USHL Cedar Rapids RoughRiders

Cedar Rapids RoughRiders Weekly Update

Published on December 26, 2005 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders News Release


THIS WEEK

Thursday, December 29, 7:05PM @ Cedar Rapids Ice Arena

Green Bay Gamblers vs. Cedar Rapids RoughRiders

Friday, December 30, 7:05PM @ State Fair Coliseum, Lincoln, Nebraska

Cedar Rapids RoughRiders vs. Lincoln Stars

Sunday, January 1, 5:05PM @ Mid America Center, Omaha, Nebraska

Cedar Rapids RoughRiders vs. Omaha Lancers

RECORDS

Cedar Rapids

18-7-1, 37 points, 2nd place East Division

Green Bay

12-13-3, 27 points, 3rd place East Division

Omaha

16-12-1, 33 points, 2nd place West Division

Lincoln

12-11-4, 28 points, 4th place West Division

COMING IN

The RoughRiders headed into the USHL's holiday break with back-to-back road wins. The Riders defeated Green Bay 4-3 in overtime on Friday, December 16 and powered past Indiana 7-3 the following evening.

The Riders are one point behind the Des Moines Buccaneers in the race for first place in the United States Hockey League's East Division.

The Riders are now 12-3-1 on the road. The Riders have won more away games than any other team in the league.

The Riders rang up 11 goals in their last two games after scoring one goal in regulation or being shutout in three of their prior four contests. The Riders now rank second in the league in goal scoring, averaging 3.6 goals per game.

The Riders scored a team record-tying five power play goals in their final game before the break and now lead the league in power play efficiency (21.7 percent).

The Riders' Ted Purcell broke loose for six points (two goals, four assists) in the Riders' last two games and made a bit of history along the way. Purcell picked up two assists on December 16 in Green Bay, the first of which was the one hundredth point of his Cedar Rapids career. Purcell (32-73-105 career) joins Jon Grabarek as the second player in team history to reach 100 career points. After assisting on another pair of goals last Saturday, Purcell is now just two assists shy of the Grabarek's team career assists record (75).

Purcell (12-26-38) is the league leader in both points and assists. Teammate Chad Costello, who scored three goals and added one assist in his last two games before the break, is tied for second in the USHL in points (35) and assists (21).

The Gamblers picked up three of a possible four points in their last two games before the break. After earning one point for the December 16 overtime loss to the Riders, Green Bay bounced back with a 5-2 win over Tri-City on Sunday, December 18.

Green Bay has gone 8-3-3 since early November, recovering from a slow start that saw the Gamblers post a 4-10 record over their first 14 outings.

The Gamblers are three points ahead of Waterloo in the East Division standings.

The Gamblers travel to Cedar Rapids having won their last three road games and gone unbeaten in regulation (4-0-2) in their last six. On the season, Green Bay has a better record on the road (7-6-2) than at home (5-7-1).

Kevin Deeth (10-16-26) leads the Gamblers in points, while Sean Backman (14-10-24) and Brian Roloff (14-9-23) are Green Bay's top goal scorers.

The Stars are winless (0-1-2) in their last three games. Just before the break, Lincoln took home one point after falling to Sioux Falls 5-4 in a shootout on Friday, December 16 and then suffered a 6-3 loss in Omaha one night later.

The Stars have not been more than two games above or below .500 at any point this season.

A spine injury has deprived Lincoln of the services of top scorer Mike Davies (13-17-30) since November 26. Davies ranks seventh in the league in point scoring despite missing the Stars' last seven games.

Lincoln is a game over .500 despite having been outscored by ten goals (95-85) so far this season.

Eli Vlaisavljevich (6-17-23) is tied for the lead among USHL defensemen in assists, is tied for second among defenseman in points and is tied for third among blue liners in goals.

The Lancers went 1-2 in the final week before the break. Omaha fell 4-1 at Sioux City on Tuesday, December 13, bounced back to defeat Lincoln on December 17 and then dropped a 4-1 decision in Sioux Falls the following afternoon.

After going 12-7 in its first 19 games, Omaha has posted a losing record (4-5-1) over its last ten outings.

Like the Stars, the Lancers have a winning record despite having given up more goals (96) than they have scored (92).

The Lancers have won their last four home games.

