Anthony Nellis' Hat-Trick Sends Steelheads to New Year with 6-5 Overtime Win
Published on December 31, 2019 under ECHL (ECHL)
Idaho Steelheads News Release
ALLEN, Texas - Idaho Steelheads (19-10-5) forward Anthony Nellis netted the first hat-trick of the season to seal off a 6-5 overtime win over the Allen Americans (23-5-6) on Tuesday night from Allen Event Center. The hat-trick is the first since Feb. 11, 2017 when Anthony Luciani pushed in three goals against the Wheeling Nailers.
The Steelheads jumped out with a strong start to the contest and were rewarded with the opening goal. At 6:42, forward Anthony Nellis converted on a blocked shot from the left point on the backhand to take the early 1-0 lead. However, the Americans netted three-unanswered goals with crossing passes connecting with forwards Olivier Archambault at 9:51 and Jordan Topping at 15:21 to snag the lead, 2-1. Americans forward Jared VanWormer added another notch to their lead, 3-1, at 16:35 thanks to a deflection. As the horn sounded for the opening frame, Steelheads forward Marc-Olivier Roy fired a knuckling puck by the netminder for a power play tally and a one-goal game, 4-3,
Both sides combined for two goals within 21 seconds to continue the back-and-forth match. At 8:03, Nellis added his second of the game on a turnover forced by defenseman Jeff King to initially tie the game before Americans forward Alex Guptill came off the bench and converted on the next shift at 8:24 to spring back ahead, 4-3. The Steelheads eventually gained the tying goal, 4-4, at 19:53 thanks to a one-time shot by forward Zack Andrusiak net front.
The Americans looked to seal off the game at 7:23 of the third period with the second from VanWormer on a deflection to edge ahead, 5-4. With the goaltender pulled, the Steelheads found the tying goal at 19:38 when Andrusiak caught the Americans defense frozen for an open shot at net, sending the game to overtime, 5-5.
During the first shift change of overtime, Nellis caught the Americans in the middle of a change and completed the hat-trick on a breakaway at 0:48, giving the Steelheads the 6-5 overtime win and a positive result to close out the calendar year.
Steelheads goaltender Tomas Sholl (14-4-4) turned aside 14 of 19 shots in the win, while Americans netminder Jake Paterson (12-2-3) stopped 38 of 44 shots in the overtime loss.
The Steelheads open the New Year on Friday, Jan. 3 at 6:20 p.m. against the Tulsa Oilers to begin a three-in-three set. Coverage begins at 6:00 p.m. on 1350 KTIK-AM "The Ticket" and ECHL.tv.
The Steelheads return to CenturyLink Arena on Wednesday, Jan. 15 at 7:10 p.m. against the Tulsa Oilers. The Hockey Starter Pack provides the benefits of the ultimate fan on the time you want! Call the Steelheads Front Office at 208-383-0080 to inquire about getting your pack as well as planning your next outing with single-game tickets, flex plans and season tickets. Stay connected to the Steelheads on idahosteelheads.com or by following the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
ECHL Stories from December 31, 2019
- Berschbach Records Second Straight Hat Trick in New Year's Eve Victory - Toledo Walleye
- Mavs End Decade with Electrifying OT Win over Rival Wichita in Front of Record Crowd - Kansas City Mavericks
- Thunder Edged by KC on NYE - Wichita Thunder
- Anthony Nellis' Hat-Trick Sends Steelheads to New Year with 6-5 Overtime Win - Idaho Steelheads
- Dubeau Steals the Thunder as Beast Spoil New Years Eve in Glens Falls - Brampton Beast
- Swamp Rabbits Run out of Time on New Year's Eve - Greenville Swamp Rabbits
- Wings Winning Streak Snapped by Fuel on New Year's Eve - Kalamazoo Wings
- Cyclones Close Book on 2019 with Home Win - Cincinnati Cyclones
- Nailers Roll Norfolk, 6-1 to Finish the Decade - Wheeling Nailers
- Mavericks Set Franchise Attendance Record on New Year's Eve - Kansas City Mavericks
- Indy Closes out the Decade with a Touchdown on Kalamazoo - Indy Fuel
- Thunder Put Together 46 Shot Effort in 5-2 Loss to Beast - Adirondack Thunder
- Swavely Wishes Fans 'Happy New Year' with 2 Goals for 5-3 Win - Reading Royals
- Swavely's Three Point Night Sinks Mariners in Reading - Maine Mariners
- Growlers Win Twelve Straight Games at Mile One Centre - Newfoundland Growlers
- Steelheads Sign Forward Matt Ustaski - Idaho Steelheads
- Railers End 2019 with 4-3 Overtime Loss in Newfoundland - Worcester Railers HC
- IceMen Acquire Defenseman Trey Phillips; Outhouse Returns - Jacksonville Icemen
- Berschbach Collects ECHL Player of the Week Honors - Toledo Walleye
- Walleye's Berschbach Named Player of the Week - Toledo Walleye
- Toledo's Berschbach Named Inglasco/ECHL Player of the Week - ECHL
- Steelheads Weekly - December 30, 2019 - Idaho Steelheads
- Thunder Signs Rookie Forward Melton - Wichita Thunder
- Parsons Takes Home Warrior Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week Honors - Kansas City Mavericks
- Kansas City's Parsons Named Warrior Hockey/ECHL Goaltender of the Week - ECHL
- Admirals Close out the Year against Wheeling - Norfolk Admirals
- Royals' New Year's Eve Game Starts at 4:00 p.m. - Reading Royals
- Strome Reassigned to Reading, Swavely and de Haas Loaned to Royals - Reading Royals
- Lopsided Third Period Lifts Grizzlies over Oilers - Tulsa Oilers
- Grizzlies Complete 3-Game Sweep - Utah Grizzlies
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
