WICHITA, Kan. – The Idaho Steelheads (27-13-3) scored twice in the third period to help split the weekend with the Wichita Thunder (18-18-8) during a 5-4 win on Sunday evening from Intrust Bank Arena.
The Thunder once against scored the opening tally within the first minute of the game at 0:27 of the first period on a shot from forward Pierre-Cedric Labrie to take a 1-0 lead. Steelheads forward Spencer Naas answered back with a shot from the right circle on a drop-off pass, tying the game at 1-1. The Thunder continued the back and forth with a power play goal by defenseman Keoni Texeira at 10:53 before Steelheads forward Steve McParland leveled the score, 2-2, at 16:54 with a breakout shot through the legs of the netminder.
The tennis match of goals continued at 9:28 of the second period thanks to Thunder forward Jakob Stukel to edge back ahead, 3-2. Steelheads defenseman Brady Norrish tapped in a puck heading toward the net to ensure a tally less than one-minute later at 10:18, leveling off the scoreline at 3-3 before Thunder defenseman Travis Brown converted on a 5-on-3 power play at 16:55, taking a 4-3 lead.
The Steelheads finally earned their first lead of the weekend in the third period, which proved to be all they needed. At 0:31, McParland nestled his second goal of the game on a rebound to tie the game at 4-4 before Steelheads forward Brad McClure ripped a shot from the right side at 3:07 on the power play to edge the Steelheads ahead, 5-4. Despite a late push by the Thunder, the Steelheads held on to take the victory.
Steelheads netminder Ryan Faragher (6-3-1) halted all 10 shots in relief for the win with Colton Point stopping 10 of 14 shots in 40:00 minutes. Thunder goaltender Ty Rimmer (0-1-0) also came in relief, saving 29 of 32 shots in 40:00 minutes during the loss, and Dylan Wells turned aside 15 of 17 shots to start the game.
The Steelheads head to Allen Event Center to open a three-game weekend against the Allen Americans on Wednesday, Jan. 30 at 6:05 p.m. Coverage begins at 5:45 p.m. on 1350AM KTIK and ECHL TV.
The Steelheads return to CenturyLink Arena on Wednesday, Feb. 13 at 7:10 p.m. to open a three-game weekend against the Rapid City Rush. 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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