Lancers Claim 3-2 Victory in Physical Rivalry Showdown with Lincoln
Published on January 21, 2012 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Omaha Lancers News Release
Omaha, Neb. - In a game that featured 192 combined penalty minutes and 10 ejected players, the Omaha Lancers persevered for a 3-2 victory over the Lincoln Stars Saturday night in front of a season-high 6,192 fans at the Omaha Civic Auditorium. With the win, Omaha improved to 21-11-2 on the year and moved back into sole possession of first place in the Western Conference with 44 standings points. The Lancers are now 4-1 against the Stars this season and have won 12 of their last 15 games overall.
Neither side was able to find the back of the net in the first period despite a combined 12 shots on goal. Omaha goaltender Alex Lyon turned away all eight Stars shots he faced in the period, including a breakaway denial on Lincoln captain Brent Tate. Meanwhile, Stars netminder Jackson Teichroeb registered four saves on four Lancers shots, including a breakaway save of his own on Greg Gozzo.
Lincoln broke the scoreless deadlock 1:03 into the second period when, while on the power play, Ralfs Freibergs found Kevin Roy on the back door for Roy's league-leading 28th goal this season. Omaha evened the tilt just over six minutes later with a power play goal of its own when Anthony Hamburg lifted a sharp angle shot from the left wing into the top of the Lincoln net. Max Vallis and Victor Newell assisted on Hamburg's fifth goal of the season netted 7:16 into the second period. The Lancers then grabbed their first lead of the night 9:40 into the middle stanza when, while on a 5-on-3 power play, Kenney Morrison blasted a one-timer from the left point past Teichroeb for his fifth goal of the year. Nolan Zajac and Casey Bailey assisted on the man-advantage tally, which marked the sixth straight game in which the Lancers have scored a power play goal and the fifth time in the last six games that Omaha has manufactured multiple power play goals. Things then got interesting 10:54 into the period when a post-whistle line brawl produced six fights, including a goalie scrap, and nine player ejections. All tolled, the tussle produced 142 of the game's single-game high 192 penalty minutes. The Lancers landed the eventual game-winning goal 18:20 into the middle stanza when Ken Babinski slipped behind the Stars defense before driving home his eighth goal of the season. Michael Ferrantino and Dominick Sacco assisted on the even strength goal, which extended Babinski's points streak to seven consecutive games.
Lincoln would cut the deficit to a single goal late in regulation on Jared Hanson's 16th goal of the year but that's as close as the Stars would get as Omaha captured its fourth straight victory in the I-80 rivalry.
Thatcher Demko earned the victory in goal for Omaha after 23 saves on 24 shots in relief of the starter Lyon. With the win, Demko improved to 5-2 on the year. Meanwhile, Charles Williams suffered the loss for Lincoln after eight saves on nine Lancers shots in relief of Lincoln starter Teichroeb.
The Lancers are back in action tomorrow evening when they welcome the Youngstown Phantoms to the Omaha Civic Auditorium for a 7:05 PM showdown.
United States Hockey League Stories from January 21, 2012
- Lancers Claim 3-2 Victory in Physical Rivalry Showdown with Lincoln - Omaha Lancers
- Storm Rain on Hawks Road Trip - Waterloo Black Hawks
- Fighting Saints Withstand Indy's Charge, Win 5-4 - Dubuque Fighting Saints
- Lumberjacks Come up Just Short, 5-4 - Muskegon Lumberjacks
- Fighting Saints Look to Bounce Back Against Indiana Tonight - Dubuque Fighting Saints
- Happy at Halfway - Waterloo Black Hawks
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