Power play goals have been at a premium in Omaha's games this season. The Lancers rank last in the league on the power play (10.6 percent) but do boast the second strongest penalty kill unit in the USHL (86.7 percent).

Omaha's Matt Schepke (17-9-26) is tied for third in the league in goals.

Nick Schaus (6-17-23) is tied for the lead among USHL defensemen in assists, is tied for second among defenseman in points and is tied for third among blue liners in goals.

RECENT ACTION

Cedar Rapids

Friday, December 16: Cedar Rapids 4 Green Bay 3 (OT)

Nik Sellers scored 48 seconds into overtime as the Riders won despite surrendering 2-0 and 3-2 leads. Chad Costello scored twice to give the Riders a 2-0 first period lead and, after Green Bay had rallied to even the score, Gary Steffes found the net in the final minute of the second period to put Cedar Rapids back on top.

Saturday, December 17: Cedar Rapids 7 Indiana 3

Ted Purcell had two goals and two assists and Gary Steffes also scored twice as the Riders powered passed the Ice. The Riders went 5-for-8 on the power play and pulled away with four unanswered third period goals.

Green Bay

Friday, December 16: Cedar Rapids 4 Green Bay 3 (OT)

The Gamblers twice came from behind to even the score but fell in overtime. Goals from Mike Sislo and Kevin Deeth erased a 2-0 deficit and Tyler Lehrke's third period goal knotted the score at three apiece and forced overtime. Max Strang took the loss despite a 36-save effort.

Sunday, December 18: Green Bay 5 Tri-City 2

Sean Backman scored two first period goals to propel the Gamblers. Brian Rohloff also scored in the first as the Gamblers took a 3-1 lead into the intermission. After the Storm narrowed the gap to 3-2 in the second period, Gambler goals from Kevin Deeth and Sergio Somma in the third put Tri-City away.

Lincoln

Friday, December 16: Sioux Falls 5 Lincoln 4

The Stars fell in 2-1 in a twelve-round shootout after failing to hold three separate leads in regulation. Lincoln established a 2-0 lead with goals from J.J. Koehler late in the first period and Trevor Bruess early in the second. After the Stampede evened the score at two apiece less than two minutes into the third period, the Stars moved back in front when Chad Langlais scored to make it 3-2 at 5:48 of the third. After Sioux Falls again equalized at 9:23 it took Lincoln just 15 seconds to nose back in front on a Mike Kramer goal. Even that blow was not enough to vanquish the Stampede, who evened the score at four when Andreas Nodl scored with just under six minutes remaining in regulation. Lincoln fell despite outshooting the Stampede 45-33.

Saturday, December 17: Omaha 6 Lincoln 3

The Stars surrendered four straight Omaha goals after Mike Kramer gave Lincoln a 1-0 first period lead. Late Stars goals from James Perkin and Chris VandeVelde did nothing to impact the outcome.

Omaha

Tuesday, December 13: Sioux City 4 Omaha 1

The Lancers surrendered a pair of goals in the first two and a half minutes of the first period and never quite recovered despite outshooting the Musketeers 36-27. Matt Thurber scored the only Lancer goal at 17:07 of the second period, but the Muskies put Omaha away with a pair of empty net goals late in the third period.

Saturday, December 17: Omaha 6 Lincoln 3

Chris Moran scored the Lancers' first two goals to propel Omaha to the win. Ryan Raven (one goal and one assist), Ryan Turek (one goal and one assist) and Tony Lucia (two assists) also had two points apiece for the Lancers.

Sunday, December 18: Sioux Falls 4 Omaha 1

The Lancers surrendered four unanswered goals after Harrison Niemann scored to give Omaha 1-0 lead at 6:27 of the second period.

TOP POINT SCORERS

Cedar Rapids GP G A PTS

Ted Purcell 26 12 26 38

Chad Costello 26 14 21 35

Phil Axtell 24 15 10 25

Nik Sellers 26 9 8 17

Kevin Wehrs 26 2 13 15

Green Bay GP G A PTS

Kevin Deeth 28 10 16 26

Sean Backman 25 14 10 24

Brian Roloff 28 14 9 23

Sergio Somma 28 10 13 23

Tyler Lehrke 28 8 10 18

Lincoln GP G A PTS

Mike Davies 20 13 17 30

J.J. Koehler 26 10 15 25

Eli Vlaisavljevich 27 6 17 23

Jared Brown 25 10 7 17

James Perkin 27 9 8 17

Omaha GP G A PTS

Matt Schepke 29 17 9 26

Tony Lucia 29 10 14 24

Nick Schaus 29 6 17 23

Chris Moran 29 8 13 21

Ryan Raven 26 8 10 18

LEADERS

Cedar Rapids

Goals- Phil Axtell (15)

