Marten Engren took a step toward that goal Friday, stopping 34 shots in the Mocs 2-1 shootout win over San Angelo.

"They didn't have very good chances in the first period, and I got a good start," Engren said. "The rest of the game just flew by."

Engren held the Outlaws scoreless until the 17:51 mark of the third period, when San Angelo forward Skeeter Moore collected a loose puck in the slot and found the back of the net.

Moore's goal, his 17th this season, tied the game 1-1, forcing the shootout.

"They shot from the far side boards and then there was a scramble for the puck," Engren said. "The puck ended up in the slot where the first guy took a shot, and (Moore) got the open net and put it in."

Monroe skated to a 1-0 lead after the first period, before both goalies battled to a scoreless second period.

Mocs center Darren Dougan lit the lamp, as he scored on a play right in front of the San Angelo net during four-on-four play. Dougan took a pass from Mocs defenseman Jeff Pawluk in the slot.

Dougan skated in on Outlaw goalie Adam Lord, deked left, to which Lord responded by going right. Dougan then brought the puck right, and slid it past Lord for the easy goal.

"We did a little cycling down low and Pawluk fed a great pass to Dougan in the slot," Monroe right winger Dorian Anneck said. "When you leave a guy like Dougan alone in front of the net like that, the puck will usually end up in the net."

The 1-0 score stood until late in the third period, but again the Mocs lost a player during the game. Dougan went down with an apparent arm injury, and sat out the third period.

"They're checking him out," Curran said. "I don't know what the injury was."

The Mocs were skating with seven forwards and seven defensemen in the third period, and Curran had to go with unusual lineups for much of the game. In addition to Dougan leaving, Monroe is without the services of Matt Cressman and forward Ty Hartigan.

The team remained tied after regulation, forcing the Mocs 11th shootout this season. Engren made three consecutive saves to begin the extra frame before Outlaw right winger Pavel Evstigneev slipped one past Engren.

While Engren stood tall in net, the once mighty Mocs shootout lineup finally found its touch again. After Jason Smith missed on the first attempt, Russ Parent, Anneck and Chris Rowland found the net past the stingy Lord.

"It was nice to see the shootout go our way tonight," Anneck said after collecting his fifth game-winning goal. "We had been having trouble in the shootout and this was a way to turn that around. Marty came up big as well, and had an excellent game."

Engren said after his play during regulation, and his teammates doing a little scoring in the shootout, that he felt no pressure on him to come up with the big saves.

"It was nice to see three goals in a shootout," Engren said. "That takes the pressure off me. If we get two or three goals then we're in good shape. If you go just one of five, then it's pretty tight. We got three tonight and that took away a lot of the pressure."

The win keeps the Mocs four points behind Shreveport in the Western Professional Hockey League's Eastern Division. Monroe is now 30-16-5 and has 65 points, while the Mudbugs are 32-13-5 and 69 points after winning at Arkansas Friday night.

"Winning the game is the bottom line," Curran said. "We were shorthanded, but I'm happy with the way we played. This was a big win, but every game coming down the stretch is a big win for us."