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ECHL Idaho Steelheads

Steelheads drop opener to Aces in OT, 4-3

April 16, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL)
Idaho Steelheads News Release


BOISE, Idaho - The third seeded Idaho Steelheads opened the Syringa Bank ECHL Pacific Division Finals against the fourth seeded Alaska Aces tonight with a 4-3 overtime loss at the Bank of America Centre before 3,349 disappointed fans.

Idaho's goaltender Dan Ellis lost his first playoff game in four starts, stopping 21 of 25 Alaska shots. Alaska netminder Dan Murphy stopped 34 attempts to improve his postseason record to 4-0.

Just as Alaska had done in their first-round sweep of the San Diego Gulls, the team scored first on enemy ice. The Aces tallied the initial goal when Garrett Prosofsky passed to a wide-open Mark Smith who found Ellis out of position and scored on the open net. Smith's marker at 3:28 was his third of the playoffs. Alaska scored its second on the night, on the power play, when Jordan Cameron got the puck through traffic in front of the net and past a screened Ellis at 6:18. Idaho had its first power play opportunity at 6:54, but could not convert. Alaska outshot Idaho in the first, 11-7.

At 3:49 of the second period, Idaho had a power play chance and scored just two seconds after it expired. Jan Kopecky skated the puck in from center ice and beat Murphy with a slap shot that deflected off an Aces defender. With three-and-a-half minutes to go in the period, Idaho had its third power play of the night and capitalized to even the game at two-goals apiece. Andrei Vasilyev passed to Kopecky who was waiting at Alaska's goal line. Kopecky fed Lance Galbraith who was parked on the doorstep, and beat Murphy with his fourth of the playoffs.

Alaska's Prosofsky snuck the puck by Ellis at 3:14 of the third period to regain the lead. The Steelheads answered back 5:17 later when David Bararuk picked up a loose puck behind the net, came around to Murphy's stick side and caromed the puck off the goaltender to tie the score and send the game to sudden death overtime. Idaho outshot Alaska 15-5 in the third period.

The overtime did not last long, as Alaska's Prosofsky scored the game-winner just 36 seconds into the extra frame on a Steelheads turnover. Idaho tried to clear the puck from behind its own net when it deflected to Prosofsky, who beat Ellis for the game winner.

Game 2 of the Pacific Division Finals is Saturday night back at the Bank of America Centre. The puck drops at 7:05 pm (MT).

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