Steel can't muster comeback against Storm

KEARNEY, NEBRASKA - The Tri-City Storm (20-28-6-2, 48 pts.) held off a late comeback attempt by the Chicago Steel (36-15-2-3, 77 pts.), skating to a 3-2 victory Friday at Viaero Center.

The Steel fought back from a 3-0 deficit to cut the Storm's lead to one, and outshot Tri-City, 15-4, in the third period, but ultimately failed to find the equalizer.

Storm goalie Eric Dop made 29 saves in his 11th consecutive start, while former Tri-City goaltender Dayton Rasmussen stopped 20 shots for Chicago. The two teams rematch Saturday in Kearney with puck drop scheduled for 7:05 p.m. CDT.

Tri-City's Logan Drevitch opened the scoring at 9:02 of the first period, bouncing a shot through traffic and past Rasmussen.

In the second period, the Storm jumped out to a 3-0 lead thanks to a pair of goals from defensemen in a span of 1:31. Ronnie Attard created a chance for Nick Azar, who fired a shot over Rasmussen's left shoulder at 6:05. Attard then scored a goal of his own with a blast from the high slot at 7:36.

The Steel got on the board before the second period closed when defenseman Ben Mirageas recorded his first goal since being acquired by Chicago at the trade deadline last month. Mirageas rushed in on the left wing and fired a shot into the far corner of the net, beating Dop over the left shoulder at 13:17.

In the third period, Reggie Lutz got the Steel back within a goal, jamming in a rebound from the top of the crease at 10:10. Chicago pulled Rasmussen for an extra attacker with a minute and a half remaining, but Dop held his ground and the Storm recorded their 20th victory of the season to get out of the basement of the Western Conference standings.

The Steel outshot the Storm, 31-23. Tri-City left wing Wyllum Deveaux notched a pair of assists. It was Chicago's first game at Tri-City in 902 days (Oct. 11, 2014). The loss was the Steel's 15th in regulation this season, the second-lowest amount in the USHL behind the Sioux City Musketeers (10).