Steelheads Extend Point Streak to Five on Late Rally, Fall 4-3 in Overtime

WICHITA, Kan. – The Idaho Steelheads (4-0-1) overcame a three-goal deficit in the third period to earn one point in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Wichita Thunder (2-2-2) on Friday night from INTRUST Bank Arena.

With the Thunder returning home after three games on the road, they capitalized on first period momentum by tabbing the first goal of the night. At 12:15, forward Ostap Safin tapped in a loose puck following the denial of a shot by defenseman Brendan Smith to give the Thunder the opening tally for the second-straight game, 1-0.

The Steelheads began the second period with a high amount of pressure and elevated their overall shot total, however the Thunder were the ones to find the back of the net. The Steelheads went on a 5-on-3 penalty kill, and in the waning seconds Thunder forward Chris Crane fought a shot through the netminder at 18:50 to double the lead to 2-0.

The Thunder began the third period with another tally by Crane at 3:39 during a 3-on-2 break to triple their lead, 3-0. The Steelheads finally found their answer to break up the shutout bid at 5:11 when forward Marc-Olivier Roy opened up forward Zack Andrusiak for a one-time chip in front of the net, beginning the comeback with a 3-1 deficit. Andrusiak added a second tally at 17:41 with a deflection coming from a shot by defenseman Brady Norrish to trim the lead to one, 3-2. With the extra attacker on, Steelheads forward Brett Supinski completed the comeback on a net front jam at 18:40, sending the game to overtime at 3-3.

In the overtime period, the Thunder capitalized on their lone shot from forward Jack Combs at 3:43 to take the 4-3 overtime result and give the Steelheads one point.

Thunder goaltender Mitch Gillam (2-2-1) stopped 52 of 55 shots in the win, while Steelheads netminder Tomas Sholl (3-0-1) halted 20 of 24 shots in the overtime loss.

The Steelheads meet the Allen Americans on Saturday, Oct. 26 at 6:05 p.m. MT from Allen Events Center to open an 11-game season series. Coverage begins at 5:45 p.m. MT on 1350-AM KTIK “The Ticket” & ECHL.TV.

The Steelheads return to CenturyLink Arena on Friday, Nov. 1 at 7:10 p.m. against the Utah Grizzlies. Call the Steelheads Front Office at 208-383-0080 to plan your seats for this season, including single-game, flex plans and season tickets. Stay connected to the Steelheads on idahosteelheads.com or by following the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.