Assists- Ted Purcell (26)

Points- Ted Purcell (38)

Plus/Minus- Sergei Kolosov (+12)

Penalty Minutes- Phil Axtell (83)

Power Play Goals- Phil Axtell (9)

Shorthanded Goals- Jacob Cepis, Gary Steffes (1)

Purcell leads the league in points and assists ...Axtell is tied for the league lead in power play goals, ranks seventh in goals and ranks sixth in penalty minutes...Costello is tied for second in points (35) and assists (21) and is tied for eighth in goals (14)...Nik Sellers is tied for the league lead in game winning goals (4)...David Strathman is tied for sixth in power play goals (5) and, among defensemen, ranks seventh in goals (5)...Among defensemen, Kevin Wehrs is tied for fifth in assists (13) and tied for sixth in points (15)

Green Bay

Goals- Sean Backman, Brian Roloff (14)

Assists- Kevin Deeth (16)

Points- Kevin Deeth (26)

Plus/Minus- Brian Roloff (+15)

Penalty Minutes- Eric Gryba (77)

Power Play Goals- Brian Roloff (6)

Shorthanded Goals- Sean Backman, Kevin Deeth, Tyler Lehrke (1)

Roloff ranks ninth in plus/minus, is tied for eighth in goals and ranks fifth in power play goals...Backman is tied for eighth in goals (12)...Deeth is tied for tenth in assists...Gryba ranks seventh in penalty minutes

Lincoln

Goals- Mike Davies (13)

Assists- Mike Davies (17)

Points- Mike Davies (30)

Plus/Minus- Garrett Raboin (+4)

Penalty Minutes- Ben Grotting (102)

Power Play Goals- J.J. Koehler, James Perkin (4)

Shorthanded Goals- Danny Baco, Jared Brown, Mike Kramer (1)

Davies is tied for fifth in assists and ranks seventh in points...Eli Vlaisavljevich is tied for fifth in assists...Grotting ranks third in penalty minutes...Brandon Bollig ranks fourth in penalty minutes (91)

Omaha

Goals- Matt Schepke (17)

Assists- Nick Schaus (17)

Points- Matt Schepke (26)

Plus/Minus- Nick Schaus (+8)

Penalty Minutes- Chris Hepp (71)

Power Play Goals- Matt Schepke (5)

Shorthanded Goals- Matt Schepke (3)

Schepke is tied for the league lead in game winning goals (4), tied for third in goals and shorthanded goals and is tied for sixth in power play goals...Schaus is tied for fifth in assists...Hepp ranks ninth in penalty minutes

GOALTENDERS

Cedar Rapids GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Alex Stalock 20 1212:26 2.52 13-7-0 0 .926

Pat McGann 6 365:48 2.13 5-0-1 1 .932

Stalock leads the league in wins, ranks second in saves (628), third in save percentage, fourth in minutes played and sixth in goals against average

Green Bay GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Daniel Rosen 22 1224:41 2.89 8-12-2 0 .909

Max Strang 10 462:17 2.99 4-1-1 0 .901

Rosen ranks third in minutes played and in saves (588), ranks seventh in save percentage, is tied for seventh in wins, ranks eighth in goals against average and is tied for eighth in wins

Lincoln GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Steve Jakiel 16 966:21 3.29 9-5-2 0 .888

Bryan Hogan 11 657:09 3.29 3-6-2 0 .888

Jakiel and Hogan are tied for ninth in goals against average...Jakiel ranks sixth in wins and minutes played and eighth in saves (420)

Omaha GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Michael Spillane 15 818:55 2.71 8-4-0 0 .910

Eddie Neville 18 921:19 3.32 8-8-1 2 .898

Spillane ranks sixth in save percentage, ranks seventh in goals against average, is tied for seventh in wins and ranks tenth in saves (376)...Neville is tied for second in shutouts, ranks fifth in saves (450), is tied for seventh in wins, ranks eighth in minutes played and ranks ninth in save percentage

