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AHL: Rampage make it six straight with 3-2 shootout victory over Amerks

The Florida Panthers might be out of the playoff race, but their AHL farm team looks awfully determined to make the postseason.

The San Antonio Rampage won their sixth straight, 3-2 over the Rochester Americans in a shootout, and have now gone twelve games without losing in regulation.

The Americans opened the scoring when Phil Varone got the puck past Michael Houser at 3:38 of the opening period.

San Antonio evened the game up midway through the second period on a shorthanded tally from Quinton Howden. Ryan Martindale got the only helper on Howden’s eighth. It was the 22-year-old’s third shorthanded goal of the season.

Rochester struck on a power play with 19 seconds remaining in the frame to regain the lead. Brayden McNabb notched the goal, while Luke Adam and Varone picked up the assists.

Joey Crabb tied the game with a tip-in marker, from Vincent Trocheck and Alex Petrovic, early in the third period. Crabb now has 12 points in his last 18 games.

Bobby Butler (first round) and Trocheck (fourth round) beat Amerks keeper Nathan Lieuwen in the shootout to offset Varone’s second round tally. Houser, who finished with 23 saves, stopped Johan Larsson in the fifth round to give the Rampage the win.

San Antonio finished the game a disappointing 0 for 6 on the power play.

The Rampage (23-21-3-5) have moved within three points of eighth-place Milwaukee for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

The Silver and Black get right back at today with a tilt against the Toronto Marlies at 2 p.m. San Antonio opened its current ten-game road trip, which has three left to go, in Toronto with a 5-4 shootout loss on February 5th.

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