(Boise, ID)

With the win, sixth-place Utah now has a four-point lead over Idaho (27-31-9, 63 points) in the ECHL’s Western Conference standings.

The game was scoreless for much of the first period, as Idaho’s Jerry Kuhn robbed Chris Donovan with the glove at the right-hand post with about eight minutes left in the first period. Utah drew first blood less than four minutes later, at 16:26, when CJ Severyn’s shot from the right circle snuck under Kuhn’s leg pad to give Utah a 1-0 lead after one period.

Utah put two more on the board in the second, with Ryan Watson scoring a power-play goal on a rebound at the 9:18 mark and Gaelen Patterson notching his first ECHL goal barely two minutes later on a low-angle shot from the left goal line that bounced in off Kuhn. Following the Patterson goal, Idaho coach Hardy Sauter replaced Kuhn with Bryan Hince and the move seemed to inject a little life into the Steelheads.

Idaho got on the board at 13:57 of the second when Ron Meyers fed a pass from the left corner through traffic to the right point to Chris Hepp. Hepp guided a shot toward the top of the crease where Chad Nehring re-directed the puck past Andrew Engelage for his 14th goal of the season, getting Idaho within two at 3-1.

Unfortunately, Idaho could draw no closer. Collin Vock scored on a deflection of his own just 1:09 into the third period and then added another at 5:58 of the third to make it 5-1 in favor of the Grizzlies. Falite added a goal in the final minute to finish out the scoring.

Andrew Engelage got the win for Utah, stopping 23 of 24 Idaho shots. Kuhn took the loss, stopping 18 of 21 before being removed from the game in the second period. Hince stopped 11 of 14 in relief. Idaho’s power play was 0-3 on the evening while Utah’s went 1-4.

The Steelheads travel to Las Vegas for their final two road games of the regular season, Friday night and Saturday night at the Orleans Arena. Both games begin at 8 PM (Mtn) and can be heard live in the Treasure Valley on KTIK (1350 AM).

Idaho returns home on Wednesday, March 28, to begin its final homestand of the regular season against the Stockton Thunder. Tickets are available by calling the CenturyLink Arena box office (208.331.TIXS) or by logging on to www.idahosteelheads.com.

COORS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME – Chad Nehring

AQUA FINA “3 STARS” -
(1) Collin Vock (UT)
(2) Ryan Watson (UT)
(3) CJ Severyn (UT)

(Stockton, CA)

Idaho is now unbeaten in its last five games and has crept to within three points of the fifth-place Thunder in the ECHL’s Western Conference standings.

Stockton shot out of the gates early in front of the home crowd, netting two goals inside the game’s first eight minutes. Chris D’Alvise and Gabriel Levesque put the Thunder up, 2-0, at the 7:14 mark of the first period.

Idaho (27-29-8, 62 points) came up with a big answer, though, just a minute later when Chad Nehring delivered a perfect pass from behind the Stockton net to Ron Meyers at the top of the crease and Meyers scored to cut Stockton’s lead to 2-1.

That play seemed to jump-start the Steelheads, who controlled the rest of the first period and much of the second period as well. Idaho would tie the game on a near-instant replay of its first goal less than 30 seconds into the second when Nehring found Meyers from behind the net for the second time, with Meyers knocked home his second of the night (third of the season) from the top of the crease to tie the game at two.

The visitors would take the lead at the 6:59 mark on the power play. Steven Tarasuk’s blast from the right-hand circle was saved by Thomas Heemskerk, but the rebound rolled right out between the hash marks in the slot for Derek LeBlanc to pounce. LeBlanc’s rebound goal, his team-leading 20th of the season, gave Idaho a 3-2 lead.

Shortly thereafter, though, the Thunder seemed poised to tie the game. Idaho goaltender Jerry Kuhn was out of position after making a save and the puck was rolling to the bottom of the left-hand circle. One of the Thunder skaters appeared to have an easy rebound goal to even the game, but LeBlanc flew into the crease, giving up his body to block the shot and maintain the one-goal lead for Idaho.

