USHL Update - Week 27

Published on April 7, 2010 under United States Hockey League (USHL) News Release

Around the League

Postseason Storm

...The Tri-City Storm controlled their own playoff destiny heading into the final weekend of the regular season and took care of business as they won both contests to secure a playoff berth for the first time since 2007. Radoslav Illo scored his 23rd goal of the season, which was his fifth game-winner, and goaltender Carsen Chubak made 30 saves in the 1-0 shutout of Des Moines on Friday. Chubak stopped another 31 shots the following evening as the Storm wrapped up their regular season on a three-game winning streak. Brett Mohler collected two points (1g, 1a) including his fourth shorthanded goal of the season which ties for the team lead.

Scoring Title

...Storm forward Jaden Schwartz collected three assists in the regular season finale to claim the USHL scoring title with 83 points (33g, 50a). He edged Matt White of Omaha, who also had a three-point night (1g, 2a) on Saturday, by one point for the overall USHL lead. The 83 points by Schwartz are the most in a USHL regular season since Thomas Vanek tallied 91 points (46g, 45a) in 2001-02 for Sioux Falls. White collected his 35th goal of the season on Saturday which placed him in a three-way tie for the USHL lead with Anders Lee of Green Bay and Tyler Barnes of Waterloo who also tallied his 35th on Saturday.

So Close

...The Sioux City Musketeers were one of the hottest teams down the stretch as they put together a 9-1-3 record over their final 13 games in efforts to claim the final playoff spot in the West Division. Despite scoring a season high in goals in Saturday's 10-3 win over Lincoln, the Musketeers fell one point short of a postseason berth. The team scored 17 goals over their final two regular season games after scoring a total of 17 in their previous eight contests. Forwards Matt Paape (2g, 2a) and Alex Krushelnyski (1g, 3a) and defenseman Danny Wurden (1g, 3a) all had four-point games on Saturday. Defenseman Dan DeKeyser dished out three assists. Krushelnyski also had a three-point game (1g, 2a) in Friday's 7-3 victory vs. Waterloo. Stephan Vigier scored two goals on both nights and tallied seven goals over the final six games of the season.

Gamblers Win 45th

...The Green Bay Gamblers won their final two regular season games to finish the year with 45 victories, the most in the USHL since Omaha won 46 games during the 2001-02 season. Reed Seckel scored his 24th goal of the season in Friday's 4-1 win over Indiana which proved to be the game-winner. Three of his last five goals have been game-winners and he finished the season with seven total. Chris Crane scored a goal in both weekend contests. Goaltender Steve Summerhays stopped 26 shots to win his 31st game of the season in Saturday's 5-1 win over Fargo. He hasn't lost in regulation since November 14th posting a 25-0-2 record over his last 28 starts.

Streaking into the Playoffs

...The Omaha Lancers rounded out the regular season on a six-game home winning streak after a pair of weekend victories. Goaltenders Jeff Teglia and John Keeney combined to earn a shutout in the 3-0 win over Team USA on Friday. It was the 30th victory of the season for Teglia. Matt White scored five points (3g, 2a) over the weekend and finished the season on a three-game goal streak (4g). Troy Power scored a goal in both games and tallied six goals over the last seven games. Erik Haula scored five points (2g, 3a) over the weekend including the game-winning goal in Saturday's 5-4 win over Des Moines. Dakota Eveland (3g, 8a) and Greg Wolfe (5g, 4a) both ended the regular season on seven-game point streaks.

Notes

...Sioux Falls Stampede forward Mark Anthoine registered a hat trick in Wednesday's 5-4 win against Des Moines...Matt Lindblad ended the regular season on a six-game point streak for Sioux Falls and recorded a point in 13 of his last 14 games (7g, 14a)...Cedar Rapids RoughRiders defenseman Bryce Aneloski scored his 15th goal of the season in Saturday's 4-1 win over Youngstown. He set the single season team record for points by a defenseman with 54 (15g, 39a) which was previously held by Matt Donovan (19g, 32a) who recently completed his freshman season at Denver University...Chicago Steel forward Theo DiPauli scored a season high three points (2g, 1a) including the game-winning goal in Friday's 6-4 victory over Fargo...Forward Jack Berger scored two goals in the season finale for the Des Moines Buccaneers and finished with 15 goals on the year...Nick Oliver scored two goals in a span of 1:39 during the first period for Fargo on Friday...Indiana Ice forward Nic Dowd netted the game-winner in Saturday's 3-2 win over Chicago. It was his third straight game with a goal, two of which have been game-winners...The Youngstown Phantoms scored a season high in goals during their 9-3 win over Chicago on Wednesday. Nick Czinder and Cody Strang both scored two goals while defenseman Scott Mayfield tallied three points (1g, 2a) in the win. Mayfield also had a three-point night (1g, 2a) in Friday's 4-1 win over Cedar Rapids to give the Phantoms 20 victories for their inaugural season...Lincoln Stars defenseman Steve West scored two goals in Saturday's loss to Sioux City.

Alumni News

...Three former Lincoln Stars players signed NHL contracts over the past week. Defenseman Colby Cohen inked a deal with the Colorado Avalanche, forward Brandon Bollig signed with the Chicago Blackhawks, and Chris Vande Velde signed a contract with the Edmonton Oilers...Former USHL referee Tim Mayer will make his debut in the American Hockey League (AHL) this Saturday in Glens Falls, New York as the Adirondack Phantoms host the Binghamton Senators...When the NCAA Frozen Four gets underway on Thursday, a total of 44 USHL alumni will seek to become champions of college hockey. That number represents more than 42% of the players participating in the tournament. Miami University, who were last season's NCAA runner-up, leads the way with 15 former USHL players and Wisconsin has 14 on their roster. RIT has eight USHL alumni and Boston College has seven. RIT head coach Wayne Wilson is the father of Cedar Rapids RoughRiders forward Stu Wilson.

United States Hockey League Stories from April 7, 2010

• Omaha Scores 7 Goals, Wins Game 1 in Series - Tri-City Storm
• Lancers Strike First, Take Series Opener 7-1 Over Tri-City - Omaha Lancers
• Hawks Tripped Up in Game One - Waterloo Black Hawks
• USHL Update - Week 27 - USHL
• Jeff Blashill Named Head Coach At Western Michigan University - Indiana Ice

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