Idaho Puts Five on the Board in Win over Condors
March 12, 2015 - ECHL (ECHL)
Idaho Steelheads News Release
Boise, ID (3/11/2015) - Wade MacLeod and Jason Bast each netted a pair of goals and Chris Rawlings turned in a strong, 28-save effort in net as the Idaho Steelheads knocked off the Bakersfield Condors, 5-1, in front of 3,644 fans at CenturyLink Arena on Wednesday.
Idaho improved its overall record to 39-16-5 (83 points) with the win to maintain first place in the ECHL's Pacific Division.
The first period was played at a fast pace, but neither team punched through until Brett Robinson found Alex Belzile all alone in the slot at 15:44 of the first period. Belzile fired home his 22nd goal of the year, giving Idaho a 1-0 lead and extending Robinson's point streak to ten consecutive games.
After the late goal in the first, Idaho delivered two goals early in the second to stretch its lead to 3-0. Three minutes into the period, Bast fed the puck to the left wing for David deKastrozza, who rushed into the zone. He was joined on the rush by Bast, who was able to tip home deKastrozza's centering pass at 3:11 for his 28th goal of the season. Then, two minutes later, it was Robinson and MacLeod on the rush. Robinson gave MacLeod the puck with room to work up the left wing side and MacLeod snapped home his 29th of the season at 5:33 to give Idaho a 3-0 lead.
Bakersfield pushed back early in the third, stringing together a series of good shifts that ended in a Josh Currie goal at 2:56, but that would be it for the Condor offense. Idaho punched in two insurance goals later in the third. First, at 5:47, MacLeod got his second of the night (30th of the season) off a centering feed from Jefferson Dahl as MacLeod found himself all alone on top of the crease and punched the puck under Max Lagace's pads to stem the tide of the Condors' momentum. Then, barely a minute later, Belzile found Bast all alone in the left-wing circle and Bast buried a wrister into a tiny opening under the crossbar at 7:09 to finish the scoring. With two goals apiece, MacLeod (4th) and Bast (5th) each move into the top five in the ECHL in goals.
Rawlings came up with multiple nice saves down the stretch to make sure the score remained 5-1 as he turned aside 28 of 29 shots on the evening. Lagace allowed five goals on 35 shots as the Steelheads' puck movement created numerous good scoring chances from in close.
MacLeod (two goals, assist) and Robinson (three assists) each had three-point nights for Idaho. Robinson's ten-game point/assist streak has seen him total 23 points in that span, four goals and 19 assists. Bast (two goals), Belzile (goal, assist) and Dahl (two assists) also registered multi-point nights for Idaho, which has tied its ECHL-era record with an 11-game unbeaten-in-regulation streak (10-0-1), dating back to a 1-0 win at Stockton on February 20.
Idaho now hits the road for three games in three nights in Stockton, beginning Friday at 8:30 PM (Mtn) on KTIK 1350 AM.
The team returns home for a pair of pivotal home games against second-place Colorado on Friday, March 20, and Saturday, March 21. Game time is 7:10 PM each night. Tickets are available online at www.idahosteelheads.com or by calling 208-331-8497.
COORS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME - Brett Robinson (3A)
CENTURYLINK THREE STARS:
1) Wade MacLeod (ID)
2) Jason Bast (ID)
3) Chris Rawlings (ID)
Group outings at a Steelheads game are a great way to gather friends, colleagues, or co-workers for a fun night out in downtown Boise. Ticket prices are discounted and you can get a Pepsi, Double-R Ranch Hot Dog, and bag of chips with each ticket. Contact the Steelheads front office at 208.383.0080 or log on to www.idahosteelheads.com for more information.
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