RUSH COMEBACK FALLS SHORT IN DEFEAT AGAINST AMERICANS

(ALLEN, TX) – Giovanni Fiore struck twice for the Rapid City Rush and helped lead a 42-shot effort through 60 minutes, but Olivier Archambault countered with 2 goals and 3 points, and coupled by Zach Sawchenko’s first professional win in net, helped lead the Allen Americans to a 4-3 win on Saturday night. The loss is the first regulation loss since October 12th at Wichita, and halts the Rush point streak at 6 games. 

The Rush jumped on the board first in the rematch, however, left the first 20 minutes trailing 2-1. Scoring began for the Rush with Giovanni Fiore, who navigated traffic towards the net and fired the puck off of a body and past Allen goaltender Zach Sawchenko, giving the Rush a 1-0 lead at 10:18 of the first (the goal was unassisted).  Allen countered moments later at 13:56 when Olivier Archambault came into the Rush zone on a two-on-one break. Instead of passing, Archambault elected to shoot, and fired a laser over the glove of Rush net-minder Merrick Madsen, squaring the game at 1-1 (Spencer Asuchak and Ben Owen assisted).  Allen later took the lead on the first power play goal between both teams in the head-to-head series to leave the first 20 minutes with the advantage. With 1:18 left in the first, in the midst of a five-on-three power play, Les Lancaster fired a shot from the blue line through traffic, skipping off of the stick of Asuchak and past Madsen, propelling Allen to a 2-1 lead (Lancaster and Archambault assisted).

After a scoreless second period, both teams exchanged fire four times in the final 20 minutes. Newly named Americans Captain Jared VanWormer extended the home side’s lead to a pair at 5:51 when he finished an east-west pass from Jordan Topping with a shot past Madsen, bringing Allen’s advantage to 3-1 (Topping and Brett Pollock assisted). Utilizing their top-10 power play, the Rush drew back within one, only to be answered in quick fashion. Tyler Coulter, in the middle of an irregular 4-on-3 power play, slammed home a rebound following a Ryker Killins shot to close the gap to 3-2 with 8:28 left in the game (Killins had the lone assist). However, 26 seconds later, Olivier Archambault struck for a second time in the contest, finishing a stellar individual maneuver with a slip past Madsen to re-establish Allen’s two-goal advantage at 4-2 (Spencer Asuchak and Les Lancaster assisted). Undeterred, the Rush went back on the power play late after an undisciplined slashing penalty from former forward Alex Guptill and came within striking distance once again. With 3:21 left in the game, Fiore took a Peter Quenneville pass, utilized his time and space on the near wall, and rifled a shot off of Sawchenko and in, cutting the Rush deficit to 4-3 (Quenneville had the lone assist). In the final minute, Guptill was again sent to the penalty box for a delay of game minor, and paired with an extra-attacker in exchange for Madsen, put the Rush on a 6-on-4 power play to end regulation. Despite numerous chances in the last minute, Allen’s penalty kill stayed strong, and held the Rush from tying the game late, sealing a 4-3 win.

Merrick Madsen, making his Rush and 2019-20 season debut, stopped 24 of 28 shots on net, suffering the loss in regulation (0-1-0-0).

The Rush conclude their three-game-in-three-night series on the road against the Tulsa Oilers tomorrow on Sunday afternoon, November 3rd. Puck drop at the BOK Center is slated for 3:05 p.m. MDT.

Tickets for all remaining Rush games are on sale now! Visit www.rapidcityrush.com to purchase yours today!

Download the Rapid City Rush App on iTunes and GooglePlay to keep up to speed on all Rush news as we approach the 2019-20 ECHL season!

#####