USHL Madison Capitols

Capitols' Gamble Opener

Published on September 24, 2016 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Madison Capitols News Release


GREEN BAY, WI - The Madison Capitols comeback fell short as they dropped the first game of the season, a 3-2 loss to the Green Bay Gamblers in front of 1,933 fans at the Resch Center on Friday night.

Madison (0-1-0-) is tied for third place in the Eastern Conference with zero points. Green Bay (1-0-0) is tied for first place in the Eastern Conference with two points.

At 12:21 of the final frame, forward Jason Dhooghe gave the Gamblers a 3-2 lead with his first goal of the season. Skating on the power play, forward Josh Kosack fed the puck to forward Casey Mittelstadt along the end boards. Mittelstadt found Dhooghe alone in the left face-off circle. Dooghie settled the puck and fired a shot past Capitols' goaltender Daniel Lebedeff glove side to give the Gamblers the advantage.

"I thought it was good," explained Capitols' Head Coach and General Manager Garrett Suter following the team's first loss of the season. "I thought the effort was a lot better than the previous exhibition games. I thought a lot of guys stepped up, and the way their response was, was awesome in the third. We just took too many penalties again, and that's what cost us."

The Gamblers struck first with Mittelstadt's first goal of the season at 11:32 of the second period. Skating on the power play, forward Jared Spooner carried the puck into the high slot and fed a pass over to Mittelstadt in the top of the left face-off circle. Mittelstadt wristed a shot past Lebedeff's right arm for the goal. Forward Matt Jennings also assisted on the first goal of game.

Forward John Leonard doubled the Gamblers lead to 2-0 with his first goal of the season at 14:54 of the second frame. Forward Brody Stevens fed a pass between the Capitols' hash marks as Leonard split Madison's defense. Leonard snapped a wrist shot into the top right corner of the net for the tally. Defenseman Michael Bevilacqua picked up an assist on the goal.

Forward Marcel Godbout put the Capitols on the board at the 38-second mark of the third frame with his first tally of the season. Forward Eugene Fadyeyev slid the puck to Godbout who carried it into the slot before wristing a shot between the legs of Gamblers goaltender Maxim Zhukov to cut the Gamblers' lead in half.

The Capitols evened the score at 2-2 with forward Mick Messner's first goal of the season at 2:29 of the third period. Messner scooped up the puck and carried it into the left face-off circle before beating snapping a shot into the net to even the score.

Lebedeff (0-1-0-0) took his first loss of the season stopping 31-of-34 shots. Zhukov (1-0-0-0) earned his first win of the season with 25 saves on 27 shots.

Madison was 0-for-3 on the power play. Green Bay went 2-for-4 with the man advantage.

Notables - The Capitols have lost the first game of the season by only one goal in each of their three Season Openers in franchise history: Lost to Green Bay 3-2 on September 23, 2016, lost to Dubuque 6-5 on September 26, 2015, and lost to Muskegon 4-3 on September 27, 2014...Madison has started each season on the road in team history...The Capitols all-time record against the Gamblers is 11-5-1...This is the first of nine meetings between these two teams this season as they battle for the Wisconsin Cheese Cup, presented by the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board, The Mousehouse Cheesehaus and Emmi Roth.

Madison will travel to the Ralston Arena for a match-up with the Omaha Lancers at 7:05 p.m. on Friday, September 30. The Capitols will return home to drop the puck on their third season at Veterans Memorial Coliseum with their Home Opener, presented by Alliant Energy, against the Gamblers on Friday, October 14. Season tickets, 10-Game Pick 'Em packages, Flex Packs, and Group tickets are now available! For more information, call the Capitols at (608) 257-CAPS, or visit www.MADCAPSHOCKEY.com.

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United States Hockey League Stories from September 24, 2016


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