IDAHO STEELHEADS WEEKLY – WEEK 13 – 1/18/24

IDAHO STEELHEADS WEEKLY – WEEK 13 – 1/18/24

Sam Sternschein scored his first goal as a Steelhead this past week and recorded a point in all three contests at the Idaho Central Arena. 

The Steelheads (21-11-1-1) wrapped up a season long six-game homestand this past week and now will have fight straight games on the road starting with Rapid City on Friday and Saturday night. Idaho enters the weekend second in the Mountain Division with 48 points, third in the Western Conference, and fifth overall in the ECHL. 

Last Wednesday night Idaho fell 4-3 in overtime to Kansas City as rookie forward Keaton Mastrodonato notched his third multi-goal game of the season while rookie goaltender Bryan Thomson made a career high 40 saves in net. Two nights later, the Mavericks scored a power-play goal with 34 seconds left en route to a 4-3 win. Boise native forward Bailey Conger scored his first as a Steelhead while forward Will Merchant scored his first goal back in a Steelheads sweater. Kansas City would complete the sweep on Saturday night winning 7-5 as Idaho defenseman Lincoln Erne scored his first professional goal. 

The Week Ahead

Idaho and Rapid City clash on Friday and Saturday night from The Monument Arena in Rapid City, SD for 7:05 p.m. (MT) puck drops. The Steelheads are (5-1) vs. the Rush this season including a three-game sweep in Rapid City back during Thanksgiving week where they outscored the Rush 15-7 going 3-for-9 on the power-play and 8-for-8 on the penalty kill. Idaho secured four out of a possible six points vs. Rapid City when the two teams met back in December at the Idaho Central Arena. 

Steelheads Standouts

Boise Boy: Boise native Bailey Conger signed with the Steelheads last Wednesday and made his debut that night. He scored his first goal in an Idaho uniform on Friday evening and then tallied an assist on Saturday. 

Cheers to Merch: Forward Will Merchant has tallied five points (1G, 4A) in six games since returning to the Steelheads. He played in his 252^nd game as a Steelhead on Saturday night moving into fourth all-time in franchise history and tallied an assist for his 200^th career ECHL point. 

Kawaguchi Returns: Forward Jordan Kawaguchi re-signed with Idaho yesterday. The 26-year-old was named Idaho’s MVP last season after finishing second on the club in goals (26) and third in points (52). He appeared in 16 ECHL Kelly Cup Playoff Games totaling 14 points (4G, 10A). 

Streaking Sterny: Forward Sam Sternschein has points in three straight games now after picking up an assist last Wednesday and Friday while scoring his first goal as a Steelhead on Saturday night. Since being claimed off waivers on Dec. 18 from Toledo he has played in 11 games totaling four points (1G, 3A). 

Tip of the Cap For Reg: Veteran defenseman Matt Register is set to play in his 700^th pro game on Saturday in Rapid City, 577^th in the ECHL, and is tied for fourth amongst league defenders with 29 points (3G, 26A). 

Quick Hits: The Steelheads are second in the league on the power-play (37-for-130, 28.5%) and first on the road (19-for-50, 38%) … Idaho ranks first in the league averaging 38.53 shots for per game … The Steelheads 21 first goals this season are tied for first in the ECHL while they’ve posted a (16-3-1-1) record when getting out in front 1-0 … Idaho leads the league with 161 goals for an average of 4.47 per game … The Steelheads are the fourth fewest penalized team in the league averaging just 10.53 penalty minutes per game and have the best penalty kill on the road (50-for-56, 89.3%)… Bryan Thomson was returned to Idaho today from his loan assignment with Texas.   

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