The Indy Fuel outshot the Iowa Heartlanders 11-5 in the first period. The Fuel were on the power play in the period’s final minutes due to a Griff Jeszka hooking minor. The Fuel took advantage, as Luc Brown would score form the slot with just 4.4 seconds remaining in the period to give the Fuel the 1-0 lead. It was Brown’s third goal of the season, while Seamus Malone (19) and Spencer Watson (17) picked up the assists.
The second period featured both teams scoring a goal each within 22-seconds of each other. Iowa found the equalizer 4:26 into the period on a shot from Nolan Orzeck. Fuel goaltender Zach Driscoll initially made a shoulder save, but he lost track of the puck as it bounced in the air and fell into the net behind him. It was Orzeck’s fourth goal of the season, with Riese Zmolek picking up the lone assist, his 8th of the season.
18-seconds later, Carson Rose gave Indy a 2-1 lead, as he’d pick up a loose puck, move to the top of the left faceoff circle, and let off a shot that Corbin Kaczperski wasn’t able to stop for Iowa. It was the second goal of the season for Rose.
The Fuel closed out the scoring at 6:30 of the second period, as Cameron Hillis took a slapshot from just above the right faceoff dot for his 11th goal of the season and ninth since joining the Fuel from the Trois-Rivières Lions. Alex Wideman picked up his 27th assist and Keoni Texeira his seventh on the goal.
Driscoll stopped 19-of-20 shots he faced for the Fuel to move to 13-6-0-0 on season. At the opposite end of the ice, Kaczperski stopped 28-of-31 and falls to 5-4-0-0.
With the win, the Fuel sit at 23-9-1-0 on the season, while the Heartlanders fall to 7-15-7-1. The Fuel visit the second place Cincinnati Cyclones (18-6-4-2) on Friday night.
Contact the writer: Jeffrey.Everroad@prohockeynews.com
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