Special teams haunt Steelheads in loss

Bakersfield, CA (1/11/13) - The Bakersfield Condors converted three of eight power-play opportunities through two periods, riding that and the solid goaltending of Scott Greenham to defeat the Idaho Steelheads, 5-0, on Friday night. The loss snaps Idaho's seven-game point streak and drops the Steelheads to 23-8-5 overall. The Condors capitalized on two early power-play chances to put Idaho on its heels. First, with William Lacasse serving a double-minor for a high-stick, Tyler Brenner struck at 3:02 to make it 1-0. Then, Matt Case was escorted off after a questionable roughing call to set up Peter Boyd to knock one into back of the Idaho net to make it 2-0 at 3:59. Idaho never really recovered from that early hole, though they did level out the ice over most of the remainder of the game. The Steelheads were hampered by ten penalties whistled against them over the first two periods, which gave Bakersfield eight power plays. The Condors would convert on a third man-advantage early in the second when newcomer Nicolas Tremblay tucked the puck home on a goal-mouth scramble at 3:41 of the second period to make it 3-0. The teams would skate back and forth until the final two minutes of the game when Bakersfield netted two goals from outside the circles to establish the final score of 5-0. The closest Idaho came to breaking the shutout was a Sam Carrick wrister off the post midway through the third period. Greenham was strong in net for Bakersfield, pitching the shutout with 29 saves on 29 shots. Beskorowany takes the loss, stopping 19 of 24 as the Steelheads, despite the loss, outshot the Condors, 29-24. Bakersfield finished 3 of 8 on the power play, Idaho was 0 for 5. The same two teams will wrap up their season series Saturday night in Bakersfield with game time slated for 8:10 (Mtn). It can be heard live in the Treasure Valley on 1350 AM. Idaho returns home on January 18 and 19 to take on the Alaska Aces in downtown Boise. Tickets are available by calling the CenturyLink Arena box office at 208.331.8497 or by going online at www.idahosteelheads.com COORS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME - David deKastrozza CENTURYLINK THREE STARS: 1) Scott Greenham (BAK) 2) Tyler Brenner (BAK) 3) Nicolas Tremblay (BAK) 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.