WHO'S HOT

Cedar Rapids

Chad Costello: six points (four goals, two assists) in his last four games...six goals in his last seven games

Ray Kaunisto: five points (one goal, four assists) in his last six games

Andy Miele: four assists in his last three games

Ted Purcell: six points (two goals, four assists) in his last two games

Gary Steffes: six points (four goals, two assists) in his last four games

Pat McGann: unbeaten in regulation (5-0-1)

Green Bay

Sean Backman: 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in his last 11 games

Kevin Deeth: one goal in each of his last three games...four game point scoring streak (three goals, one assist)...22

points (eight goals, 14 assists) in his last seventeen games

Jeremy Dehner: six assists in his last three games...14 points in his last nine games (one goal, 13 assists)

Brian Roloff: four goals in his last five games, six goals in his last eight games...18 points (ten goals, eight assists) in

his last 17 games

Sergio Somma: ten points (four goals, six assists) in his last eight games

Lincoln

Jared Brown: six points in his last five games (three goals, three assists)

James Perkin: eight points (four goals, four assists) in his last eight games

Omaha

Chris Moran: four goals in his last six games

Michael Spillane: has allowed three goals in his last three games while making 77 saves (1.02, .963)

WIN-LOSS

Cedar Rapids Green Bay Lincoln Omaha

Home: 6-4-0 Home: 5-7-1 Home: 6-6-3 Home: 9-7-0

Away: 12-3-1 Away: 7-6-2 Away: 6-5-1 Away: 7-5-1

vs. East: 9-5-0 vs. East: 6-7-2 vs. East: 7-5-1 vs. East: 9-6-1

vs. West: 9-2-1 vs. West: 6-6-1 vs. West: 5-6-3 vs. West: 7-6-0

GOALS

Cedar Rapids Green Bay Lincoln Omaha

Goals For: 3.6 (2) Goals For: 3.3 (4) Goals For: 3.2 (7) Goals For: 3.2 (5)

Goals Against: 2.58 (3) Goals Against: 3.31 (6) Goals Against: 3.52 (8) Goals Against: 3.31 (7)

SPECIAL TEAMS

Cedar Rapids Green Bay

Power Play: 21.7 34/157 (1) Power Play: 17.1 21/123 (6)

Penalty Kill: 83.2 20/119 (6) Penalty Kill: 82.1 28/156 (8)

Shorthanded Goals For: 2 Shorthanded Goals For: 3

Shorthanded Goals Against: 7 Shorthanded Goals Against: 3

Lincoln Omaha

Power Play: 14.8 25/169 (8) Power Play: 10.6 16/151 (11)

Penalty Kill: 84.1 24/151 (4) Penalty Kill: 86.7 20/150 (2)

