Disastrous Third Period Sinks Stars in Omaha
January 19, 2019 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Lincoln Stars News Release
Omaha, NE - The Stars traveled up I-80 to renew pleasantries with the Omaha Lancers Saturday night.
The Stars began the rivalry matchup playing with and edge, throwing the body and generating chances liberally over the course of the first 20 minutes. Just past the five minute marker, Lincoln cashed in. Because Matt Barbolini was out with an illness, Marshall Walker switched from his normal defensive position and played up as a forward. On a particularly physical shift in which the Stars hemmed the puck in the Lancers zone for an extended stretch, Walker dug a puck free from down low and flipped it to a crashing Samuli Niinisaari. The Finnish defenseman shoveled the puck through Jon Mor for the 1-0 Stars lead. Throughout the period, Lincoln continued their heavy attack, but were thwarted on 12 of their attempts by a solid effort from Mor. Late in the frame, Omaha finally answered when Jackson Decker fired a shot off the stick of Harrison Roy, parked in front of Samuel Hlavaj, evening the score at one.
The second period saw a major uptick in penalties and transition play. Neither team could solve the other's goalie. The Stars were stopped on four shots by Mor's continued steady play in net. Omaha brought a much more aggressive forecheck in the middle period, but were time and again robbed by Samuel Hlavaj, highlighted by Hlavaj's pure glove robbery of a Lancers 2-on-1 late in the period. At the end of 40 minutes of play, the bitter foes remained locked at one goal apiece.
The third began exactly how the Stars wanted: a goal from the red-hot Tristan Ashbrook gave the Stars a 2-1 lead just 1:03 into the period. The tally marked Ashbrook's third-straight game with a goal. The goal also came with a Lancers penalty, pushing the Stars to a power play immediately after taking the lead. The game went downhill from there for Lincoln. Jaxon Nelson registered a shorthanded tally at 1:57. Tyler Carpenter then struck twice at 3:08 and again at 3:29 to chase Samuel Hlavaj. A stunned Stars group couldn't recover. Nelson added another tally at 13:53, followed by Grant Anderson finishing the game with a sixth Omaha goal with just 21 seconds to spare. At the horn, the Stars dropped their fifth-straight game and 13th of the year on the road.
Tomorrow, Faith & Family Day returns to the Ice Box for another matinee as the Stars take on the Muskegon Lumberjacks. Join the team at the Ice Box for an afternoon of faith and community as well as a post-game skate with the Stars and a playing of the movie Facing the Giants. A portion of ticket sales for Faith & Family Day will benefit Food for the Hungry, a faith-based mission to build clean water solutions in third-world countries. Last year, the Stars and the Lincoln Stars Foundation helped to raise over $230,000 toward clean water initiatives in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Order your tickets today!
Enjoy All You Can Eat Hockey at single games by purchasing a group of five or more, or grab one of our multi-game memberships to secure the same seat each game. Parking is completely FREE this season!
United States Hockey League Stories from January 19, 2019
- Stampede Roll Past Fargo 7-4 - Sioux Falls Stampede
- Steel Delight Home Crowd on Teddy Bear Toss Night - Chicago Steel
- Lumberjacks Lose Lead Late, Fall to Storm 3-2 in Overtime - Muskegon Lumberjacks
- Five to Finish the Weekend - Waterloo Black Hawks
- Chicago Uses Strong 3rd Period To Take Down Sioux City - Sioux City Musketeers
- Recap: Storm Win Overtime Thriller over Muskegon 3-2 - Tri-City Storm
- Waterloo Downs Dubuque 5-0 at Young Arena - Dubuque Fighting Saints
- Third Period Barrage Puts Omaha Past Lincoln, 6-2 - Omaha Lancers
- Four-Goal First Period Sinks Phantoms in 5-2 Loss - Youngstown Phantoms
- Disastrous Third Period Sinks Stars in Omaha - Lincoln Stars
- Gameday Preview: Storm Look for Bounce Back Win against Lumberjacks - Tri-City Storm
- Preview - Stars at Lancers - Lincoln Stars
- Defense Stout in 2-1 Victory over Cedar Rapids - Youngstown Phantoms
- Musketeers Close Out The Caps - Sioux City Musketeers
- Tri-City Drops Opening Game of Weekend to Muskegon - Tri-City Storm
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