IDAHO TAKES WIN AMID CONTROVERSY

(RAPID CITY, SD) – Logan Nelson and Ryan Walters gave the Rapid City Rush an early 2-0 lead on power play goals, but the Idaho Steelheads came back in the third period, including a controversial game-Winning%20Goal, to take a 4-2 win over the Rush on Saturday night, the team’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Night”.

The Rush went 2/3 on the power play in the first period to jump out to a 2-0 lead. With 7:10 gone by in the game, on the first Rush power play of the night, Logan Nelson deflected a Riley Weselowski shot from the point by Steelheads goaltender, Branden Komm, to give the Rush an early 1-0 lead (Weselowski garnered the lone assist). Ryan Walters doubled the Rush lead when Tyler Bishop broke up a shorthanded chance nearly created by Idaho’s Kyle Jean. Bishop found Walters, who streaked up the ice on a four-on-two break. The captain elected to shoot, and rifled a wrister top shelf over Komm to give the Rush a 2-0 lead with 4:44 left in the first (Bishop earned the lone assist, recording his first point as a professional hockey player). The Steelheads cut the deficit to 2-1 when Brian Nugent backhanded a blue line pass from Aaron Harstad by Rush net-minder, Adam Morrison, with 3:12 left in the frame (Harstad and Jefferson Dahl assisted).

Both teams didn’t score in the second frame, setting the table for an all-important final 20-minute stanza. Idaho struck twice in a span of 1:24 in the final frame to take a 3-2 lead, but it didn’t come without controversy. Rob Linsmayer tied the game at 2-2 when a turnover led the Steelheads to a three-on-one break. Joe Basaraba found Linsmayer, who shot over Morrison’s shoulder in close range to square things at deuces with 4:11 gone by in the period (Basaraba earned the lone helper). Less than a minute and a half later, Brian Nugent received a centering pass from Anthony Luciani and prepared to shoot from the high slot. Before he fully settled the puck, Morrison attempted to move post-to-post in his net, and in the process, the goal incidentally came off of its moorings. Despite a dislodged net, Nugent shot into the net, and the head referee declared the goal to be good. Rush Head Coach Mark DeSantis showcased his emotion in such an important juncture of the game to our officiating crew in an incredibly important contest with significant bearing on Rapid City’s playoff hopes. The head referee did not receive this message well, and ejected the bench boss from the contest. His emotional outburst led the Rush to a furious rally in the final moments in what eventually became a 15-shot third period. Despite the effort and the emotion, Komm stood tall in the Idaho net, and Rob Linsmayer nailed an empty-net goal with 23 seconds remaining in the game, sealing a 4-2 Steelheads win.

Adam Morrison stopped 30 of 33 shots, suffering the loss despite another sensational performance in net (12-12-4).

The Rush now shift gears to the visiting Alaska Aces for a pair of matchups next weekend on Friday March 10th, and Saturday March 11th. Puck drop for both games at Premier Home Mortgage Ice in Rushmore Plaza Civic Center is slated for 7:05 p.m. MST.

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