Shorthanded Goals For: 3 Shorthanded Goals For: 3

Shorthanded Goals Against: 6 Shorthanded Goals Against: 7

SERIES

vs. Green Bay

10/1/05 at Green Bay 4 Cedar Rapids 2 1/27/06 Green Bay at Cedar Rapids

10/8/05 at Cedar Rapids 4 Green Bay 2 2/19/06 Cedar Rapids at Green Bay

12/16/05 Cedar Rapids 4 at Green Bay 3 (OT) 3/11/06 Green Bay at Cedar Rapids

12/29/05 Green Bay at Cedar Rapids

GP W-L-SOL PTS H A OPP REC OPP PTS

2005-06 3 2-1-0 4 1-0-0 1-1-0 1-1-1 3

All-Time 40 24-14-2 50 14-5-1 10-9-1 16-17-7 39

vs. Lincoln

11/5/05 Cedar Rapids 5 at Lincoln 2 2/3/06 Lincoln at Cedar Rapids

12/2/05 Cedar Rapids 4 at Lincoln 2 3/18/06 Lincoln at Cedar Rapids

12/30/05 Cedar Rapids at Lincoln

GP W-L-SOL PTS H A OPP REC OPP PTS

2005-06 2 2-0-0 4 0-0-0 2-0-0 0-2-0 0

All-Time 28 11-12-5 27 5-6-2 6-6-3 17-6-5 38

vs. Omaha

11/4/05 Cedar Rapids 4 at Omaha 2 1/13/06 Omaha at Cedar Rapids

12/3/05 at Cedar Rapids 2 Omaha 1 (SO) 2/11/06 Omaha at Cedar Rapids

1/1/06 Cedar Rapids at Omaha

GP W-L-SOL PTS H A OPP REC OPP PTS

2005-06 2 2-0-0 4 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-1-1 1

All-Time 28 10-16-2 22 5-7-2 5-9-0 18-6-4 40

Top Point Scorers/Season Series

Cedar Rapids vs. Green Bay

Cedar Rapids GP G A PTS

Ted Purcell 3 3 3 6

Chad Costello 3 2 2 4

Phil Fox 2 1 2 3

Green Bay GP G A PTS

Brian Roloff 3 3 0 3

(seven players tied with two points)

Cedar Rapids vs. Lincoln

Cedar Rapids GP G A PTS

Chad Costello 2 3 2 5

Ted Purcell 2 1 3 4

Phil Axtell 1 1 3 4

Lincoln GP G A PTS

Chris Vande Velde 2 0 3 3

Eli Vlaisavljevich 2 1 1 2

(six players tied with one point)

Cedar Rapids vs. Omaha

Cedar Rapids GP G A PTS

Chad Costello 2 2 1 3

(three players tied with two points)

Omaha GP G A PTS

Tony Lucia 2 1 1 2

(seven players tied with one point)

Goaltenders/Season Series

Cedar Rapids vs. Green Bay

Cedar Rapids GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Al Stalock 2 119 2.52 1-1-0 0 .911

Pat McGann 1 60:48 2.96 1-0-0 0 .912

Green Bay GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Dan Rosen 2 118:39 3.03 1-1-0 0 .895

Max Strang 1 60:48 3.95 0-1-1 0 .900

Cedar Rapids vs. Lincoln

Cedar Rapids GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Al Stalock 2 120 2.00 2-0-0 0 .941

Lincoln GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Steve Jakiel 1 59:26 4.04 0-1-0 0 .871

Bryan Hogan 1 57:30 4.17 0-1-0 0 .840

Cedar Rapids vs. Omaha

Cedar Rapids GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Alex Stalock 1 65 0.92 1-0-0 0 .974

Pat McGann 1 60 2.00 1-0-0 0 .947

Omaha GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT

Eddie Neville 1 65 0.92 0-0-1 0 .969

Michael Spillane 1 59:22 3.03 0-1-0 0 .909

COACHES

Cedar Rapids

Mark Carlson, 7th year (203-145-33)

Mark Carlson has been the RoughRiders' coach since the team arrived in Cedar Rapids in 1999-2000. On December 3 Carlson picked up his two hundredth career coaching win as the Riders defeated Omaha 2-1 in a shootout.

Last season he led the RoughRiders to the first Clark Cup (playoff) title in team history along with a share of the Anderson Cup regular season title and the East Division title.

He has also piloted the Riders to five straight winning seasons and five straight Clark Cup playoff berths. The Riders are one of just three USHL teams to have reached the postseason each of the last five years. The Riders have also advanced at least as far as the Clark Cup semi-finals/East Division finals three of the last four years.

Carlson reached the 150 victory plateau October 30, 2004 as the RoughRiders defeated the Indiana Ice 4-3. He earned his one hundredth coaching win on January 11, 2003 when the RoughRiders defeated the Sioux City Musketeers 3-1 in Sioux City.

He was behind the bench for his three hundredth game as RoughRiders coach as the Riders defeated Indiana 6-5 in a shootout in Indianapolis on October 17.

Prior to taking over the RoughRiders in 1999, Carlson spent four seasons as a collegiate assistant coach at Northeastern and Massachusetts-Lowell. In his playing days, Carlson was a forward at Lowell and was a 1987 draft pick of the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins.

Green Bay

Mark Mazzoleni, 2nd year (33-50-5)

Mark Mazzoleni is in his second year in charge of the Gamblers. In his first season, Green Bay went 21-37-2, finished fifth in the USHL's East Division and missed out on a playoff spot by three points. Mazzoleni took over the Gamblers after spending 16 years as a collegiate head coach, the last five at Harvard. Mazzoleni went 82-72-13 behind the Harvard bench, leading the Crimson to three NCAA tournament berths and two Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament titles.

Prior to taking over at Harvard, Mazzoleni spent five years at Miami (Ohio) University, where he piloted the Red Hawks to an 85-83-20 record and the second NCAA tournament berth in school history.

