After a weeklong break, the Idaho Steelheads had hoped to extend its season best six game winning streak Friday evening in front of their home crowd at Century Link Arena. The Pacific Division leading Las Vegas Wranglers came to town to spoil the party.
With the loss of two of his top forwards to AHL call ups during the week and a number of injuries Head Coach Hardy Sauter was forced to get creative with his lineup. With forward Kael Mouillierat on his second assignment with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers and Ian Lowe making his AHL debut with the Texas Stars along with continued injuries to captain Marty Flichel and forward Michael Neal, Sauter was forced to find new line combinations up and down the bench. The depleted defense lost another member this week when Brent Cornelius was sent to Greenville to complete an earlier deal for goalie Jerry Kuhn forcing Sauter to call on forward Tyson Hobbins to fill in on the blue line.
The new lineup seemed to click well right away as Idaho scored three consecutive goals in the first period after an early Wranglers goal put them in a quick 1-0 hole.
Former Steelhead Adam Huxley appeared to give Idaho the early break they were looking for. Huxley, who was released by Idaho earlier in the season, tried to make an early statement to his old mates by bowling over defenseman Chris Hepp and Kuhn behind the net. Hepp took offense to the Huxley and started a scrum that sent Hepp and Huxley to the penalty box with Huxley receiving an extra two minute minor.
The Wranglers were the ones who received the early break however when a pass to the point hopped over the stick of Steelhead defenseman Derek Matheson and sent Wranglers forward Josh Lunden alone down the left boards. With Matheson giving chase Lunden cut across the ice at the top of the circle and tucked a backhand under the outstretched arm of the sprawling Kuhn for the shorthanded goal and a 1-0 lead at 2:57 of the first.
The 1-0 lead held up for most of the first period until Idaho received a lucky bounce of their own to tie the game at 16:13. After a turnover at the Wranglers blue line Steelheads forward Chad Klassen took the puck down the right boards and fired a slap shot at the Idaho blue line that went over the head of Wranglers goalie Joe Fallon. The puck bounced off the glass and back over Fallon’s head into the slot where forward Jacob Cepis was driving to the net and batted the puck out of the air and behind Fallon to tie the game.
Klassen and Cepis struck again just over a minute later but with the roles reversed this time. Forward Patrick Kennedy forced a turnover in Idaho’s defensive zone and sent a pass to Cepis who took the puck down the left boards with Klassen driving down the center of the ice. Cepis drove the puck toward the faceoff circle then dished a pass that Klassen just needed to direct into the right side of the net for a 2-1 Idaho lead.
With just 57 seconds showing on the clock in the first period Klassen and Cepis gave Idaho a two goal lead after Klassen dug the puck out from under Fallon after he made a save on a Kory Scoran shot from the point and feathered a pass to Cepis who buried his tenth goal of the year for a 3-1 Idaho lead after one period.
As well as the first period went for Idaho the opposite was true in the second as Las Vegas scored three consecutive goals in a span of 5:19.
The Wranglers first of the three goals seemed to originally be a mistake by Fallon who came out of his net to play a potential icing. However, with Idaho assuming the icing and trying to make a line change Fallon fired the puck up the boards to defenseman Barry Goers and on to Adam Miller who carried the puck to the top of the slot and fired a wrist shot that beat Kuhn between the pads to cut the Idaho lead to 3-2 at 8:17.
Wranglers forward Peter MacArthur tied the game at 9:09 of the second as he was the recipient of a miscue by Kennedy and Scoran who collided with each other as Wrangler forward Eric Lampe and defenseman Channing Boe crossed at the blue line with taking a drop pass from Lampe as Kennedy and Scoran collided and fell down. Boe carried the puck to the slot and fired a shot that Kuhn saved but couldn’t corral leaving MacArthur alone in the slot in front of a downed Kuhn to convert his sixth goal of the season.
MacArthur struck again with the eventual game winner at 14:58 after a failed clearing attempt by Matheson was stopped by Goers who fed Miller in the high slot. Kuhn again made the initial save however the rebound landed on the stick of MacArthur who made no mistake with a high wrist shot over the glove of Kuhn for a 4-3 lead.
Las Vegas dominated most of the play in the third period and registered a 14-5 advantage in shots for the period. Kuhn stood tall and several key saves to keep Idaho in the game. Idaho’s best scoring chances came in the final minute after Kuhn was pulled for the extra attacker. Fallon made three saves in the final minute while not surrendering a rebound as he secured his fourteenth win of the season which ranks second in the ECHL to only the fifteen registered by Alaska’s Gerald Coleman.
The two teams will end 2011 Saturday night at Century Link Arena as Idaho will look to begin a new winning streak to take to 2012 while the Wranglers will look to increase their division lead on Idaho’s next opponent the Ontario Reign who will be in Boise Jan. 6-7.
Friday night’s crowd of 4,872 was the largest of the season but is expected to be surpassed on Saturday. To avoid lines in the chilly Boise evening tickets can be purchased online at the Steelheads website or by calling the box office at 331-TIXS.
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