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ECHL Idaho Steelheads

Third Period Kind Again in Comeback Win

January 16, 2014 - ECHL (ECHL)
Idaho Steelheads News Release


Boise, ID (1/15/14) - Match Wahl scored on a breakaway midway through the third period and Pat Nagle turned aside 39 of 40 shots as the Idaho Steelheads rallied past the Utah Grizzlies, 2-1, in front of 3,951 fans at CenturyLink Arena on Wednesday night.

It is the second consecutive game where Idaho (19-12-4, 42 points) came from behind to win when trailing after two periods. The team rallied from a 2-0 deficit to beat Colorado, 4-2, on Saturday.

A scoreless first period was nearly ended in the first period when Utah's Danick Paquette found himself all alone on top of the Idaho crease but a hustling Dalton Reum and Nagle's leg pad disrupted the play enough where Paquette couldn't put the puck in the net in the final minute of the period, leaving a scoreless tie into the second. At the 9:28 mark of the second, DJ Jelitto scored on his own rebound in close to put Utah on top, 1-0.

Idaho struggled putting pucks on net, having just 14 shots on goal through two periods, compared to 28 for Utah.

Early in the third, the Steelheads found life. A Norm Ezekiel slashing penalty put Idaho on the power play and the Steelheads cashed in when Wahl's pass from the left-wing circle found Austin Fyten alone at the right-wing post for a slam-dunk goal, Fyten's eighth in eleven games with Idaho, to tie the game at 4:26 of the final period. Then, three minutes later, Wahl read a neutral-zone pass from Utah's Derick Martin, intercepting it near the center line for a breakaway. Wahl went to the forehand over Aaron Dell's glove from the low slot at 7:31 of the period to give Idaho a 2-1 lead. The goal was Wahl's 12th of the season.

Utah mounted pressure aplenty over the final ten minutes, including a puck hopping the stick of Jamie MacQueen near the right-wing post and a couple of tremendous Nagle saves as the Steelheads had to kill off two late power-play opportunities for the Grizzlies to secure the win.

Nagle was the winner with his 39 saves. Dell took the loss, stopping 20 of 22 for Utah. Idaho's penalty-kill unit was a perfect 6-for-6, making it 33-for-36 (91.7 percent) over the past eight hockey games

The Steelheads and Grizzlies meet up again Friday in Boise for Blue Cross Knit Cap Night. Tickets are available by calling the CenturyLink Arena box office at 208-331-8497. COORS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME - Mitch Wahl (G/A)

CENTURYLINK THREE STARS: 1) Pat Nagle (ID) 2) Mitch Wahl (ID) 3) Aaron Dell (UT)

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 Tim's Cascade 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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