Firebirds Win First Shootout Over Silver Knights As Home Opener Nears

PALM DESERT, CA — The Coachella Valley Firebirds minor league hockey team swept the weekend series from the Henderson Silver Knights with a 3-2 shootout win at the Dollar Loan Center.

Brogan Rafferty and Alexander True scored in regular while Andrew Poturalski’s goal in the shootout sealed the win for Coachella Valley.

Brogan Rafferty scored the first goal just after 27 minutes into the game as he collected the puck at the right point and wristed it to the cage. The shot flew through traffic and past Silver Knights’ goalkeeper Hutchison giving the Firebirds a 1-0 lead.

Henderson responded after killing a penalty thanks to a breakaway goal from Jonas Rondbjerg to tie the game at 11:34 in the second period.

The Firebirds took the lead halfway through the third period when Alexander True sniped a shot over the shoulder of Hutchinson to make it 2-1. The assists belonged to Jesper Froden and Tye Kartye.

Henderson tied the game on a rebound goal from Pavel Dorofeyev with at 13:51 of the final period.

Overtime with no goals resulted in a tie, leading the Firebirds to their first shootout of the season. Tye Kartye, Shane Wright, and Andrew Poturalski all scored goals in the shootout while Christopher Gibson made a save on Sakari Manninen to set up Poturalski’s winning goal.

Gibson made 25 saves in the win as the Firebirds move to 11-4-2-0 on the season. Coachella Valley finished 0-for-3 on the powerplay and 6-for-6 on the penalty kill.

Read the game’s box score HERE.

NEXT GAME: Coachella Valley heads to San Jose for a matchup against the Barracuda on Friday, December 10. Puck drop is scheduled for 7pm PT.

Individual game tickets are now on sale for all Firebirds home games for the 2022-2023 season, including tickets for the historic home opener that will take place at Acrisure Arena on Sunday, December 18, 2022, against the Tucson Roadrunners.

The Firebirds Holiday Flex Plan is the perfect stocking stuffer for the hockey fan in your life. Pick six or 12 tickets that can be used for any home game, including the historic home opener on December 18, during the 2022-2023 season at Acrisure Arena. Holiday Flex Plans start at just $20.

Full Season, partial plans, and group tickets are also on sale for the Firebirds’ inaugural season. For more information and to purchase your ticket plan, please visit www.cvfirebirds.com or call 760-835-8778. View the team’s full game and promotional schedule, including theme night events at www.cvfirebirds.com/schedule.

Full Season, partial plans, and group tickets are also on sale for the Firebirds’ inaugural season. For more information and to purchase your ticket plan, please visit www.cvfirebirds.com or call 760-835-8778. View the team’s full game and promotional schedule, including theme night events at www.cvfirebirds.com/schedule.