MALLARDS SQUEAK BY RUSH IN HARD FOUGHT ROAD TRIP FINALE

SLAPSHOT POSTGAME COVERAGE PRESENTED BY ASSURANT SOLUTIONS

MALLARDS SQUEAK BY RUSH IN HARD FOUGHT ROAD TRIP FINALE

(MOLINE, IL) – Matt Duffy provided the game-winner at 1:58 of the final period, Justin Fox added another tally, and Joe Perry sealed the game with an empty-netter to give the Quad City Mallards a 3-1 win over the Rush. The loss gives the Mallards an 8-point lead over the Rush for the final playoff spot in the Central Division of the ECHL’s Western Conference, and gives the Rush 4 of a possible 6 points in a three-game-in-three-night road trip.

Two matchups in a row, the Mallards jumped out to an early 1-0 lead over the Rush. At the 3:47 mark of the first frame, following the conclusion of a Rush penalty kill, Justin Fox found a loose puck in the near faceoff circle and, while falling, ripped a shot past Rush net-minder Danny Battochio to give the Mallards a 1-0 lead.

Daniel Barczuk knotted things up at the 10:22 mark of the second period. Sean Erickson unloaded a bomb from the red line that was stopped by Mallards goaltender Evan Mosher, but the rebound bounced to the feet of Scott Brannon. Brannon fed the puck to Barczuk, who tucked the puck past the leg of an outstretched Mosher to tie the game a 1-1 midway through the second.

Exactly 1:58 into the final frame, Quad City’s Matt Duffy fired a slapshot from the far wall of the Rush zone past Battochio to re-establish the Mallards advantage at 2-1. Despite the 18:02 to work with in the remainder of regulation, the Rush were unable to knot the game up again. An empty-netter from leading rookie goal-scorer Joe Perry would seal a 3-1 win for his Mallards side as regulation expired.

Danny Battochio received the loss in his thirtieth appearance of the year, stopping 22 shots on the evening (11-15-2). The Rush head back home with more crucial divisional points on the line against the Wichita Thunder, with the weekend series starting Friday, January 23rd at 7:05 p.m. MST at Premier Home Mortgage Ice in Rushmore Plaza Civic Center.

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