Kuhn came up big in the third period for Idaho, with the help of his teammates. Kuhn stopped all thirteen shots he faced in the final period and the team’s forwards and defenseman did an excellent job keeping the puck away on rebounds, allowing the Steelheads to pick up the key two points in the standings with the one-goal victory.

Kuhn stopped 33 of 35 shots in the win for the Steelheads, who were 1-3 on the power play.

With the win, Idaho tightened up the race for fifth place in the ECHL’s Western Conference. Stockton (65 points) and Utah (63 points) remain just ahead of Idaho (62 points) with ten games left in the regular season for the Steelheads.

The Steelheads return home on Friday and Saturday to host the Ontario Reign. Puck drop is at 7:10 PM. Tickets are available by calling the CenturyLink Arena box office (208.331.TIXS) or by logging on to www.idahosteelheads.com.

COORS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME – Chad Nehring

AQUA FINA “3 STARS” -
(1) Ron Meyers (ID)
(2) Derek LeBlanc (ID)
(3) Chris D’Alvise (STK)

Rapid City Rush forward Colin Circelli fires a shot past Allen Americans goaltender Rejean Beauchemin in the 3rd period of Tuesday night's game at the Allen Event Center. Circelli's goal gave the Rush a 4-2 lead at the time. Rapid City went on to win 5-2. (Photo Credit: Chip Crail)

Allen, TX – The Rapid City Rush scored two goals in the 3rd period, while holding the Americans scoreless, and added an empty net goal in the final seconds of regulation, to take a 5-2 win over Allen on Tuesday night.

For a game that had a total of seven goals scored, the Americans and Rush got off to an anemic start.  The first period of play was characterized by turnovers on both sides and Rapid City penalties.  The Rush took a total of four minors in the opening frame, but the Americans were unable to capitalize on any of the opportunities.  When the teams went to the locker rooms at the end of the period, Allen led in shots, 9-5, but the game was scoreless.

The two teams wasted no time in kicking up the offense in the 2nd period.  By the 1:40 mark, both teams had put a tally on the scoreboard.

Rapid City took the first lead of the game 1:25 into the 2nd period.  Jesse Schultz took a pass from teammate Les Reaney and buried a sharp wrist shot into the back of the net.

The Americans tied it, though, just 15 seconds later.  After pulling it briefly back into their own zone, the Americans pushed up ice and caught the Rush flat-footed.  Mark Nebus fired a shot that Rush goaltender Tim Boron blocked, but Jeff Martens picked up the rebound in front of the net and fired a backhand shot for a goal and a 1-1 game.

Allen got their first lead of the game just a few minutes later.  Americns forward Josh Hepditch took control of the puck, spun and fired a hard wrister over the glove of Boron.  Allen led the game 2-1 with 15:46 to play in the period.

Rapid City’s captain Scott Wray tied the game for them, just a little short of halfway through the game.  The Rush caught the Americans making a defensive mistake, and it sprang Rapid City on a 3-on-2 odd-man rush.  Schultz fed Wray with a perfect pass and he roofed it past Beauchemin to knot the game at 2-2.

The game stayed tied at two until the third period, when Rapid City took over.

The Rapid City line of Jesse Schultz, Scott Wray and Konrad Reeder had been giving Allen trouble all evening.  That continued in the 3rd as Konrad Reeder put the Rush on top, 3-2, on their first power play of the night.

Former Odessa Jackalopes forward Collin Circelli opened Rapid City’s lead to two goals with just under 12 minutes to play in the 3rd period, as he slipped past the Allen defense, and fired a shot over Beauchemin’s blocker.

The Americans couldn’t fight their way past the Rush defense in the 3rd, struggling to fight their way off the boards and into open ice.  Despite leading in shots in the period, 9-7, Allen didn’t get very many true scoring opportunities, and had to pull their goalie in the final minute to try and close the gap.

An empty net goal by Rapid City in the waning seconds of the game put the nail in the coffin, and the Rush skated out of Allen with a 5-2 victory.

