Huxley Nets Shootout Winner to Top Stockton

The Idaho Steelheads (9-2-1) picked up a 2-1 shootout win over the Stockton Thunder (4-5-3) in front of 5,101 fans at Stockton Arena. Former Thunder forward Adam Huxley buried the game-winning goal in the shootout. Much as it was against Utah last weekend, penalties were the problem for the Steelheads in the first period. Stockton had three opportunities on the man-advantage, and on the second one, scored the frame?s only goal. At 6:43, Oren Eizenman took a pass in the slot from Colton Yellow Horn, and snapped the puck by Steelheads goalie Richard Bachman to give the Thunder a 1-0 lead. At 3:43 of the second period, just as a Steelheads power play expired, Michael Neal fired a turnaround shot from the right point that beat Stockton?s Andrew Perugini high on the glove side. The goal was Neal?s second, assisted by Trevor Ludwig and John Swanson. With two minutes remaining in the second period and the score tied 1-1, an altercation between Idaho?s Mathieu Tousignant and Stockton?s Luis Tremblay resulted in Stockton center Oren Eizenman committing a kicking penalty, which sent the Steelheads on a 4:58 power play to start the third period. The third period would not yield a goal; nor would an overtime period. It was on to a shootout for the Steelheads and Thunder; the second shootout of the season for Idaho. The Steelheads took the shootout by a 3-1 margin, with the game being iced by former Thunder forward Adam Huxley, who tallied the third Idaho goal of the shootout. Richard Bachman improves to 5-2-1; he stopped 26 of 27 shots. Perugini is 3-2-3 with the shootout loss; he also stopped 26 of 27 shots. The teams are back in action tomorrow. The puck drops at 8:30 PM MST.