10/13/18: Rush @ Utah

Where We Left Off: One Down, 71 To Go – Adam Marsh scored the first goal of his professional career to draw the game level at 1-1 at the midway point of the first, but Utah’s Caleb Herbert countered with a 3-point 1st period, including two power play goals in the last five minutes of the frame, to lead Utah to a 4-2 win over the Rush on Friday night in the first game of the 2018-19 ECHL season.  Utah took a multi-goal lead into the locker room after one period of play, led by a 3-point period for Caleb Herbert, which included two strikes on the power play in the last five minutes.  Starting the scoring entries was Josh Winquist, who was found wide open in the low slot with time to settle the puck and pick his shot.  Winquist zipped a wrister over the shoulder of Rush net-minder Tyler Parks to give the Grizzlies a 1-0 lead at 2:57 of the first (Cole Ully and Caleb Herbert).  Adam Marsh tied things up at the midway point of the period with his first goal as a professional.  With 9:12 gone by, Marsh took an Andrew Radjenovic centering pass, patiently waited until Grizzlies goalie Joe Cannata was in a vulnerable position, and buried it behind the sprawled goalie to square the game at 1-1 (Radjenovic and Mitch Nardi assisted).  The Grizzlies then utilized their power play on a pair of Mason McCarty penalties to break the tie and subsequently carry a lead into the dressing room at the end of the period.  With 5:02 remaining, Herbert scored his first of the season when Ryan Walters found him with a cross-ice pass in the slot.  Herbert released with a shot almost immediately and beat Parks under the glove to give Utah a 2-0 lead (Walters and Winquist assisted).  Herbert ended the period with a second power play goal on as many chances, burying another Walters centering pass point-blank in front of the net with 37.3 seconds left in the period to make it 3-1 after a frame.  Both teams wouldn’t exchange goals again until the final minute of regulation when the Rush pulled Parks for an extra-attacker on a late power play, leading to a 6-on-4 advantage.  Tim McGauley took advantage of the empty 4x6 and sent a shot from the near wall of his own zone down the length of the ice and in to give Utah a 4-1 lead with over 30 seconds remaining in the game (the goal was unassisted).  Shaquille Merasty earned the final tally on the remainder of the Rush power play with 13 seconds remaining, hammering an Alec Baer rebound by Cannata after multiple chances to bring the game to its final score of 4-2 (Baer and Josh Elmes assisted).

Youth Movement – With his first goal as a professional last night, Rush rookie Adam Marsh became the youngest player in team history to score the first goal of the season for the team.  Marsh, 21 years old, beats the record of former Rush forward and current Orlando Solar Bear Hunter Fejes, who scored the first goal of the 2016/17 season against Colorado at 22 years old.

Just Like We Drew It Up – The Rush held the advantage in the faceoff dot against Utah last night, and out-drew them by a 33-31 margin, including a 12-8 count in the first period, and an 8-7 margin in the third.  Additionally, the Rush outshot Utah 28-27, which matches the total number of games that the team outshot the Grizzlies in last season’s 11-game set.

Familiarity – All six points registered on the scoresheet for the Rush last night came from returning players.  Adam Marsh and Shaquille Merasty each scored goals for the Rush, while Mitch Nardi, Andrew Radjenovic, Alec Baer, and Josh Elmes earned assists.

Welcome to the Pros – Entering the game against Utah last night, Rush rookies Mason McCarty and Blake Heinrich each made their professional debuts.  Additionally, Cedric Montminy made his ECHL debut after spending the last two seasons in Germany and France.  Should he suit up tonight, Quintin Lisoway will be the third player this weekend to make his professional debut.