The vastly experienced Mazzoleni began his coaching career as an assistant at the University of Illinois-Chicago (1980-85). His first head coaching job was at Division III Wisconsin-Stevens Points (1986-91) where he piloted the Pointers to three straight national titles. Mazzoleni next spent three years as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Minnesota (1991-94).

In his playing days, Mazzoleni was a goaltender at Michigan State from 1976 to 1980.

Lincoln

Steve Johnson, 11th year (374-174-36); 10th year Lincoln (345-155-41)

Steve Johnson has been Lincoln's coach since the club's inception in 1996-97. Prior to taking over in Lincoln, Johnson spent the 1995-96 campaign behind the bench of the now defunct Fargo-Moorhead Bears. He piloted the Bears to a 27-18-1 record in their only season in the league.

Johnson has been named USHL Coach of the Year three times (1995-96, 1999-2000, 2000-01) and General Manager of the Year (2000-01) once.

Johnson became just the fourth coach in league history to reach the 300 win plateau when the Stars defeated the Des Moines Buccaneers 4-3 in a shootout on October 17, 2003 in Lincoln.

Omaha

Mike Hastings, 12th year (428-172-43)

Mike Hastings earned his four hundredth career USHL coaching win on January 29, 2005 when the Lancers defeated the Sioux City Musketeers 3-2 in a shootout.

Hastings is third all-time among USHL coaches in career wins. Hastings steered the Lancers to the Clark Cup (playoff) championship in both 1997-98 and 2000-01 and to the Anderson Cup (regular season) title in 2001-02 and a share of the Anderson Cup (along with the RoughRiders) last season. He was named both USHL Coach of the Year and General Manager of the Year in 1996-97 and 2001-02. Hastings has posted a remarkable .701 career winning percentage. None of his Lancer teams has ever finished a season fewer than 16 games above .500.

Hastings served as an assistant coach for Team USA at the 2003 and 2005 World Junior Championships.

Hastings played college hockey at St. Cloud State after a standout USHL career with the Austin Mavericks and Rochester Mustangs. Prior to that, he skated for Minnesota's Crookston High School.

HISTORY

With the first of his two assists in last Friday's win in Green Bay, the Riders' Ted Purcell (32-73-105) joined Jon Grabarek as the second player in team history to reach 100 career points.

Purcell ranks second in team history in career assists. Grabarek (75) holds the team career assist record.

By scoring five power play goals in a 7-3 win at Indiana on December 17, the Riders tied a team record first set on December 8, 2000 in a 7-2 win at Des Moines.

The Riders have gone 36-7-2 on the road between this season and last.

The RoughRiders last season won the Clark Cup, a share of the Anderson Cup and the East Division championship- all firsts in club history. The Riders went 42-13-5 during the regular season- the best record in team history.

The RoughRiders last season set new team records for wins (42), points (89), road wins (24), goals scored (229), power play goals scored (64) and fewest goals against (157).

The Riders last season also set new United States Hockey League records for most road wins and longest road winning streak (13 straight from November 9 through February 11).

2004-05 was the Riders' fourth 30-victory season in the team's six-year Cedar Rapids history. Last season marked the first time the Riders have won 40 or more games.

The Gamblers have missed the playoffs each of the last three seasons. Green Bay last appeared in the post season in 2001-02, when the Gamblers won their fourth straight East Division title.

Green Bay has twice claimed each of the Clark Cup (1996 and 2000), Anderson Cup (1996 and 1997), and junior A national titles (1996 and 1997).

The Lancers have won the Clark Cup (playoff) championship a USHL record six times (1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1998 and 2001). The Lancers shared the Anderson Cup with the RoughRiders last season, marking the fourth time Omaha has taken the regular season title (1990, 1993, 2002 and 2005).

The Stars won the Clark Cup in 1996-97 (the team's first season in the USHL) and again in 2002-03. Lincoln also won its third Anderson Cup championship in 2002-03. The Stars won back-to-back Anderson Cups in 1999-2000 and 2000-01.

The Stars have qualified for the Clark playoffs nine of their ten seasons in their league. In 2003-04 Lincoln failed to reach the post-season for the only time in team history. The Stars also finished the 2003-04 season with a losing record for the only time in team history.