The Americans return to the ice on Friday, as they open a three-game weekend series with the Brahmas that could finalize 2nd and 3rd place seatings in the Berry Conference Standings.  Friday and Saturday’s games against Texas will be at the Allen Event Center in Allen, while Sunday’s faceoff will take place at the NYTEX Sports Center in North Richland Hills.

Photo Gallery by Chip Crail:

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(Ontario, CA)

It was the first victory in five tries for Idaho (26-29-8) over Ontario and also extended the team’s unbeaten streak to four games (3-0-1).

The Steelheads got on the board first in the opening frame after a five-minute boarding major and game misconduct was assessed to Ontario’s Jason Beemon. On the ensuing power play, Ian Lowe snapped a bullet over Berube’s shoulder at the 9:16 mark of the first period. Lowe’s 9th of the season was assisted by Michael Gergen.

Ontario tied it in the second on Kyle Kraemer’s 22nd of the season from the right-hand circle and the score stayed tied at one into the third period.

The Steelheads took the lead early in the third on a Derek LeBlanc redirection of a Neal shot from the left-hand circle at the 4:21 mark, his 19th of the season, to make it 2-1. The one-goal lead held thanks to a fantastic save with the right leg pad by Jerry Kuhn, denying Kraemer at the right-hand post. The Steelheads extended the lead at 15:42 of the third on Neal’s back-handed shot over Berube, assisted by former Reign blue-liner Steven Tarasuk as well as Gergen, to make it 3-1.

Just moments later, Kuhn’s right leg pad came up big again, this time denying Bill Bagron at the same right-hand post. Ontario would add a goal from Derek Couture with less than a second to go to cut Idaho’s final margin of victory to one goal, 3-2.

Kuhn stopped 38 of 40 shots in the win for Idaho and the Steelheads converted two of five power plays against the league’s top penalty-kill unit.

With the win, Idaho (60 points) moves to within one point of 6th-place Utah (61 points) and five points of 5th-place Stockton (65 points). The Steelheads also reduced their magic number to officially clinch a playoff spot to six points with nine games left in the regular season.

Idaho remains on the road Wednesday night with a contest in northern California against the Stockton Thunder (30-27-5, 65 points) at 8 PM (Mtn).

The Steelheads return home on Friday and Saturday to host the Ontario Reign. Puck drop is at 7:10 PM. Tickets are available by calling the CenturyLink Arena box office (208.331.TIXS) or by logging on to www.idahosteelheads.com.

COORS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME – Michael Gergen

AQUA FINA “3 STARS” -
(1) Michael Neal (ID)
(2) Jerry Kuhn (ID)
(3) Kyle Kraemer (ONT)

Allen, Texas

The Americans opened the scoring in the first when Jason Deitsch pumped one in the net on the right side beating former Americans netminder Charlie Effinger to make the score 1-0 Allen. The Americans outshot the Mavericks 9-6 after one period of play.

The Mavericks evened the score in the second when Brandon Coccimiglio fired one in the net from the slot area to tie the score at 1-1. Six minutes later Jason Deitsch added his second of the night, and thirteenth of the season from Colton Yellow Horn and Joshua Hepditch. It was Colton Yellow Horn’s 200th career point. However the Mavericks weren’t done as rookie forward Andrew Courtney tied the game for the second time on the night. Courtney beat Rejean Beauchemin with a shot from just in front of the left face-off-circle to make it 2-2. The Americans held a 26-20 shot advantage after 40 minutes.

Kris Hogg gave Missouri their first lead in the third period with a power-play goal at the 1:07 mark, Ed McGrane and Dave Pszenyczny assisting on the goal. The Americans responded with a game tying goal of their own when Mark Nebus netted his 13th. The score remained tied until just a little over four minutes to go in regulation when Jason Deitch picked up his third point of the night, finding Keith Johnson wide open to the right of the Missouri net. Johnson buried the puck for his 12th goal of the season to give Allen a 4-3 lead. The Americans would hold on as Missouri spent the last two and a half minutes killing off an Allen power-play and the Americans would go on to win by that same score and clinch their third straight playoff birth.

