Berschbach scores twice as Walleye fall in overtime

INDIANAPOLIS – Shane Berschbach’s power play marker with 59 seconds remaining in regulation gave the Toledo Walleye a 3-2 lead, but the Indy Fuel responded 26 ticks later to force overtime before scoring again in the closing stages of the extra session to escape with a 4-3 decision on Saturday at Indiana Farmers Coliseum.Ryan Rupert opened the scoring for Indy 3:13 into the contest. After A.J. Jenks was unable to gain control of the puck in his own zone, Matt Rupert gathered possession at the left circle and sent a pass through the goal mouth to his brother for a tap-in to give the hosts an early 1-0 edge.The Fuel doubled their advantage in the second stanza when Connor Moynihan’s wrist shot from the top of the left circle snuck through Pat Nagle’s five-hole at the 5:07 mark.Toledo made its breakthrough later in the frame as Berschbach netted his first goal of the campaign. Hunter Smith had his initial effort blocked by a screened Matt Tomkins, but the rebound bounced to Berschbach in the high slot to trim the deficit to 2-1 with 10:38 remaining in the second.The Walleye continued to apply pressure and eventually erased another third-period deficit with 15:56 to play in regulation. Brenden Kotyk received Jenks’ rinkwide pass at the left circle and lifted a wrist shot past Tomkins to knot the score at 2-2.The visitors were granted a late opportunity on the man advantage when Quentin Shore was whistled for high-sticking at the 18:22 mark, prompting head coach Dan Watson to call a timeout. T.J. Hensick held the puck at the left circle before sending a pass through the slot to Berschbach, who had time to place a wrist shot into the top right corner and stake Toledo to a 3-2 edge.Indy had one last chance to salvage at least a point as Greg Wolfe was assessed a hooking minor with 37 seconds left in the third, allowing the Fuel to create a 6-on-4 advantage in skaters on the ensuing faceoff. Four ticks later, the hosts won the draw before Ryan Rupert dished the puck to Brett Welychka at the left post to send the Walleye beyond 60 minutes for the second time in three games.Toledo’s best chance in the extra frame arrived when Dylan Sadowy took a stretch pass at center for a breakaway attempt, moving from backhand to forehand in close only to be denied by the outstretched right pad of Tomkins. At the other end, Neil Manning gained the zone and picked out Shore racing down the left wing, with the latter taking the pass in stride at the left circle and placing a shot inside the left post to wrap up the back-and-forth contest with 12.6 seconds to go in overtime.Both sides finished 1-for-4 on the man advantage. Matt Tomkins turned aside 33-of-36 shots to pick up the win, while Pat Nagle stopped 28-of-32 shots in his second start of the young season.What’s Next:The Walleye continue their season-opening five-game road trip on Wednesday with a matchup against the Cincinnati Cyclones. Puck drop from U.S. Bank Arena is scheduled for 7:35 p.m.Fish Tales:• Jordan Topping made his professional debut in Saturday’s contest. The 21-year-old forward tallied 80 points (38-42-80) in 72 games last season with the WHL’s Tri-City Americans.• The Walleye own a 15-0-1-1 record on the road against Indy. In total, Toledo is 23-2-1-1 against the Fuel.• Toledo has trailed after two periods in each of their first three games this season.