GENEVA, IL - The Dubuque Fighting Saints (39-12-3-5, 86 pts) dropped a shootout to fall 4-3 to the Chicago Steel (27-25-3-4, 61 pts) on Friday night.

With just under six minutes to play in regulation, Noah Powell ripped home his 40th goal of the year to give Dubuque its first lead of the game at 3-2. Powell became the first player in Tier-I Fighting Saints history to record a 40-goal season and leads the USHL in scoring.

In the final minutes of regulation, with the net empty and extra skater on the ice, Michael Hage had a shot bounce to Michael Emerson in front and he snapped it in to tie the game at three with 1:18 remaining.

Despite a few chances for both teams in overtime, the game headed to a shootout. Neither team scored through two rounds before Gavin Cornforth was stopped by Chicago goaltender Quentin Sigurdson to open the third round. Kevin Reidler, who made 19 saves in regulation and overtime, could not come up with his third stop of the shootout against Hunter Hady, who won the game for the Steel with the shootout's only goal.

The Saints allowed the opening goal in Friday's game, before Beckett Hendrickson's 25th of the season and seventh as a Saint tied the game at one late in the first. Seamus Powell and Juraj Pekarcik assisted as Hendrickson slammed home a puck from the slot for his eighth point in the last four games.

Chicago scored the only goal of the second, before Cornforth's 15th tied it back up early in the third. Cornforth recorded his third-straight game with a point and was assisted by Lucas St. Louis.

All of that led to Powell's go-ahead goal with 5:48 left from Caelum Dick and Erik Påhlsson. It was Påhlsson's 10th-straight game with a point.

Dubuque held Chicago's top line off the board in their last win at Chicago and did so again on Friday night until late. Charlie Major and Hage found Emerson to tie the game late and force overtime.

The Saints went scoreless on two power-play chances in the loss and stopped Chicago's only power play of the night.

The teams meet again in Dubuque on Saturday night to complete the season series with the Saints winning the first two and taking a point on Friday night.