ECHL Idaho Steelheads

Steelheads can't climb out of early hole, lose 4-3 to Falcons

December 7, 2007 - ECHL (ECHL)
Idaho Steelheads News Release


Boise, ID - For the second straight contest the visiting Fresno Falcons built a three-goal cushion and hung on, as the Steelheads saw their third period rally fall short in a 4-3 loss on Friday night in front of 4,773 fans at Qwest Arena.

The Steelheads (7-8-6) have now lost two in a row for the fourth time this season as they drop below .500 for the first time in 2007-2008. The defending Kelly Cup Champions will try to salvage their series with the Falcons (10-6-3) tomorrow evening and avoid a sweep.

The Falcons, who have now won a season-high four consecutive games, gained a 3-0 lead heading into the first intermission on goals by Oren Eizenman, Mike Ramsay and Matt Stefanishion. Eizenman's 10th of the season came at 4:37, while Ramsay and Stefanishion scored less than three minutes apart midway through the contest. Stefanishion's marker was a power play goal, the first specialty teams' goal for the Falcons in the series.

In a penalty-filled second period, the two teams traded tallies. At 14:46 of the frame, Taggart Desmet got the Steelheads on the board with a wrist shot that fluttered through the legs of Falcons' goaltender Jake Moreland (14 saves). Defenseman J.S. Adam picked up the only assist, marking his first professional point.

Less than a minute later the Falcons netted a five-on-three power play goal to get their three-goal lead back. After Kellen Briggs (16 saves) stopped the initial shot by Jason Bonsignore, John Morlang collected the rebound and flipped the puck over the rookie netminder to make the score 4-1. Former Steelhead Tyler Kindle picked up the second assist.

Just 2:30 into the third period the Steelheads made thing interesting as Mark Bomersback collected his team-leading 11th marker of the season. Greg Rallo snagged the only helper on the even-strength tally.

At 4:11 of the frame, Rallo buried a right wing snap shot to pull the Steelheads within one. On the play, Bomersback sent a pass to Lance Galbraith and the puck redirected free to Rallo who beat Moreland cleanly.

The final shots favored the Falcons 20-17, with the Steelheads shot total marking their lowest of the year. The visitors also controlled the special teams' battle, scoring twice on nine power plays while holding the Steelheads scoreless in four chances. The two clubs combined for 56 penalty minutes, 44 of which came in the second stanza.

The Steelheads and Falcons wrap up their three-game series on Saturday, December 8. The puck drops at 7:10 p.m. MST. All the action can be heard live on 1350 AM, KTIK "The Ticket" or via the B2 Networks. Don't forget, Steelheads' single-game tickets can be purchased via www.idahosteelheads.com (using the print-at-home feature), by calling 331-TIXS or from the Qwest Arena box office.

Check out the Idaho Steelheads Statistics



ECHL Stories from December 7, 2007


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.

OurSports Central