Allen lost to Idaho 6-4 last night. To say a slow start cost the Americans a win last night is a big understatement. Idaho scored twice in the first 75 seconds of the game, added a third at the 8:38 mark, and sealed Allen's fate. The Steelheads started the game with an 8-1 shot advantage.
- To the Americans' credit, they did fight back and had a realistic shot to win the game. Allen cut the score to 3-2 just 41 seconds into the second period, but surrendered a short-handed goal 36 seconds later to give Idaho its two-goal lead back, 4-2.
- Allen wasn't done with the comeback. The Americans scored two goals in less than a minute in the third period (13:39 & 14:29) to tie the score 4-4. Once again, it didn't take long for Idaho to respond. Less than two minutes later (16:25), the Steelheads scored the game-winner. An empty net goal with one second remaining in the game made the final score 6-4.
- Other than the first eight minutes of the game, the Americans outscored Idaho (4-2) and outshot them (34-27). The even-strength puck possession percentages favored Allen in the final two periods:
- 1st period - 50% to 50%
- 2nd period - 53% to 47%
- 3rd period - 55% to 45%
- Special teams often are the difference maker, and that was the case last night. There weren't many power plays, but the advantage went to Idaho. The Steelheads were 1-2 on the power play and scored a shorthanded goal on Allen's lone power play opportunity.
- Goal scorers for Allen were Sedley (5), McAuley (13), Hargrove (9), and Prefontaine (4). Blaisdell, Crone, and Watts each had two assists. Here are the video highlights: https://echl.com/videos/allen-americans-vs-idaho-steelheads-jan-23-2026
- Here are the game recaps from both teams with the goal-by-goal descriptions:
- Allen Americans - "Americans Fall Short in Idaho" - https://allenamericans.com/news/2026/01/americans-fall-short-in-idaho
- Idaho Steelheads - "Steelheads Stave Off Americans in 6-4 Triumph" - https://idahosteelheads.com/news/2026/01/steelheads-stave-off-americans-in-6-4-triumph
TONIGHT'S PREVIEW
- It won't take much for Allen to turn things around tonight and come away with a win. They gave up three early goals, a power-play goal, a short-handed goal, and an empty-net goal last night. A better start and winning the special teams battle are all that is needed, plus tightening up on some of the defensive breakdowns.
- The referee tonight will be the same as last night, #47 Ian Rapp. Based on last night, where he for the most part let the players play, you might expect the same tonight. He only called five penalties, and two were coincidental minors for roughing.
- Here is the lineup for tonight. The only change from last night is that Parsons will start in goal:
OTHER COMMENTS
- Idaho has owned Allen for the last few years. You have to go back to Steve Martison's final year in Allen in 2021-22 to find a winning record against Idaho (6-1-1-0). If you look at the regular season, the Americans have now lost 13 straight games to Idaho:
- 2025-26 - Idaho is 4-0-0-0 against Allen
- 2024-25 - Idaho was 6-0-0-0 against Allen
- 2023-24 - Idaho won its last three games against Allen
- Here is Allen's record against Idaho in each of the last five seasons:
- 0-3-1-0: 2025-26
- 0-6-0-0: 2024-25
- 3-7-1-0: 2023-24
- 0-8-0-0: 2022-23
- 6-1-1-0: 2021-22
- Even with the loss last night, the Americans are still solidly in fourth place in the Mountain Division. Here are the standings by points percentage, with points in parentheses:
- .784 - Kansas City (58 points)
- .671 - Idaho (51 points)
- .603 - Tahoe (47 points)
- .581 - Allen (43 points)
- .500 - Wichita (35 points)
- .486 - Rapid City (35 points)
- .419 - Utah (31 points)
- .343 - Tulsa (24 points)
- Kansas City has now won 13 straight games and leads the ECHL in points percentage (.784) and points (58). As they have done for the last three seasons, the Mavericks lead the league in road record. Kansas City's road points percentage is .875 (13-1-1-1), which is higher than any home points percentage in the league.
- It is another busy night in the ECHL with 13 games on the schedule. After tonight, all but five teams will have completed 50% or more of the season. Here is the ECHL Today with all of the previews: https://echl.com/news/2026/01/echl-today-jan-24
- Last night, Ty Prefontaine scored his fourth goal since joining Allen 11 games ago and was a +3. He has already cracked the top five in plus/minus:
- +13 - Sam Sedley
- +8 - Andre Anania
- +7 - Colton Hargrove
- +6 - Ty Prefontaine
- +6 - Danny Katic
- DID YOU KNOW: Here is some info on shorthanded goals:
Wow! Is there any other way to score or did Idaho hit all of them last night?
ReplyDeleteWe were watching not being pro active.....
DeleteWhere are the Allen Americans All Star Jerseys?
ReplyDeleteMichelle told me they are going up on DASH soon if not already
DeleteWhy is Parsons starting over Costantini? Insight?
ReplyDeleteHe is not on the trip.
DeleteContracted player perhaps.
DeleteBottom 4 in the ECHL in +/-
ReplyDeleteLast - Skelly
Second to Last - JC Brassard
Fourth to Last - Cole Frazier
This is why I TRUST IN MARTY when he gets rid of guys, not doubt him just because a player is my personal favorite. #INMARTYWETRUST
Nah, that's Ryan Crelin's fault.
DeleteThey are on shit teams. Just like they were last season.
ReplyDeleteNot related to the player.
Nice try and thanks for playing.
Why are their own +/- numbers so much worse than the rest of their team then? Marty knows talent better than anyone and he said heck no to all of them for good reason. I trust Marty and clearly he was right!
DeleteGotta be able to pass boys!
ReplyDeleteTurning the puck over so fast in OT was not good.
Bad weekend for Tendeck and Parsons.
Should have won both games.
Marty i would like to request a brandon hawkins or kyle crnkovic to make our offense a super echl offense 😁😁
ReplyDeleteun able to pass the puck effectively or pass way too much or both! Guiltily as charged!
ReplyDelete