STEELHEADS DROP SERIES OPENER 3-1 TO OILERS

TULSA, OK. – The Idaho Steelheads (40-23-6-1) fell to the Tulsa Oilers (27-36-5-0) 3-1 on Friday night inside BOK Center. The Steelheads will continue the three-game set tomorrow, with puck drop set for 6:05 pm MT.

Four minutes into the first period, the Oilers opened the scoring as Lukas Jirousek tipped home a point shot by Dylan Fitze for his fifth of the season to give Tulsa a 1-0 lead.

Six minutes later, Sam Jardine dropped the gloves with Tyrell Goulbourne at center ice to spark a response after Nick Portz was hit up high near the Steelheads bench.

Seven minutes into the second period, the spark was found. Tommy Bergsland fed Chris Dodero in front on a 2-on-1 bid, and Dodero tucked the puck behind Vyacheslav Buteyets from below the goal line to tie the contest 1-1 for his sixth goal of the year.

Ten minutes later, Tulsa regained the lead by capitalizing on a broken play as Goulbourne jumped on a loose puck in the crease and lit the lamp for his ninth of the year to give Tulsa a 2-1 edge going into the final frame.

Idaho fought to stay in the game early in the third, surviving two key penalty kills to stay within one goal.

Despite keeping things close and generating chances down the stretch, the equalizer never came, and in the waning seconds of the third period, Fitze deposited the puck into the empty net to give Tulsa a 3-1 win.

Idaho’s Ben Kraws made 30 saves in the loss, while Tulsa’s Vyacheslav Buteyets turned aside 36 shots in the win.

BOX SCORE

ICCU THREE STARS
1) Tyrell Goulbourne (TUL, 1-0-1, +2, 2 shots)
2) Vyacheslav Buteyets (TUL, 36 saves, win)
3) Lukas Jirousek (TUL, 1-1-2, +2, 3 shots)

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