ECHL Idaho Steelheads

Steelheads Held In Check, Fall to Aces, 4-1

March 12, 2006 - ECHL (ECHL)
Idaho Steelheads News Release


Anchorage, Alaska - Two goals in 40 seconds early in the second period helped fuel the Alaska Aces to a 4-1 victory over the Steelheads at Sullivan Arena on Sunday afternoon.

With the win, the Aces (47-9-4) took the rubber match of the three-game series, as the Steelheads (33-20-7) scored just two combined goals in the final two games of the series. The Steelheads still lead the Utah Grizzlies by three points for third place in the West division, with both teams 60 games through their regular-season schedule.

Chris Heisten opened the game's scoring at 3:27 of the second period, beating Steelheads' goaltender Steve Silverthorn (28 saves) with a one-timer from the slot. Corbin Schmidt added the lone assist. Then at 4:07, Chris' younger brother, Barrett, beat Silverthorn to make the score 2-0. Kimbi Daniels and Patrick Wellar drew the assists on Barrett Heisten's 24th of the season.

Aces' forward Colin Hemingway gave the home team a 3-0 lead at the 13:04 mark of the second period off a neutral zone turnover. Hemingway intercepted a clearing pass and raced in on alone on Silverthorn. His first goal in an Aces' sweater was unassisted. The Aces first three markers were all even-strength tallies.

Steelheads' defenseman Jarad Bourassa got the visitors on the board late in the second period with a hard wrist shot after he kept the puck inside the blue line. Bourassa's power play goal came at 16:34 and was unassisted, his 11th of the season.

At 9:13 of the third period, Aces' defenseman Matt Shasby pushed a shot past Silverthorn from just outside the crease to round out the scoring. Hemingway and Justin Maiser assisted the man advantage marker. The Steelheads mustered just two shots in the third period, a season-low for a 20-minute segment.

There was no scoring in the opening 20 minutes of play, with the Aces out-shooting the Steelheads, 8-7.

The final shots were 32-20 in favor of the Aces, as the Steelheads drop to 2-4-0 against the Aces. This was the final meeting of the regular season between the two clubs. The loss drops Silverthorn to 17-13-3, while Matt Underhill (19 saves) earned his 31st win. The Steelheads have now scored just one goal in five of their last eight contests, posting a 1-4-0 mark in those games.

The Steelheads return home for a three-game series against the Stockton Thunder on Tuesday, March 14. It's the second to last home series in 2005-2006, and great seats are still available. The puck drops at 7:10 p.m. MST. All the action can be heard live on ESPN Radio 1350 AM, "The Ticket," beginning approximately 20 minutes before the drop of the puck. For tickets, call 208-331-TIXS.

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ECHL Stories from March 12, 2006


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