Idaho deals Alaska 5-1 loss

They're coming home.

The Aces were rocked 5-1 by the Idaho Steelheads, who got goals from five players in an ECHL contest at the CenturyLink Arena in Boise, Idaho. The win gave Idaho a 2-1 edge in the three-game series.

The game wrapped up a less-than-memorable 11-game road trip for Alaska (33-13-6). The Aces were 3-7-1 during that stretch.

The good news is they begin a six-game homestand at Sullivan Arena on Friday when they open a three-game series with Bakersfield.

Bryan Hines stonewalled the Aces on 34 occasions in his first start in goal for the Steelheads. Also making his first appearance in net was Drew O'Connell of Anchorage, who entered the game in relief of Adam Courchaine, who allowed four goals on 13 shots.

O'Connell, a 25-year-old commercial real estate appraiser signed by the Aces in mid-January, made the trip because the team's No. 1 goalie, Gerald Coleman, is still playing at the AHL level and the Aces needed a backup for Courchaine. O'Connell, who played at Colorado College, stopped seven of eight shots in his pro debut.

The Steelheads led 3-0 after the first period on goals by David Fredriksson, Aaron Lewicki and Derek LeBlanc.

LeBlanc scored shorthanded on a two-on-one to post the first real shorthanded goal against the Aces this season. The only other shorthanded goal scored against Alaska this season was an empty-netter.

Idaho made it 4-0 and chased Courchaine just 21 seconds into the second period with a goal by Stephen Schultz. Later in the period, Jacob Cepis scored another shorthanded goal for a 5-0 Idaho lead.

Hines denied the Aces on back-to-back shorthanded breakaways in the second period. He lost the shutout in the third period when Ethan Cox scored from the top of the right circle.