PREVIEW: IDAHO STEELHEADS (28-17-7) VS. KANSAS CITY MAVERICKS (22-27-4)

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 19, 2020 | 7:10 P.M. MTCENTURYLINK ARENA | BOISE, IDTV: SPARKLIGHT CH. 72 | RADIO: 93.1 KTIK-FM | STREAM: ECHL TV

FULL GAME NOTES: CLICK HERE

Tonight’s Game: The Steelheads open their nine-game home stand with the season series finale against the Kansas City Mavericks from CenturyLink Arena.

Head-To-Head: The Steelheads have already won their season series with the Mavericks heading into the finale of the five-game season set this year, and despite splitting their two games in Missouri now have points in all four games with a 3-0-1 record. Additionally, the Steelheads have won seven-straight home meetings with the Mavericks including their two games in November, falling only on Apr. 9, 2016 in just their second meeting. Overall, the Steelheads have won 11 of 16 games against the Mavericks in their franchise series, boasting an 11-4-1 record with a 8-1-0 record at CenturyLink Arena.

Last Game: The Steelheads fell behind in a 4-1 loss to the Walleye on Sunday evening from Huntington Center. For the second-straight night, Walleye forward Abbott Girduckis (7:47 1st) netted the opening goal, but the Steelheads found their answer later in the period thanks to a shot from the left corner by forward Spencer Naas (18:34 1st) off the back of the netminder to tie the game, 1-1. However, the Walleye scored three more goals over the next two periods beginning with defenseman Nolan Gluchowski (PP, 6:03 2nd) and followed by forwards T.J. Hensick (16:31 2nd) and Marcus Vela (15:31 3rd) to finish off the 4-1 score. Billy Christopoulos (17-3-3) saved 31 of 32 shots in the win, while Tomas Sholl (22-8-5) denied 25 of 29 shots in the loss.

Coming Home: The Steelheads return home to continue their extended stay at CenturyLink Arena with nine-straight games over three weeks in Boise. The Steelheads split their lone road weekend in February and now have won four of their last six games since January 31 including three of four at home. Sunday was the first time in their last six games that the Steelheads conceded more than two goals and just the second time they’ve allowed three goals in 12 games dating back to January 17. At home, the Steelheads have won three-straight games only twice: November 22-27 (4-2 W vs. KC; 3-2 OTW vs. KC; 4-3 OTW vs. RC) and December 13-27 (4-2 W vs. FW; 5-4 W vs. FW; 1-0 SOW vs. ALN), and they can reach that mark with a victory this evening.

Back-Up Generator: While the Steelheads have been on the bottom side of scoring goals throughout the season, the team’s ability to generate chances continues to give them opportunities to score and win. The Steelheads have outshot their opponents in 36 of 52 games (69.2%) while totaling 30 or more shots in 41 of 52 contests (78.8%). Regardless of chances, the Steelheads have been winning at about the same clip whether leading or trailing in shots at game’s end, winning about 52.8% of their games outshooting opponents and 53.3% of games while being outshot. The Steelheads own the second-most shots per game (35.67) in the ECHL behind the Tulsa Oilers (36.09).

End of the Road: The Steelheads penalty kill ended his impressive run on Sunday by conceding two power play goals to Toledo in the loss. The Steelheads broke a nine-game perfect streak, during which they killed off 26-straight power plays while also only allowing more than four power play attempts once (January 31 vs. RC, 6-for-6). However, the Steelheads are still perfect in 12 of their last 14 games, going 40-for-43 (93.0%) since January 20 and overall have allowed just seven power play goals since December 18. Sunday was the first two-goal game against on the penalty kill since December 28 against Allen (2-for-4), and the Steelheads still sit in the top-four while on the penalty kill.

Super Sup: Steelheads forward Brett Supinski has been consistently adding to his rookie point total both at home and on the road as of late thanks to a two-assist weekend in Toledo. The Collegeville, Penn. native now has assists in four-straight games as well as points in eight of his last 10 games, totaling nine points (1-8–9) in that stretch. Additionally, he’s been one of the most consistent scorers in the third quarter, tallying points in 10 of 14 games played (71.4%) after sitting out the first two games of the quarter. Supinski leads Steelheads rookies in assists and scoring (12-15–27) and is fourth overall on the team in scoring. He also leads all forwards in plus/minus rating (+14) and is second on the team.

Saddled Up: The Kansas City Mavericks are still fighting for a spot in the postseason but have had an up-and-down stretch since making bench changes. After promoting Kohl Schultz to Interim Head Coach on January 30, the Mavericks own a 4-5-1 record but have dropped three-straight games over the last week. In that time, the Mavericks have allowed four goals or more in all three contests and yet to net more than two tallies. The Mavericks are in game two of a five-game road trip, and this season the team is 8-14-3 away from Independence, Mo. with losses in seven-straight on the road since January 14.

MOUNTAIN DIVISION STANDINGS:

Next Game: The Steelheads meet the Rapid City Rush for a two-game weekend beginning on Friday, Feb. 21 at 7:10 p.m. from CenturyLink Arena. Tickets are available by calling 208-331-TIXS(8497) or going to idahosteelheads.com. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. on 1350 KTIK-AM "The Ticket" as well as 7:00 p.m. on Sparklight Ch. 72 & ECHL.tv.