Ice Playoff Weekly
April 22, 2014 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Indiana Ice News Release
ACES WIN THE POT: It was a close call in both weekend road games, but a pair of goals was all that was needed for Indy to lock down two wins against the Green Bay Gamblers and their spot in the Eastern Conference Finals on Thursday and Friday. The visiting Ice dominated a 32-12 shot count in Thursday's 1-0 victory from the Resch Center. Jason Pawloski stopped all 12 shots for the first of back-to-back shutouts while Denis Smirnov's second-period goal from Scott Conway and Matt Roy proved to be all the necessary offense on the night. Smirnov and Roy collaborated again in Friday's 1-0 win while Pawloski went 22-for-22 in net for his second consecutive shutout in the series.
DRAWING BLANKS: The season of "firsts" continues its legacy as Jason Pawloski became the first Ice goaltender to log back-to-back playoff shutouts with a pair of 1-0 wins against Green Bay on Thursday and Friday. The Omaha, NE-native turned aside all 12 shots in game three on Thursday from the Resch Center before following up with a 22-save performance in Friday's series-clinching victory. Through three postseason games, Pawloski leads all playoff goaltenders with a 0.44 GAA and a .974 save percentage and two shutouts.
PUTTING UP A FIGHT: The road to the Clark Cup Championship only gets tougher as the Ice will host the defending champion Dubuque Fighting Saints in the Eastern Conference finals. Indy owned a 3-1-0 record against the Saints in four regular-season meetings, outscoring Dubuque 21-11 in the process. Dwyer Tschantz's eight points (3G, 5A) led all scorers in the series while Scott Conway potted five goals in four games against the Saints. Jason Pawloski earned two of the three wins in net with a 2.35 GAA and .926 save percentage in three contests.
PLAYER BOUTS: Denis Smirnov has two game-winning goals in both of the Ice's previous matches...Jason Pawloski is the only goaltender with multiple postseason shutouts...Matt Roy is riding a three-game point streak while being tied for second among league defensemen in goals (2) and points (4)...Patrick Newell has three goals in his past four games...Scott Conway has three assists in his past four games
TEAM DUKES: Indy topped game one's mark league-high with 17 first-period shots in Thursday's 1-0 win at Green Bay...The Ice is 2-0 against Dubuque in the postseason (2010-2011 Playoffs)...Indy leads the playoffs in goals against per game (1.50) and shots against per game (19.25)...Eight of the Ice's nine postseason goals have come in the second and third periods...The Ice has outshot opponents 53-20 in the first period.
PLAYOFF HAPPENING: Eastern Conference: Dubuque (#3 seed) defeated Cedar Rapids (#2 seed) 3-1 to capture a spot in the Eastern Conference Finals....Western Conference...Waterloo (#1 seed) swept Sioux Falls (#4 seed) 3-0 to earn a berth in the Western Conference Finals...Sioux City (#3 seed) completed the upset with a 3-1 series win over Omaha (#2 seed) to face Waterloo in the Western Conference Finals.
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