(RAPID CITY, S.D.)—In a tight affair throughout, the Rapid City Rush (17-19-3) fell one goal short against the Allen Americans (21-14-4), 5-4, at Credit Union of Texas Event Center on Friday.
The Rush scored first on a Darian Pilon net-front deflection of Kaleb Tiessen’s point shot. Pilon picked up his first goal with Rapid City and Tiessen grabbed his first professional point. The first period ended in a 1-1 tie.
In the second, Blake Bennett tied things up on a one-timer in the final two minutes, and the teams were tied 2-2 going into the third period.
Allen got the best of the Rush in the third, with a power play goal early, then two goals in a span of 50 seconds. Ryan Chyzowski got one back for Rapid City in the midst of that scoring spurt, then Chase Pauls batted a puck in at the net front with 1:11 to go. However, with the goalie pulled and a 6-on-4 advantage, the Americans survived the dying seconds and held on for a 5-4 win.
The Rush did enough to win this game offensively and got contributions from the defensemen on the offensive side. That said, Allen scored their first two goals directly off Rush turnovers. The Americans also had a string of five consecutive power plays, the fifth ending up in a go-ahead goal.
Rico DiMatteo hung in there and made some ten-bell saves. He stopped 37 out of 42. Marco Costantini earned the win with 25 saves on 29 Rush shots.
This is only the third time the Rush have lost a game in regulation when tied or leading after two. Two of those instances have come against the Americans. Rapid City is now 15-3-3 in those situations this season.
Next game: Saturday, January 31 at Allen. 6:10 p.m. MST puck drop from Credit Union of Texas Event Center.
The Rapid City Rush are back home to battle the Tahoe Knight Monsters on Valentine’s Day Weekend! Join us on Friday, February 13th and Saturday 14th at 7:05 p.m. Call the Rush office at 605-716-7825 or visit www.rapidcityrush.com to learn more and secure your seats today.
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