(WICHITA, Kan.) - Logan Nelson had a goal and an assist, Lukas Parik made 30 saves and Tristan Thompson netted the game-winning goal as the Rapid City Rush beat the Wichita Thunder in overtime, 2-1, Wednesday night at INTRUST Bank Arena.
The Rush opened the scoring in the second period as Nelson carried the puck into the high slot. He spun and flung a wrist shot on net that worked its way through traffic and got past Evan Buitenhuis, giving Rapid City a 1-0 lead.
Wichita answered about five minutes later when Jay Dickman came speeding down the left wing. He brought the puck below the goal line and wrapped it around just ahead of Parik’s lunging pad to tie the game at one.
Rapid City and Wichita each had scoring chances in the third period but both Parik and Buitenhuis were up to the task, as Buitenhuis made 16 saves in the third and Parik stopped all 13 that he faced, pushing the game to overtime.
A little over two minutes into the overtime period, Wichita’s Cam Clarke was called for holding, sending the Rush to a power play. After a won faceoff, Nelson and Thompson slid the puck back-and-forth to one another until Thompson unleashed a one-timer that blasted past Buitenhuis and into the back of the net for the game-winning goal.
Nelson had a goal and an assist, Stephen Baylis picked up a pair of assists, Parik made 30 saves on 31 shots and Thompson’s goal was his second of the season. Rapid City improved to 5-6-1-1 in the win while Wichita moved to 6-5-1-0. The Rush will continue their road swing on Friday night in Independence, Missouri for their first meeting of the season with the Kansas City Mavericks. Puck drop at the Cable Dahmer Arena is scheduled for 7:05 PM CST.
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