Cedar Rapids RoughRiders Headlines
January 27, 2009 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders News Release
At a Glance Cedar Rapids Chicago Des Moines 23-8-3, 49 points 18-17-1, 37 points 6-23-3, 15 points 2nd place East Division 5th place East Division 6th place East Division Coach/GM: Mark Carlson Coach/GM: Steve Poapst Coach/GM: J.P. Parise
Headlines Rolling: The RoughRiders won three games in three nights last weekend and are now unbeaten in regulation (5-0-2) in their last seven games.
Onward and Upward: With Sunday night's win over Sioux City the Riders moved past the Indiana Ice and into second place in the United States Hockey League's East Division. The Riders are now just one point behind the league and divison leading Green Bay Gamblers.
Breathing Room: The RoughRiders' 5-2 win over Sioux City on Sunday evening ended a run that had seen each of the Riders' prior five games and eight of their previous nine decided by just one goal.
Top of the Charts: The RoughRiders give up fewer goals per game (2.2) than any other USHL team and are tied for second in the league in goal scoring (4.0 per game).
Three-in-Three: The RoughRiders on Sunday played- and won- a third game in as many nights for the third time this season. The Riders have outscored the opposition by a combined margin of 18-4 in the final game of those three three-in-three stretches- in addition to Sunday's conquest of the Musketeers, they defeated Green Bay 4-0 on October 26 and drubbed Des Moines 9-2 on November 29.
Stingy: The Riders have allowed three (non-shootout) goals or fewer in 31 of their first 34 games.
Fisticuffs: A 10-player melee early in the third period of last Saturday night's game against Lincoln resulted in 108 total minutes in penalties and 39 minutes assessed to the Riders. On the night, the Riders rang up a single game team season high 45 penalty minutes and the two teams combined for 152 minutes in the box, another Rider single game season high. Rider defensemen Doug Leaverton and Matt Tennyson were both assessed game misconducts for their roles in the skirmish; four game misconducts were meted out to the Stars.
Mighty Mike: Mike Seidel is now just one point away from tying Ted Purcell's team career point scoring record (138). Seidel also ranks second in club history in career goals (50) and assists (87). Seidel is racing toward the milestone- he has scored six goals in his last six games and has totaled 12 points (six goals, six assists) in his last eight games. On the season Seidel is tied for second in the league in goals (19), ranks third in assists (28) and ranks third in points (47).
D from O: Matt Donovan set a team record for fastest goal from the start of a game by scoring just 14 seconds into last Friday's contest. Donovan broke the old record of 21 seconds set by Gerry Hickey on March 2, 2001 against Dubuque. Donovan scored another goal (and added an assist) in Sunday's win to take over the lead among USHL defensemen in goals (11). Donovan also ranks second among blue liners in points (25) and is tied for eighth in assists (14).
Between the Pipes: Mike Johnson replaced the concussed Troy Grosenick in the Rider net at the start of the second period of last Friday's game at Chicago and went on to backstop the Riders to three wins in 48 hours. Johnson posted a 2.63 goals against average and a .904 save percentage over the weekend.
Ins and Outs: Forward Greg Burke (shoulder) will miss the remainder of the season. Burke will begin his college career at New Hampshire in the fall. Forwards Jeff Costello (broken hand) and Tobias Nilsson-Roos (concussion) and goaltender Troy Grosenick (concussion) were all injured in last Friday's game at Chicago. All three missed the remainder of the weekend. Defenseman Doug Leaverton was suspended for Sunday's game against Sioux City after being assessed a game misconduct in last Saturday's game against Lincoln.
Alumni Spotlight: Minnesota-Duluth junior goaltender Al Stalock (2004-2006) made 39 saves last Friday while posting his second shutout of the season and the sixth of his collegiate career as UMD defeated Minnesota State 4-0. One night later Stalock stopped 27 shots and picked up his third straight win as the Bulldogs downed the Mavericks 7-4. On the season, Stalock, who ranks second in the nation in minutes played (1500:52), has gone 12-7-6 with a 2.24 goals against average and a .921 save percentage.
Tenth Anniversary Tidbit: Ted Purcell set the current Rider career point scoring record over the 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons, totaling 39 goals and 99 assists. Purcell was named to the All-USHL Second Team each of his two seasons in the league and helped the Riders to the 2004-05 Clark Cup title.
Scouting Report Chicago: The Steel lost back-to-back home games last weekend. After falling to the Riders on Friday night, Chicago was shut out 6-0 by the Indiana Ice the following evening...The Steel is now seven points behind the Waterloo Black Hawks in the race for the fourth and final East Division playoff spot. Chicago has played two more games than Waterloo...Chicago's Andrew Miller (22-33-55) is the only player in the league with more than 20 goals, more than 30 assists and more than 50 points...Eric Alexander (17-16-33) ranks seventh in goals... Former Rider Dean Chelios has produced better than a point per game since being traded to the Steel in November. Chelios has totaled nine goals and 28 points in 26 games with Chicago...John Moore (10-17-27) leads USHL defensemen in points, ranks second in goals and ranks third in assists...The Steel and the RoughRiders have split their first four meetings.
Des Moines: The Buccaneers have lost seven straight games and ten of their last 11...The Bucs suffered three losses last week, falling 4-3 at Sioux Falls last Wednesday and 4-2 at Lincoln last Friday before returning home to drop a 6-2 decision last Saturday against Fargo...Alex Chiasson (13-16-29) leads the Bucs in goal scoring and is tied with Ryan Walters (12-17-29) for the team point scoring lead...Des Moines ranks second to last in both goals allowed (4.6 per game) and penalty killing (79.7 percent)...16-year old Michael Houser (1-7-0, 3.67, .906) has seen the bulk of the playing time in goal for the Buccaneers in recent days. Houser has started three straight games and five of the Bucs' last six. He set a league season high by making 48 saves in last Wednesday's loss to Sioux Falls...the Riders have gone 4-0-0 against Des Moines this season.
Promotions Jumping Jack: The action on the ice will be just the start of the fun at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena as the Riders take on the Chicago Steel Friday night and the Des Moines Buccaneers Saturday night. Jumping Jack, everyone's favorite roly-poly mascot, will bring his special brand of fun to the ice arena for both games.
Parents Weekend: RoughRiders players' parents and housing parents will be introduced on the ice before Saturday night's game against Des Moines.
Watch/Listen That's The Ticket!: RoughRiders single game tickets can be purchased in person at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena ticket office, over the phone at (319) 261-4625 or online at www.roughridershockey.com. The ticket office is open from noon to 5:00PM on weekdays and from noon through the end of the second period on game days. Ticket prices range from $7 to $17 in advance and from $8 to $18 on game days.
On the Air: All RoughRiders regular season and playoff games are broadcast on AM-1360 The Fan in Cedar Rapids. Brian Lavelle provides play-by-play.
Catch the Coach: Catch up on all the latest Rider news with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders' Coach's Show with Mark Carlson Wednesday nights at 6:00 on AM-1360 The Fan. The half hour show is broadcast live from Union Station on 16th Avenue SW in Cedar Rapids. RoughRiders Coach and General Manager Mark Carlson and RoughRiders radio broadcaster Brian Lavelle are joined by Riders players on each edition of the Coach's Show.
Online: Courtesy of B2 Networks, free audio webcasts of Riders games are available at www.roughridershockey.com. The RoughRiders and B2 also offer pay-per-view video webcasts of all RoughRiders games. Fans can click on the "Watch RoughRiders' Games Live" icon at www.roughridershockey.com to catch the action. The broadcast is available to fans with a high speed DSL or cable modem internet connection. The charge for video webcasts is $6 per game.
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