WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah – Emil Molin and Brandon Magee scored goals 3:08 apart in the third period and helped make Philippe Desrosiers’ 46 save performance a winner, as the Idaho Steelheads (4-3-1) came from behind to defeat the Utah Grizzlies (3-3-1) at Maverik Center, 2-1.
Steelheads goaltender Philippe Desrosiers and Utah netminder Chris Rawlings found themselves in a goaltending duel for the first 40 minutes, with Desrosiers stopping 35 shots and Rawlings steering aside 21. The only goal to that point was Matt Berry’s fourth of the season, and third of the three-game set with the Steelheads, at 9:37. The rebound that Berry pounced on was one of Desrosiers’ few mistakes on the night.
Both teams brought the heat in the third period as well, with Utah outshooting the Steelheads 11-6 but only Idaho finding the back of the net.
After struggling all night to find a hole in Rawlings, the Steelheads finally broke through at 12:03 of the second period when Joe Basaraba’s dogged forecheck forced a turnover on the far boards. Basaraba slid a pass to Molin in the high slot who skipped a wrister through Rawlings’ legs to tie the game. Basaraba now has a four-game points scoring streak, with five assists over that stretch.
Just minutes later, with the Steelheads pressing again, Brandon Magee spun the puck to the net from the left wing corner, seeing it bounce off of a defenseman who was parked in the low slot and again rolling through Rawlings to give the Steelheads their first lead, and hold up as the game-winner.
The Steelheads had the opportunity to come back in the third period thanks to solid goaltending all night from Desrosiers, including several big stop in the final five minutes of the third period. The save to remember came midway through the second when Alex Krushelnyski drove in alone on goal and drove across the net on Desrosiers, trying to come back again short-side before Desrosiers stretched his leg to the post and fought to keep the puck out. That kept the score 1-0, and the Steelheads found the offensive answer a period later.
The win moves the Steelheads back above .500. Idaho has now won back-to-back games for the first time this season and is now 3-2 on the road.
The Steelheads host the Atlanta Gladiators at CenturyLink Arena on November 4th, 6th, and 7th.
With Idaho Steelheads team release
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