MALLARDS CAPITALIZE IN GAME THREE, TAKE 2-1 SERIES LEAD

(MOLINE, IL) – Wednesday night saw Game 3 of the Rapid City Rush and Quad City Mallards opening round playoff series take place at the iWireless Center. The Mallards, looking to build momentum off of their controversial Game 2 win looked to set a tone in the start of this portion of the series, and would ultimately come out on top. Behind a three-point performance from Thomas Frazee and 30 saves from Thomas Heemskerk, the Mallards won Game 3 by a 5-1 score, taking a 2-1 series lead.

The physical play and hostility carried over into Game 3, as the Rush and Mallards set a hard tempo early. The Rush would start off the scoring portion of the game early through an interesting turn of events that saw them come out with the 1-0 lead 7:37 into the game. Crashing the Mallards net was captain Scott Wray, who was shoved into the net, followed by a puck shot by Sean Erickson. The head referee, Zac Blazic ruled the play a goal, stating that Wray was shoved into the net, therefore nullifying goaltender interference on the play. Moments later, Thomas Frazee would even the game up at 1-1 for the Mallards on a slapshot from the far wall, scoring his first goal and point of the postseason with less than five minutes to play in the opening frame. On their second power play of the game, former Rush forward Jeff Lee sent in a power play goal with 18 seconds left in the period to give the Mallards a 2-1 lead, a lead they would carry all the way into a scoreless second period, and subsequently the third.

The Rush and Mallards battled toe-to-toe in the opening moments of the third period, but the Mallards would ultimately separate themselves. Mike Stinziani broke through the Rush defense and took a stretch pass in the neutral zone, beating Boron to extend the Mallards lead to 3-1 with 8:42 left in the game. In the final moments of the period, Thomas Frazee would score an empty-netter, followed by a Jordan Mayer breakaway goal with roughly 40 seconds left to eventually give the Mallards a 5-1 win.

Tim Boron receives his second loss in the postseason, making 20 saves in the game (1-2). Sean Erickson recorded his first postseason goal and point with the Rush, while Kyle Stroh and Scott Wray added to their respective stat totals in the three games played to date (Stroh: 1-4-5, Wray: 2-2-4). The Mallards now take a 2-1 lead in the series, with Games 4 and 5 also coming in the iWireless Center this week on Friday and Saturday evening, with puck drop scheduled for 6:05 PM MST.

Other Rush News:

Playoff tickets are now available for the 2013-14 postseason as the Rush gear up for their Rush for the Ray Miron President’s Cup!! Call the Rush office at 716-7825 for details.

Stay informed on Rush happenings through the official Rapid City Rush team website, www.RapidCityRush.com, and the Rapid City Rush mobile app, available on iTunes and Google Play.

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