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Muskegon Lumberjacks

Lumberjacks Finally Healthy with Sioux City in Town

February 23, 2018 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Muskegon Lumberjacks News Release


MUSKEGON, MI - The Muskegon Lumberjacks have battled through injury issues all season. Michael Graham played only four games before his season was ended due to injury. Mikael Hakkarainen has missed 22 games, Wyatt Bongiovanni has missed 16, and Jachym Kondelik 15.

Combined, Muskegon has lost 91 man games due to injuries, putting head coach John LaFontaine behind the eight ball most of this season.

Tonight, the Jacks will hit the ice with Hakkarainen, Kondelik and Bongiovanni all in the lineup for the first time since October 27th.

The trio's list of accolades is long, but here's a summary:

Kondelik is the 27th-ranked North American skater for the 2018 NHL draft, per NHL Central Scouting. He's the 6th-best forward prospect in the USHL, and since he returned to the lineup ten games ago, the 6-foot-7 center has scored four goals and added five assists, notching at least a point in eight of those ten games.

Before being sidelined with an upper-body injury, Bongiovanni was the USHL's hottest hand. He racked up 12 points (6-6-12) in the month of December, the most among any USHL player. The Quinnipiac commit has scored nearly a point per game this season (12-12-24 in 26g)

Hakkarainen is arguably the league's best player. He leads the USHL in points per game at 1.35 (min 20 games played) and is a dynamic weapon on the power play. Hakkarainen can both score and distribute, even strength and on the power play. But what stands out about the 190-pound Finn is his defensive ability. He's among the Jacks' top penalty killers and is a top guy in the faceoff circle as well.

With Hakkarainen in the lineup, Muskegon has a record of 14-7-0.

Now fully healthy, Muskegon's top two lines are both elite. Rookie point leader Matej Pekar and the USHL's leading scorer (30 goals, 49 points) Anthony Del Gaizo will be reunited with their center Hakkarainen to form the top line. On the second unit, Bongiovanni will step in with Kondelik and Emilio Pettersen, an explosive unit with top-end skill.

The bottom six for the Jacks is comprised of some of the toughest guys in the USHL. Bobby Kaiser and Monte Graham immediately come to mind, and the line of Kaiser, Jagger Joshua and Nolan Sullivan combined for seven points in Friday's 5-2 win in Cedar Rapids.

The Jacks have the luxury of depth- Vincent de Mey is now in the bottom six, but ranks in the league's top 40 with 12 goals this season. Egor Afanasyev, Benito Posa and Will Schlagenhauf round out a group of forwards that is skilled, tough, and deep.

Putting the puck in the net shouldn't be a problem for the Lumberjacks this weekend as they host the Sioux City Musketeers for a weekend pair. Sioux City comes into play with an 18-16-6 record on the season, and their 42 points put them in sixth place in the West.

The Musketeers have struggled to score this season, and their 2.48 goals per game rank 16th of 17 USHL teams. Sioux City is one of only two teams in the league that doesn't have a 30-point scorer, and are led by rookie Martin Pospisil's 27 points.

Pospisil, however, is known more for the time he spends in the penalty box than the goals he scores. Pospisil leads the USHL with 170 penalty minutes, and ranks second with four major penalties. The Jacks will have to keep their heads up when Pospisil is on the ice.

Defensively, Sioux City relies heavily on goaltender Matt Jurusik, who spent the last two seasons playing collegiately for the University of Wisconsin. This season, Jurusik has a 17-13-4 record, a 2.64 GAA and .915 SV%.

The Musketeers are playing their best hockey, and have a 12-6-3 record over their last 21 games. However, the numbers point to some chinks in the Musketeers' armor. They have given up 31 more goals than they've scored, and their power play and penalty kill rank last in the USHL.

With a healthy lineup, Muskegon will hope to take advantage of those weaknesses and sweep the Musketeers out of town. Friday and Saturday's puck drops are scheduled for 7:15pm at LC Walker Arena. Friday night is Boy Scout night- bring your scouts out to see the game!

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United States Hockey League Stories from February 23, 2018


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