ROUGHRIDERS ROSTER

Defenseman Sergei Kolosov has returned to the Riders after helping host nation Belarus to a first place finish in the B pool of the World Junior Championship, which ran from December 12 through December 18. Kolosov had an outstanding tournament, scoring one goal and totaling five points in five games to lead all defensemen in point scoring. He was tied for sixth overall in points and led the tournament in plus/minus (+7).

By winning the competition, Belarus qualifed for the top tier of the next year's World Junior Championship.

Kolosov missed four USHL games while playing for Belarus. He last skated for the Riders on December 7 in a 3-1 loss at Sioux Falls.

Goaltender Al Stalock and forward Gary Steffes will play for the United States Junior Select 18-and-Under Team at the Viking Cup international tournament in Camrose, Alberta beginning today. The U.S. opened this afternoon at 3:00 against Slovakia. The tournament runs through January 2. Stalock and Steffes will miss the Riders' games Thursday at home against Green Bay, Saturday at Lincoln and next Sunday at Omaha.

In Stalock's absence, the Riders' have brought in Robert Madore of the Pittsburgh Hornets midget program to back up Pat McGann in goal. Madore, a Venetia, Pennsylvania, native, is slated to head back to the Hornets upon Stalock's return to the Riders.

Forward Phil Axtell underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on December 14 and missed the Riders' final two games before the holiday break. Axtell is expected to remain out of the lineup this week.

COLLEGE COMMITMENTS

Cedar Rapids (14)

Phil Axtell (Michigan Tech), Aaron Bendickson (Wisconsin), Jacob Cepis (Bowling Green), Nick Grasso (Massachusetts), Ryan Gunderson (Minnesota State-Mankato), Ray Kaunisto (Northern Michigan), Steven Kaunisto (Lake Superior State), Andy Miele (Miami of Ohio), Ted Purcell (Maine), Nik Sellers (Lake Superior State), Alex Stalock (Minnesota-Duluth), Gary Steffes (Miami of Ohio), David Strathman (Northeastern), Kevin Wehrs (Minnesota)

Green Bay (8)

Sean Backman (Yale), Kevin Deeth (Notre Dame), Jeremy Dehner (Massachusetts-Lowell), Eric Gryba (Boston University), Tyler Lehrke (Bemidji State), Brian Roloff (Vermont), Dan Rosen (Brown), Mark Stockdale (Western Michigan)

Omaha (10)

Robby Dee (Maine), Chris Hepp (Air Force), Nick Krates (New Hampshire), Tony Lucia (Minnesota), Jake Marto (North Dakota), Chris Moran (Niagara), Patrick Schafer (Miami of Ohio), Nick Schaus (Massachusetts-Lowell), Michael Spillane (Vermont), Ryan Turek (Michigan State)

Lincoln (4)

Steve Jakiel (Michigan), James Perkin (Bowling Green), Chris Vande Velde (North Dakota), Eli Vlaisavljevich (Michigan Tech)

