Steelheads Late Push Comes Up Short as Florida Leads Series Two Games to None

BOISE, ID  – The Idaho Steelheads fell by a final score of 5-3 vs. the Florida Everblades in Game Two of the ECHL Kelly Cup Finals as the series shifts to Florida beginning on Wednesday night at 5:30 p.m. (MT) for Game Three. 

Idaho trailed 4-1 until about five minutes left when Justin Misiak scored a six on four power-play goal with Adam Scheel on the bench for an extra attacker. 21 seconds later Ty Pelton-Byce pulled the Steelheads within one. With Scheel pulled again with under a minute to play Idaho fought until the end but the Everblades found the back of an empty net with just 29 seconds left to secure the 5-3 win. 

Matt Register (1st) gave Idaho a 1-0 lead for the second straight night on a slap shot from the top of the point at 11:49 of the opening frame from Jordan Kawaguchi and Dawson Barteaux. With just 20 seconds left in the stanza Ashton Calder (3rd) found the back of the net on the power-play sending the game tied up at 1-1 into the first intermission on a blast form the high slot. 

50 seconds into the second period after an offensive zone face-off Logan Lambdin (7th) snapped a shot off from the top of the left circle finding the low far corner making it 2-1 Florida. Lambdin scored his second of the period on a breakaway with just five seconds left in the stanza increasing the Everblades lead to 3-1 heading into the second intermission.

Levko Koper (3rd) made it 4-1 at 13:42 of the third period capitalizing on a wrist shot off a three on one rush. Idaho headed on the power-play with just 5:17 to play in regulation and with 4:24 to play in the game Justin Misiak (2nd) scored with Scheel on the bench for an extra attacker pulling Idaho within one. 21 seconds later Willie Knieirm from the left circle fed Ty Pelton-Byce (9th) over at the right circle who banged the puck home making it 4-3. With 3:12 to play in the game Florida forward John McCarron caught Willie Knierim up high with a high stick and from that was assessed a four-minute double minor for high sticking sending Idaho on the power-play. With Scheel on the bench again Idaho pressured hard but Ben Masella (3rd) fired at the empty net back deep in his defensive zone to secure the 5-3 victory for Florida. 

Adam Scheel made 31 saves on 34 shots in the loss while Cam Johnson kicked aside 24 of the 27 shots he faced in the victory.   

BOX SCORE 

ICCU THREE STARS 

1. Matt Register (IDH) 
2. Justin Misiak (IDH) 
3. Logan Lambdin (FLA) 

GAME NOTES 

• Idaho finished 1-for-6 on the power-play while Florida was 1-for-2. 
• Florida outshot Idaho 36-27. 
• Zach Walker (DNP), Nick Canade (DNP), Justin Ducharme (DNP), and Demetrios Koumontzis (DNP) did not play for Idaho.
• Dawson Barteaux and Jordan Kawaguchi have points in four straight games after each tallied an assist. 

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