Cedar Park, TX

The Rampage got on the board with 6:17 remaining in the first period. Center Jon Matsumoto slipped a shot past Raycroft, gaining a 1-0 lead. Defenseman Colby Robak and left wing Evan Barlow each added an assist on Matsumoto’s 19th tally of the year. San Antonio struck again with 4:27 left in the period, extending its lead to 2-0. Center Mark Cullen found the back of the net with help coming from defenseman Nolan Yonkman and center Bracken Kearns.

The Stars responded late in the second period with a goal from center Angelo Esposito. Esposito poked the puck past Grumet-Morris with 4:55 left in the frame. Left wing Luke Gazdic and defenseman Drew Schiestel each registered an assist as Texas dug into San Antonio’s lead, 2-1. The Rampage reacted with a goal from right wing Bill Thomas with 3:43 remaining in the period. Defenseman Sean Sullivan and center Mark Cullen set up the play, furthering the lead to 3-1. Texas cut into the Rampage’s lead again with 1:05 left in the period. Left wing Matt Fraser fired a shot past Grumet-Morris, pulling the Stars to 3-2. Fraser’s 28th goal of the year set a new team record for goals in one season. Left wing Luke Gazdic registered the assist on the shorthanded goal.

Texas opened the third period with a goal from left wing Francis Wathier. Wathier’s 15th goal of the year tied the game 3-3 at 7:00. Right wing Colton Sceviour and center Scott Glennie each provided an assist. Rampage right wing Michal Repik scored the game-winning goal for a 4-3 final with six seconds left in the final frame. Left wing Evan Barlow and defenseman Colby Robak each added an assist on the power-play goal.

(Boise, ID)

The Condors rallied from deficits of 1-0, 3-2, 4-3, and 5-4 to ultimately force the shootout and get the victory. Idaho (25-29-8, 58 points) did gain one point in the standings to move within seven points of the Stockton Thunder (65 points) for fifth place in the ECHL’s Western Conference. Stockton was defeated by Utah on Saturday night. Idaho and Stockton have four head-to-head meetings left, including a game Wednesday night in Stockton.

Jake Hauswirth netted his first goal as a Steelhead at the 5:40 mark of the first period to put Idaho on top, but the Condors countered with goals from Tyler Helfrich (16th) and Ryan Annesley (3rd) to take a 2-1 lead after the first period. Patrick Kennedy’s power-play goal from the right-hand circle at the 6:38 mark of the second period tied the game at two and Chad Nehring’s shot from the left-hand circle at 8:24 gave Idaho a 3-2 lead. Nehring’s 13th was assisted by rookie forward Ron Meyers, his first professional point in his third professional game.

Bakersfield tied the game at 13:04 of the second period when Parker Stanfield snapped a one-timer past Jerry Kuhn from the bottom of the right circle for his 11th of the season. Idaho would re-take the lead late in the second when Marty Flichel forced a turnover in the Bakersfield defensive zone and then threaded a perfect pass into the slot, where Meyers tapped the puck inside the right-hand post for his first professional goal at 19:46 of the second, giving Idaho a 4-3 lead going into the final frame.

The Condors responded again at 9:48 of the third on a Kyle Calder power play goal to even the game at four. Idaho once again recaptured the lead with seven minutes to play when Kennedy back-handed a rebound off a Hauswirth shot past Bryon Pitton to put Idaho up, 5-4. Kennedy’s first professional two-goal game gives him eight tallies on the season.

With the Bakersfield net empty for an extra attacker, the Condors put pressure on the Idaho net. It paid off when Burgdoerfer wristed a shot through a sea of traffic and over Kuhn’s shoulder with just 54 seconds left, tying the game at five and sending the game to overtime. Neither side scored in overtime, but Bakersfield controlled the shootout as Calder, Jesse Gimblett, and Peter Boyd all scored. Pitton denied all three Idaho shooters to give the Condors the victory.

