BOISE, Idaho – The Idaho Steelheads (5-7-1) climbed within one goal but fell 4-3 to the Tulsa Oilers (5-1-4) on Friday night at CenturyLink Arena.
Oilers defenseman Dylan Bredo began the game with a power play goal at 1:26 of the first period to jump out with an early 1-0 lead followed by a second tally from Oilers defenseman Chris Forney at 9:29, doubling the lead to 2-0. After a fight from Steelheads forward Kale Kessy, the Oilers added another goal at 18:24 from defenseman Kyle Rhodes, spreading the lead to 3-0.
The Steelheads found their first answer coming at 8:39 of the second period thanks to patience from defenseman Eric Sweetman to wait for a lane to shoot in the slot, cutting the lead down to 3-1. A tally from Oilers forward Adam Pleskach at 11:51 opened the lead back to three, 4-1, before the Steelheads began the charge.
At 12:39 of the third period, Steelheads forward Brad McClure sniped a shot from the right circle with help from a diversion off the near post from forward Steve McParland to break the lead to half, 4-2. Just under one minute later at 13:38, McClure found McParland off the right post for a one-time shot on the power play to bring the Steelheads within one, 4-3. However, despite the hard press, the Steelheads came just short in a 4-3 loss to the Oilers.
Oilers netminder Evan Fitzpatrick (2-0-2) stopped 33 of 36 shots in the win. Steelheads goaltender Colton Point saved five of eight shots in the opening 20:00 minutes, and Ryan Faragher (1-3-0) halted 20 of 21 shots in 40:00 minutes in relief, taking the loss.
The Steelheads and Oilers finish their three-game weekend on Saturday, Nov. 10 at 7:10 p.m. from CenturyLink Arena. Tickets are available by calling 383-0080 or going to www.IdahoSteelheads.com. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. on 1350AM KTIK and ECHL TV with television coverage starting at 7:00 p.m. on CableOne Channel 72.
Single-game tickets and season ticket packages are on sale, with full-season packages starting as low as $300 per seat. Contact the Idaho Steelheads at 208-383-0080 for more information or log on to idahosteelheads.com.
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