Walleye fall to Johnstown

3/26/2010

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — Toledo squandered a glorious chance to gain two valuable points, blowing a two-goal lead with 16 minutes left against Johnstown last night.

The Walleye led the last-place Chiefs 4-2 with 15:55 remaining, but Johnstown then scored five unanswered goals to steal a 7-4 win. The Walleye also wasted an early 3-0 lead and lost for the first time to the Chiefs (16-40-11).

Toledo (33-28-6) fell three points behind Reading in the race for the seventh seed in the ECHL playoffs.

Chris Robertson scored a power play goal to give Toledo a 4-2 lead. But Johnstown then capitalized twice when it had a 5-on-3 advantage to tie it at 4. Dan Collins then tallied his second of the night for the game-winner and the Chiefs added two empty net goals.

“We came out with some good jump tonight and played really well in the first period,” Toledo coach Nick Vitucci said. “I did not like how we followed that up with a so-so second and the disaster in the third.“

Toledo has lost two in a row and still has 72 points. Reading won last night and now has 75 points. Wheeling also won and pulled within two points of the Walleye for the eighth and final spot in the playoffs. Toledo hosts the Nailers tonight at 7 p.m.