Chicago Battles Pair of Rivals on the Road
February 5, 2025 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Chicago Steel News Release
GENEVA, ILLINOIS - After earning wins in consecutive road games for the first time this season, the Chicago Steel will look to maintain its winning ways with a set of games away from home against their northern neighbors starting with the Madison Capitols on Friday, February 7 at 7:05 pm CT. Chicago will close the weekend against the Green Bay Gamblers on Saturday, February 8 at 6:05 pm CT.
After this weekend, the Steel will host one of their biggest events of the season, The (Next) Eras Night presented by McCormick FONA on Saturday, February 15.
Last weekend, the Steel (12-24-3-0, 27 pts.) snapped a league-high 11-game road winless streak with a 3-1 win over Tri-City on Jan. 31. It marked the second time this season the Steel allowed only one goal in a game. Goaltender Jack Parsons posted a 38-save performance in the win. Chicago followed it up with a 5-2 win Saturday in Tri-City that included a three-point game for Tobias Ohman as they swept the Storm.
Parsons' strong efforts over the two games earned him USHL Goaltender of the Week honors. He became the second Steel player to earn a weekly league award this season. The pair of wins marked the third time this season that Parsons recorded wins in consecutive starts and was the second time he recorded 30 or more saves in consecutive wins.
In 22 games this season, Parsons has made the third-most saves in the league at 676 and ranks tied for ninth with an .899 save percentage.
Ohman's three-point game on Feb. 1 was his third of the season and seventh multi-point game this year. The second-year forward has registered a point in five of his last seven games and has two goals and seven assists in that span. Four of the last five games he has registered a point in have been multi-point performances.
Chris Reiniger has continued to lend a helping hand from the blue line. The Princeton commit posted two assists on Feb. 1 for his second two-assist outing in three games. Reiniger has recorded a point in five of the last seven games with two goals and five assists in that span.
This weekend's games present a timely challenge for the Steel, who have yet to win a game in Madison and have struggled in Green Bay, dropping consecutive games while allowing five goals in each loss at Green Bay's Resch Center.
The Madison Capitols (22-11-2-1, 47 pts.) swept Omaha on the road last weekend, handily winning each matchup with a 7-0 shutout on Jan. 31 and a 5-1 victory the following night. The 28-save shutout win was the first career shutout for goaltender Ajay White and his first regulation win in four games. All seven goals were scored by different skaters Friday while Ryker Lee and Bobby Cowan each scored twice in the 5-1 win.
Lee tallied a point in each game over the weekend after entering with a season-long three-game point skid. The NHL prospect has consistently remained in the top five in rookie scoring this season and currently ranks second with 39 points. He has scored 18 goals, which ranks second, and his 21 assists are third.
The Michigan State commit was featured on the NHL Central Scouting Mid-Term Rankings and was ranked 40th among North American skaters, the third-highest ranking of active USHL skaters.
The goaltending duo of White and Caleb Heil has been a strong one for the Capitols this season, as both netminders rank inside the league's top 20 in goals against average and save percentage. Heil ranks 11th with a 2.78 GAA and White 12th with a 2.82 GAA. White's .900 save percentage is eighth and Heil is tied for 15th at .893.
Heil has won four consecutive starts and five of his last six appearances. During his current winning streak, Heil has posted one shutout and has a 1.50 goals against average and a .934 save percentage.
Madison has been top dog in the USHL on home ice this season with a league-best .806 win percentage and a 14-3-0-1 record. They have allowed a league-low 46 goals at home in 18 games, an average of under three goals per game, and have scored the second-most goals at home with 87.
The Steel are 46-18-5-0 all-time against Madison and 22-10-3-0 on the road. Friday's game is the final regular season matchup between the two this season. Chicago has defeated Madison just once this season (1-5-1-0). The Capitols came away with a 3-2 overtime win over the Steel in Geneva on Jan. 25. Defenseman Colton Jamieson tallied the overtime game-winner for the Capitols.
The Green Bay Gamblers (22-18-1-0, 45 pts.) had their second three-game weekend series in two weeks with a trio of matchups against Muskegon last weekend, coming away with two wins. Backed by a Zach Wooten hat trick and a three-goal second period, Green Bay opened the weekend with a 5-3 win on Jan. 31 before dropping a 2-1 decision the following night. The Gamblers bounced back and earned a 3-2 overtime victory on Feb. 2.
Will Zellers has been a scoring machine for Green Bay since the new year and picked up four points over the weekend with two goals and two assists. He ranks third in the USHL in scoring with 46 points, just one point behind teammate Aidan Park. Zellers' 29 goals lead the league as do his 148 shots and six game-winning goals. In the last eight games, he has scored 11 goals and six assists and is a +9 rating. He scored eight goals including a pair of hat tricks in a span of three games from Jan. 12 to Jan. 18.
Park has been another force alongside Zellers in Green Bay's lineup this season. The veteran forward also picked up four points last weekend with two goals and two assists. Park had a ten-game point streak from Dec. 28 to Jan. 23. Park had nine goals and nine assists plus five power play goals during the streak. He leads the USHL in power play goals (14) and power play points (20) and has kept Green Bay's power play unit at the top of the league at 33.1%, three percentage points higher than the next-best team.
Gavin Moffatt was in net for each of Green Bay's wins last weekend and allowed just five goals on 61 shots in two games. He has lost just twice in his last 12 appearances. Playing in his second year with the team, Moffatt leads USHL goalies in wins (20), saves (881), games played (36) and minutes (2,022), having played over 300 minutes more than any other goaltender.
Chicago is 81-73-7-4 all-time against Green Bay and 36-37-5-1 on the road. Saturday's game is the final scheduled game in Green Bay during the regular season and seventh of nine scheduled games between the two teams. Green Bay tied its season-high for goals in a 7-4 win over the Steel in Geneva on Jan. 18. Will Zellers tallied a hat trick for the Gamblers in the win.
The Steel will host The (Next) Eras Night presented by McCormick FONA on Saturday, February 15. The team will wear five different Red Era jersey variations all at once during the game. They are believed to be the first team at any level to wear five different jerseys in a single game at the same time. The Steel also have a special surprise planned during the third period of the game.
For a limited time, Steel fans and Swifties can purchase the Red Era Bundle which includes two tickets to the game plus two Red Era t-shirts and two Chicago Steel friendship bracelets for just $70.
All Steel tickets are digital, and fans are encouraged to purchase online in advance at ChicagoSteelHockeyTeam.com.
Group tickets and experiences, suites and other premium areas, including the Coors Light Chill Zone and Ice Side Tables, are also on sale now.
For more information, call 855-51-STEEL.
Chicago Steel Upcoming Schedule presented by Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush:
Friday, February 7 at Madison Capitols (7:05 pm CT)
Saturday, February 8 at Green Bay Gamblers (6:05 pm CT)
Saturday, February 15 vs. Youngstown Phantoms (7:05 pm CT) | The (Next) Eras Night presented by McCormick FONA | Special Jersey Auction to benefit Geneva Academic Foundation
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