After splitting the first two games, the Rapid City Rush and Allen Americans faced off again on Saturday night to determine the series winner.
First Period
After active first periods in the first two games of the series, the Rush and Americans had a very quiet first period, with neither team finding the back of the net. Both teams had their fair share of chances, but the goalies made some great saves to keep the puck out.
The Rush outshot the Americans 13-8 in the first period, but the score remained 0-0.
Second Period
After a quiet first period, both teams saw a more active second period. The Americans got on the board first with a goal from Easton Brodzinski. Brodzinski’s tenth of the season was assisted by Mark Duarte and Artyom Kulakov.
The Rush quickly evened things up with a goal of their own just 36 seconds later. Rush forward Tyler Burnie found the back of the net, with assists from Braeden Tuck and Garrett Klotz.
The Americans managed to score one more before the period ended, with a goal from Mark Duarte at 11:01. Duarte’s goal was assisted by Brayden Guy and Easton Brodzinski.
The second period ended with Allen leading 2-1, despite being outshot 15-9 by the Rush.
Third Period
Similar to the first period, the third period was very quiet. Neither team was able to find the back of the net. Both teams had a few chances, but not as many as in the first or second periods. The Rush and the Americans each had eight shots on net in the third period.
Final Stats
The Americans ended up winning by a score of 2-1 after being outshot 36-25 by the Rush. Rapid City went 0/5 on the powerplay and were 1/1 on the penalty kill while Allen was 0/1 on the powerplay and 5/5 on the penalty kill. Rush goaltender Christian Propp had 23 saves on 25 shots for a save percentage of .920 while Americans goaltender Marco Costantini had 35 saves on 36 shots for a save percentage of .972.
Three Stars
- Americans goaltender Marco Costantini (35 saves on 36 shots)
- Rush forward Tyler Burnie (one goal, two shots, +1)
- Rush forward Garrett Klotz (one assist, one shot, +1)
Final Thoughts
Rapid City did not play a terrible game, but there are still quite a few things they need to work on before they can start winning games. While the team was getting shots, they were not getting many quality shots and lacked net-front presence to score off rebounds. The Rush need to improve their net-front presence to capitalize on rebounds and increase their chances of scoring.
The Rapid City Rush will be back in action from December 6-8, traveling to South Carolina to take on the South Carolina Stingrays. Puck drop will be at 5:05 pm MT on Friday, December 6th, and Saturday, December 7th. Sunday’s puck drop will be at 1:05 pm MT. The last time these two teams met was in Rapid City for a three-game series from February 25-27, 2017.
The Allen Americans will be in action again at home on Tuesday, December 3rd, and Wednesday, December 4th, against the Tahoe Knight Monsters, and then on Thursday, December 5th, in Wichita, Kansas, to take on the Wichita Thunder. Puck drop will be at 7:10 pm CT on Tuesday and Wednesday, and at 7:05 pm CT on Thursday.