NHL DRAFT PICKS

Cedar Rapids Year Round Overall Team

Sergei Kolosov 2004 5th 151 Detroit

Alex Stalock 2005 4th 112 San Jose

Pat McGann 2005 7th 223 Dallas

Green Bay Year Round Overall Team

Greg Beller 2005 6th 178 New York Rangers

Omaha Year Round Overall Team

Robby Dee 2005 3rd 86 Edmonton

Tony Lucia 2005 6th 193 San Jose

Lincoln Year Round Overall Team

Chris Vande Velde 2005 4th 97 Edmonton

ROUGHRIDER ALUMNI

Division I GP G A PTS

Justin Abdelkader (Michigan State/freshman) 18 4 3 7

P.J. Atherton (Minnesota/senior) 18 1 1 2

Todd Bentley (Alabama-Huntsville/senior) 12 4 4 8

Casey Bickley (Army/junior) 15 1 4 5

James Brannigan (Colorado College/sophomore) 18 1 4 5

Jamie Carroll (Providence/junior) 18 4 8 12

GP G A PTS

Greg Collins (New Hampshire/freshman) 18 2 0 2

Ray Eichenlaub (Miami of Ohio/freshman) 16 1 4 5

Joey Gasparini (Vermont/senior) 12 0 1 1

Tony Gill (Notre Dame/senior) 10 0 0 0

Jon Grabarek (Wayne State/freshman) 13 2 2 4

Jordy Hart (Merrimack/sophomore) 13 0 0 0

Bryan Horan (Providence/junior) 17 1 5 6

Tyler Howells (Michigan State/junior) 19 5 13 18

Kyle Larman (Bentley/junior) 15 1 1 2

Billy Loupee (Miami of Ohio/freshman) 8 0 1 1

Shane Lovdahl (Alaska-Anchorage/freshman) 17 2 5 7

Alec Martinez (Miami of Ohio/freshman) 16 0 3 3

Ryan Mayhew (Bentley/junior) 12 1 1 2

Nate Meyers (Providence/senior) 18 4 7 11

Zach Miskovic (St. Lawrence/freshman) 19 0 8 8

Sean Muncy (Brown/freshman) 8 0 1 1

Brandon Naurato (Michigan/freshman) 14 5 2 7

Danny O'Brien (Massachusetts-Lowell/senior) 15 3 4 7

Ted O'Leary (Denver/senior) 19 0 0 0

Matt Olinger (Wisconsin/junior) 18 0 0 0

Zach Pearson (Ferris State/junior) 18 4 9 13

Derek Peltier (Minnesota/sophomore) 18 0 6 6

Brian Pouliot (New Hampshire/sophomore) 3 0 1 1

Rob Ricci (Merrimack/freshman) 16 3 10 13

Chris Snavely (Michigan State/junior) 11 0 2 2

Brandon Svendsen (Bowling Green/freshman) 17 4 4 8

Alexander Valentin (Renssalaer/senior) 16 1 5 6

Shawn Vinz (New Hampshire/junior) 17 0 1 1

Matt Vokes (Brown/freshman) 13 2 3 5

Chase Watson (Providence/junior) 18 3 16 19

GP W-L-T GAA SV% SO

Joe Fallon (Vermont/sophomore) 14 9-4-1 1.85 .902 2

Bobby Goepfert (St. Cloud State/junior) 15 7-6-2 1.89 .931 3

Matt Kelly (Wayne State/senior) 9 2-4-2 4.21 .872 0

Dan Tormey (Minnesota State-Mankato/freshman) 13 3-6-3 2.79 .903 1

Professional GP G A PTS +/-

Dave Carpentier (Fort Wayne/UHL) 23 7 3 10 +6

Rico Fatticci (Roanoke/UHL) 24 1 5 6 +2

Mike Manley (Kalamazoo/UHL) 28 11 12 23 +11

Dave Moss (Omaha/AHL) 31 9 9 18 --

Highlights

Providence's Chase Watson had five assists in victories over Colgate and Sacred Heart last Wednesday and Thursday as the Friars won their own tournament, the Providence College Holiday Classic. On the season, Watson leads P.C. in assists...Bobby Goepfert made 13 saves on the way to his third shutout of the season as St. Cloud State rolled over Robert Morris 7-0 on December 17...Zach Miskovic assisted on the game winning goal as St. Lawrence won 2-1 at Vermont on December 17...Mike Manley of the United Hockey League's Kalamazoo Wings scored two goals in a 7-4 win at Motor City last Wednesday

UPCOMING EVENTS

On Thursday, December 29, the RoughRiders will ring in the new year just a little bit early with a holiday fireworks display after their game against the Green Bay Gamblers.

TICKETS

The RoughRiders this season are offering the Fun Flex Plan, which enables fans to purchase books of ten ticket vouchers that can be redeemed in any quantity for any regular season home game during normal box office hours. Fans who purchase the fun flex plan receive a discount ($15) by investing in bulk tickets and can still enjoy the games of their choice in the seats they want.

Single game tickets for all RoughRider regular season home dates are now on sale. Tickets are available for purchase in person at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena ticket office, over the phone at (319) 261-4625 or on line 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 including a 50-cent facility fee.

ON THE AIR

RoughRiders regular season and playoff games are again this season broadcast on AM-1360 The Fan in Cedar Rapids. Courtesy of B2 Networks, free audio webcasts of Riders games will also be available at www.roughridershockey.com. Brian Lavelle provides play-by-play.

The RoughRiders and B2 have also teamed up to 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 watch and listen to the game. 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.

Up-to-the-minute live game updates for all USHL action are available on line at www.pointstreak.com/prostats.

Check out the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders Statistics

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United States Hockey League Stories from December 26, 2005


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