BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho Steelheads are moving on to the ECHL Mountain Division Finals after winning four straight overtime games to take the opening-round series against the Utah Grizzlies.
The Steelheads clinched the 4-2 series victory Monday night at Idaho Central Arena, where they began the series with two losses before winning three in a row at Utah.
Jack Becker scored Monday’s game- and series-winning goal 3:48 into the first overtime period, securing the game for the Steelheads by a score of 3-2.
Earlier in the game, Idaho took a 1-0 lead with a goal by Zane Franklin at 9:04 in the first period. Ty Pelton-Byce and Casey Johnson assisted. Utah evened the score at 1-1 with a goal by Kyle Betts at 13:12 in the second period and took a 2-1 lead in the third on a goal by Dylan Fitze. Idaho’s A.J. White scored one minute, 36 seconds later to knot the game at 2-2, where things would stand at the end of regulation.
Steelheads’ goalie Adam Scheel made 21 saves on 23 shots, while Utah netminder Trent Miner stopped 29 of the 32 shots he faced.
The Steelheads are the only team in ECHL history to win four straight overtime games in the playoffs on two occasions. The first time was also against Utah, back in 2019, when Idaho won the Mountain Division Semifinals four games to one.
For the second round of the playoffs, the Steelheads face the Allen Americans. Based in Allen, Texas, the Americans are affiliated with the NHL’s Ottawa Senators and AHL’s Belleville Senators. The series schedule is as follows (all times Mountain):
- Game 1 – at Allen, 6:05 p.m. Friday, May 5
- Game 2 – at Idaho, 7:10 p.m. Wednesday, May 10
- Game 3 – at Idaho, 7:10 p.m. Friday, May 12
- Game 4 – at Idaho, 7:10 p.m. Saturday, May 13
- Game 5 (if necessary) – at Idaho, 4:10 p.m. Sunday, May 14
- Game 6 (if necessary) – at Allen, 6:05 p.m. Tuesday, May 16
- Game 7 (if necessary) – at Allen, 6:05 p.m. Wednesday, May 17
Editor's note: The above revised schedule reflects changes made following the postponement of Game 2.
All Steelheads home games can be viewed on FloHockey and Sparklight Channel 72, and are broadcast on the Steelheads flagship radio station, 95.3 FM KTIK “The Ticket.”
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