LOVELAND -- Is there a sense of urgency for the Colorado Eagles? You bet.

Do they feel they need to push the proverbial panic button? Hardly.

"What's the point?" veteran center Riley Nelson asked. "You do that and it's not going to do you any good. The main thing we need to focus on is going out there (tonight) and playing our game."

The Eagles, down 2-0 to the Arizona Sundogs in the best-of-seven Ray Miron President's Cup Finals, will have a chance to do that now. Rather than conserving energy while trying to keep up with Arizona's quick and speedy lineup, the release of captain Greg Pankewicz and defensman Jay Birnie from their three-game suspensions help will give Colorado the depth and aggression it was lacking in Prescott Valley, Ariz.

So when the Eagles and Sundogs lace up their skates for a scheduled 7:05 p.m. Game 3 matchup at the Budweiser Events Center, its safe to say Colorado will be happy Arizona no longer has a two-man advantage.

"Normally when you're down 2-0, you look at making adjustments," Eagles coach Chris Stewart said. "You look at what you have to change, or should I go with this lineup or should we switch this or that.

"With Greg and Jay back," he continued," that's already been done for me."

Birnie and Pankewicz each received a three-game suspension for their roles in a post-game brawl following Game 6 of the Northern Conference finals against the Texas Brahmas. The suspensions spanned the final game of the Eagles' series victory over Texas and the first two of Colorado's matchup with the Sundogs.

Colorado wasn't allowed to replace either player during the suspensions, leaving the Eagles with 18 players instead of a full 20-man roster. It also led to some fatigue issues for the rest of the team, which allowed 11 goals to one of the CHL's most potent offensive attacks.

"I think we go a little too caught up in playing their game," Stewart said.

Thanks in part to that scoring output, Arizona comes into the Loveland complex with five of the Central Hockey League's top six point scorers. Alex Leavitt (seven goals, 27 points), Cory Urquhart (16 goals, 25 points), Chris Bartolone and Tyler Redenbach (18 points each) make up the top four while their teammate, Dan Laperriere (17 points) shares the fifth spot with Laredo's Chris Stanley.

Not to be outdone, Robert McVair was stellar in goal for Arizona in Game 2, stopping 30 of Colorado's 31 shots. His 9-1 postseason record is the CHL's best.

Pankewicz led the team with 13 points but has since been joined by Nelson and Ed McGrane as the team's top playoff scorers. Stewart emphasized how the Eagles want to get back to playing their style of hockey and how the additions of Pankewicz and Birnie will benefit his team.

But even with their return isn't a guarantee for success without a team effort.

"Just because we have Pankewicz back doesn't mean we can all stand around and wait for him to make plays," Nelson said. "It'll take all 20 guys to make that happen."