BOISE, Idaho – In a goaltending duel that lasted into the fourth round of the shootout, Steelheads goaltender Branden Komm had the last laugh as the Idaho Steelheads (2-3-1) defeated the Reading Royals (3-1-1), 3-2 in the middle game of their three-game series.
Komm stopped 32 shots, three of them in overtime, and all four shootout attempts to earn his first win of the season in front of 3,235 fans at CenturyLink Arena. He sealed the win with a poke-check on Reading’s Steven Swavely on the game’s final attempt.
Rookie Will Merchant was the only player to succeed in the shootout, beating Reading goaltender Mark Dekanich with a backhand deke in the fourth round. Dekanich was strong all night for Reading, stopping 41 shots on the evening.
The Steelheads found themselves trailing early in the third period when the Royals got a good bounce off the boards behind the Steelheads net. On the power play, Reading defenseman Mike Marcou sent a puck towards the net that went wide and kicked right back in front off the wall, giving Robbie Czarnik an open net and his first goal of the season to give Reading a 2-1 lead 1:07 into the period.
The Steelheads would battle back when Kellan Lain netted his second of the season 4:53 later to tie the game. Off strong forecheck work by Kyle Jean and Anthony Luciani, the Steelheads got the puck to the front when Jean centered the puck, had it bounce back to him, and then centered again to find Lain.
Komm would make several saves down the stretch to help secure overtime, including one sequence late in the third when Kevin Sundher got behind the defense. Komm made the breakaway save and then held his ground as he was bowled over by Sundher, with the ensuing scrap leading to penalty minutes for both Komm and Sundher.
The Steelheads scored the first goal of the game, a blast from the right circle by Luciani on a 5-on-3 power play that was Luciani’s second goal of the year at 8:23 of the first. Idaho now has power play goals in four straight games. The Royals drew even at 8:24 of the second on Marcou’s point shot through traffic, the defenseman’s first tally of the year.
The Steelheads and Royals wrap up their series at CenturyLink Arena on Saturday night, with the Steelheads looking for their first back-to-back wins of the season and to move back to .500. Puck-drop is scheduled for 7:10pm MT. The game is available on Cable One, ECHLTV and 1350AM KTIK.
With Idaho Steelheads release
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