Kuhn stopped 34 of 39 shots in the loss, while Pitton surrendered five goals on 37 shots in the victory. Bakersfield was 2-3 on the power play, while Idaho went 1-2.

Kennedy (2 goals), Meyers (goal, assist) and Hauswirth (goal, assist) all had two-point nights for Idaho. Hauswirth also finished the night with a plus-3 rating.

Idaho ventures on the road briefly next week, with a Tuesday game in Ontario prior to Wednesday’s important contest in Stockton.

After the two mid-week games on the road, Idaho returns home next Friday and Saturday to host the Ontario Reign. Puck drop is at 7:10 PM. Tickets are available by calling the CenturyLink Arena box office (208.331.TIXS) or by logging on to www.idahosteelheads.com.

COORS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME – Ron Meyers

AQUA FINA “3 STARS” -
(1) Ron Meyers (ID)
(2) Patrick Kennedy (ID)
(3) Steven Tarasuk (ID)

Laredo, Texas

Laredo got things going first when A.J. Hau netted his 10th goal of the season off assists by Ryan Sparling and David Inman at the 6:31 mark of the first period. The Americans bounced right back, answering with the tying goal just 90 seconds later when Brett Clouthier grabbed his 3rd goal of the season in a timely manner to even the score for his club. Colton Yellow Horn and Dylan King were credited with the assists on the Clouthier marker. Allen took the 2-1 lead at 11:33 off a Brian McMillin goal assisted by Jeff Martens and Tyler Ludwig and held onto it as time expired in the opening frame. Allen outshot Laredo through the period 16-9.

In the second period, the Americans extended the lead to 3-1 with their third unanswered goal at 5:03 when Brett Clouthier recorded his second and the game winning goal, off feeds from Colton Yellow Horn and Nick Layton.

A late penalty on the Americans led to a frenzy of activity in front of the Allen net as the Bucks pressed hard to cut into the Americans lead but their efforts were bettered by some of the best penalty killing efforts of the season for Allen. Americans goaltender Marco Cousineau repeatedly frustrated Laredo, looking very sharp in the net throughout the night and during the penalty kill but he had some big help from his team mates along the way. A very close call for the Americans was averted on a heads up play by defenseman Tyler Ludwig when he batted away a puck that made its way past Cousineau and threatened to cross the goal line as it fluttered through the crease trickling towards the goal line. Laredo recovered up the loose puck and sent it back to the point but it was knocked into the neutral zone by a diving Nick Layton allowing the Americans to regroup and break the building Laredo momentum. Despite their best efforts and outshooting the Americans 14-11 in the second period, the Bucks couldn’t light the lamp and the two period shots on goal total was 27-23 in Allen’s favor.

The Bucks were finally able to cut into the lead near the midway point of the third period when Matt Boyd put the puck past Marco Cousineau who was prone and pinned to the ice, out of position by a Bucks player. Assists on the Boyd goal went to A.J. Hau and David Inman at 7:30 of the third period. Allen cemented the victory when Joshua Hepditch potted the open netter in the closing seconds of regulation to give the Americans the 4-2 victory. Allen outshot the Bucks in the third period 11-9 and overall with a three period total of 38-32.

The Americans now head back home to begin to take on the Missouri Mavericks in their only visit to the Allen Event Center, Saturday night. The puck drop is scheduled for 7:05PM.

Cedar Park, TX

The Rampage started the scoring early in the first period. Forward Greg Rallo tapped the puck to the back of the net at 2:17. Center James Wright and defenseman Roman Derlyuk each added an assist on the 1-0 lead.

Texas responded at 2:37 of the second period, tying the game 1-1. Defenseman Dan Spang delivered a slapshot past Markstrom, notching his third goal of the year. Spang’s third goal of the year went unassisted. San Antonio grabbed a 2-1 edge with a goal from right wing Bill Thomas. Thomas’ 19th goal of the season received help from defenseman Sean Sullivan at 7:25. The Stars quickly tied the game 2-2 as left wing Mike Hedden snapped a shot at 8:05. The second Texas goal of the night was set up by defenseman Brad Lukowich. The Rampage jumped out in front, 3-2 with a goal from center James Wright. Forward Greg Rallo and defenseman Sean Sullivan each registered an assist at 5:18 of the second.

