(INDIANAPOLIS, IN) – The Rapid City Rush peppered the Indy Fuel with 45 shots on net, including 17 in the final period of play, but rookie net-minder Jake Hildebrand stopped all 45 shots he saw and led the Fuel to a 2-0 win over the Rush.
Indy provided the first two goals of the contest, and subsequently entered the first intermission with a 2-0 lead. Patrick D’Amico started off the scoring entries 2:29 into the game when a neutral zone turnover turned into an odd-man rush for the Fuel. D’Amico completed the rush with a shot from between the faceoff circles that beat Rush net-minder, Marek Langhamer, to give the Fuel a 1-0 lead (Brady Ramsay and Josh Shalla assisted). Despite the early deficit, the Rush hammered the Indy net and rookie Jake Hildebrand, but despite 15 shots and 2 power plays couldn’t solve him. Indy notched a second goal with 15.3 seconds left when a deflected Fuel pass trickled by Langhamer and in the net. Alex Guptill was the last person to touch the puck and was therefore credited with the goal, giving Indy a 2-0 lead heading into the second (Paul Zanette and Zach Miskovic earned the assisted).
Marek Langhamer remained perfect for the Rush in the final two periods of play, stopping 15 shots in the remainder of regulation, but the Rush couldn’t break the wall of Hildebrand in the Fuel net. At triple-zero of the third, it was the Fuel that withstood the 45-shot barrage of the Rush, and Jake Hildebrand that would hang on for his fourth shutout of the season, 2-0 the final.
Marek Langhamer lost for the first time in regulation this season in 6 starts, stopping all but 2 of 29 shots on goal (5-1-0).
The Rush road trip continues with two matchups, the first ever in team history, against the Toledo Walleye. The first matchup against the ECHL’s best team is tomorrow night at the Huntington Center at 5:15 p.m. MST.
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