RUSH LOSE TO MALLARDS 4-3 IN A SHOOTOUT

SLAPSHOT POSTGAME COVERAGE PRESENTED BY ASSURANT SOLUTIONS

RUSH LOSE TO MALLARDS 4-3 IN A SHOOTOUT

(RAPID CITY, SD) – On Saturday night, the Rapid City Rush and Quad City Mallards met for the second time in as many nights, with the Rush looking to earn another two points on the road against their bitter opponents. In a back-and-forth 65+ minute effort, the Mallards would ultimately send the Rush with just one point of the coveted two, defeating their visitors 4-3 by virtue of a shootout.

The first period took a different turn as opposed to its Friday night counterpart, with late bounces finding their way behind the goal line. The Rush started off scoring two nights in a row and enjoyed an early lead, with Winston Day Chief deflecting a Jesse Schultz shot past Evan Mosher to give the Rush a 1-0 lead with 9:43 left in the opening period. The Mallard would score their first goal of the season moments later, with Joe Perry feverishly hacking at a bouncing puck in front of Danny Battochio’s crease, eventually sending it home to tie the game at 1-1 less than five minutes later. The Mallards would end the first frame strong, as Garrett Vermeersch banked a negative-angle shot off of Battochio and into the net, giving the Mallards a 2-1 advantage with 34.2 seconds remaining in the opening act.

The second period saw more level play from both squads, but eventually the hard work of the Rush would lead to an equalizing goal. On a two-line stretch pass from Brett Kostolansky halfway through the period, Daniel Barczuk would beat Mosher on a break-away, tying the game at 2-2 with 11:24 left in the middle frame.

It all came down to the final twenty minutes, and despite stellar special teams play by both sides, nothing would be solved. In a five-minute “score-at-will” power play, Dylan Clarke punched a rebound behind Mosher for his second of the season to give the Rush a 3-2 lead early in the final act. Unfortunately for the Rush, the Mallards would receive a power play of their own, and cash-in with the same result. Off of a clean Pearce Eviston faceoff win, Benjamin Dieude-Fauvel sniped towards the top of Battochio’s net and tied the game at 3-3 with 11:47 left in the game, a score that would hold until overtime.

Danny Tetrault almost won the game for the Rush in overtime, with his shot missing Mosher’s net with less than five seconds remaining in the extra session, indicating that both teams would go to a shootout. Jesse Schultz and Garrett Vermeersch would score for their respective clubs in the first round, but it was Joe Perry scoring the final goal in the final round of the shootout that secured the second point for the Mallards in a 4-3 win.

Danny Battochio earned his first post-regulation loss of the season, stopping 21 of 24 shots in the effort (2-0-1). The Rush allowed their first power play goal of the season, snapping a streak of 218:22 of time in which they did not surrender a power play goal. Winston Day Chief and Joey Sides extended their point and assist streaks to four games, while Jesse Schultz extended his point streak to the same time frame. The Rush have held the Mallards to below 10 shots in five of their last six regulation periods against eachother. Both teams will meet for a third time in five nights, as their season series shifts to Premier Home Mortgage Ice at Rushmore Plaza Civic Center on Tuesday night, with puck drop slated for 6:05 p.m.

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