The Stars tied the game 3-3 with 7:08 remaining in the third period. Left wing Matt Fraser scored from the right circle, netting his 27th goal of the year. Left wing Mike Hedden and center Travis Morin set up the play, forcing overtime.

Texas sealed a 4-3 final with a goal from right wing Colton Sceviour. Sceviour’s 16th tally of the year was set up by defenseman Drew Schiestel with 1:24 left in overtime.

The Stars will host Military Appreciation Weekend, presented by United Heritage Credit Union. To honor troops over the weekend, Texas will be wearing camouflage jerseys that fans may bid on during a silent auction on the concourse for charity. On Saturday, March 10th, the two teams will meet again at 7:00 p.m. at Cedar Park Center. The first 3,000 fans to the game will receive a Texas Stars camouflage hat, presented by United Heritage Credit Union. Also, fans may purchase the State Farm Family Four Pack, composed of four tickets, four hot dogs and four sodas starting at $48.

(Boise, ID)

The game, played in front of 4,180 fans at CenturyLink Arena featured 83 combined shots on goal but just two tallies, one aside, prior to the game-ending shootout.

The Condors, desperately needing a win to keep their slim playoff hopes alive, came out firing in the first period, peppering Kuhn with 18 shots in the game’s first 20 minutes. Jesse Gimblett, activated from the injured reserve prior to the game, gave Bakersfield the lead with a rebound goal at the 5:01 mark of the first period, his 13th goal of the season.

Idaho (25-29-7, 57 points) evened things up in the second period on a hard-working shift spearheaded by Derek LeBlanc. LeBlanc led an aggressive forecheck, nearly single-handedly keeping the puck in the offensive zone for nearly 20 seconds. Finally, Aaron Lewicki picked up the puck along the right-hand wall. He got the puck to Chad Nehring, who fed it back to Lewicki behind the net. Lewicki then delivered a perfect centering pass to Patrick Kennedy from the back wall to the top of the crease and Kennedy banged it home at 14:09 of the second to tie the game at one. For Kennedy, it was his seventh goal of his rookie campaign.

Neither team scored in the third period thanks to excellent work by both goaltenders. Bakersfield’s Bryon Pitton stopped 14 Idaho shots and Kuhn denied 12 Condor shots over the final minute, including three game-changers. The first two came midway through the frame as Kuhn, sprawled out, made a pair of leg-pad saves on Casey Pierro-Zabotel at the right-hand post. The third came with 20 seconds left in regulation with Bakersfield on the power play, a glove save that robbed Peter Boyd of a game-winning goal from the slot for Bakersfield.

There was no scoring in the overtime session, leading to a shootout. Derek LeBlanc netted a goal in the second round with a quick forehand wrist shot, but Boyd tied it up in the fourth round for Bakersfield. Then, with Idaho’s fourth shot, Marty Flichel executed a pretty, backhand-to-forehand deke to open up space under Pitton’s leg pads for the go-ahead goal. Kuhn stoned Pierro-Zabotel in the fifth and final round to secure the victory.

Both goaltenders were terrific, with Kuhn stopping 41 of 42 in the win. Pitton was the tough-luck loser, making 40 saves on 41 shots for Bakersfield. Neither team scored on the power play, Idaho going 0-3, Bakersfield going 0-1.

The Steelheads and Condors conclude their season series Saturday night on Pepsi Cap Night at CenturyLink Arena. Puck drop is at 7:10 PM. Tickets are available by calling the CenturyLink Arena box office (208.331.TIXS) or by logging on to www.idahosteelheads.com.

COORS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME – Patrick Kennedy

AQUA FINA “3 STARS” -
(1) Jerry Kuhn (ID)
(2) Bryon Pitton (BAK)
(3) Patrick Kennedy (ID)