BOISE, ID – A special teams showcase included a power play goal and two shorthanded markers as the Greensboro Gargoyles edged the Idaho Steelheads 5-3 on Friday night.

Greensboro opened the scoring in the first period on their first power play opportunity of the game as Deni Goure tipped in a Logan Nelson slap shot 12:07 into the game. Ryan Richardson got the Gargoyles off to a fast start in the second period, deflecting a shot by Tyler Weiss to extend a 2-0 lead.

The Steelheads would tie the game with a pair of goals 26 seconds apart. Jordan Steinmetz got Idaho on the board 3:18 into the middle frame, extended by Francesco Arcuri at 3:44 to even the score at 2-2.

The Gargoyles were sent shorthanded less than a minute later as Richardson was called for high sticking, but Nelson found his second goal of the weekend and second shorthanded goal of the season at 5:43.

“It feels good,” said Nelson. “It helps playing with good guys, they work hard, and it’s fun to be back with the fellas. Tomorrow we just need to get off to a hot start again. We’re a team that competes every night, even in the months that I was out it was a fun team to watch. These guys compete every hockey game and we just need to find a way to close them out.”

Bryce Montgomery looked like he had his first point as a Gargoyle with 10:43 left in the second period as Arty Borshyov put the puck in the net, but the goal was called back for goaltender interference. Montgomery got his fix a couple minutes later rifling a one timer for a rebound tapped in by Anthony Rinaldi at 12:29.

The Steelheads cut back within one goal as Grant Silianoff made it 4-3 with 8:04 left in regulation. The Gargoyles got a late power play with 5:03 remaining that was killed off, then went shorthanded with 58 seconds left giving the Steelheads a 6-on-4 power play with the extra attacker. Richardson scored his second of the night and his first career shorthanded goal to ice the game on the empty net, giving Greensboro a 5-3 lead.

“I felt like I’ve been due for a little bit, so it’s just nice to see the puck go in the back of the net,” said Richardson after his first multi-goal effort. “We’ve been struggling, but even since Christmas we’ve put together a lot of good hockey games and it’s bound to go in eventually so it’s really nice to see the results.”

“It feels good to get a win here,” said Scott Burt, who played seven seasons with the Steelheads and served as their Assistant Coach during the 2019-20 season. “It’s not only for me. It’s for Zinner, it’s for Komo, it's for Murph, the guys who have played here. This is a hard barn to win hockey games in, this is one of the best teams in the league, but we showed last game that we can play with them and tonight we showed that we can beat them.”

The Gargoyles finish their three game series against the Steelheads Saturday in Boise at 7:10 pm MST, 9:10 pm EST. Greensboro celebrates Affiliation Weekend when the Gargoyles return to the First Horizon Coliseum on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, January 23-25. Come join Doyle, Stormy, and the Canes Crew as the Gargoyles host Adirondack. Tickets and more information are available at gargoyleshockey.com.