

Whatever happened in pregame worked for Colorado as the Eagles didn't let up for a second as Steve Haddon snagged a goal late in the first against Kevin St. Pierre, and then he snagged an assist from the Eagles' fourth goal with just seconds left in the first courtesy of a shot from Brett Hammond giving Haddon his first career back-to-back multi-point games. In between the intermissions, many of the Veterans and current soldiers were honored by the sellout crowd and staff at the Events Center.

Despite the Oilers snagging a pair of goals in the second period, the Eagles' Ultimate Problem Solver Pankewicz made it rain during that period as he recorded a Hat Trick, and Riley Nelson continued his point streak (franchise record of 19 games) by snagging a goal in the third period and extending the lead back to four.

No matter the outcome, both teams managed to keep their heated rivalry from becoming physical out of respect to the camo-covered men and women who made the trip down to attend. In any event, the Eagles won the game 7-3 and stayed around afterwards to continue honoring the veterans who attended the game.

So in retrospect, Aspen Spence fueled the fire for the Eagles during the National Anthem; And the Eagles took that fire and ran with it. Thank you veterans for giving us the right to enjoy a good game. Thank you for the freedom to thank you in the best way possible. This night was for you...and I hope we gave you a night to remember.

For more on last night's Veteran's Day/Eagles Military Appreciation Night Game, jump on over to www.coloradoeagles.com for photos, videos, game recap and Eagles Extras.