Fighting Five: Saints Visit Steel for First Time
Published on March 24, 2024 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Dubuque Fighting Saints News Release
DUBUQUE, IA - The Dubuque Fighting Saints (36-12-3-3, 78 pts) visit the Chicago Steel (25-23-3-4, 57 pts) for the first time on Sunday afternoon to wrap up a three-game weekend.
Here are five things to know ahead of the matchup:
1. Lucas Leads
Lucas St. Louis scored two of the Saints' three second-period power-play goals in Saturday night's 6-2 win over the Green Bay Gamblers. St. Louis has 12 goals this season, with 10 coming on the man-advantage.
The win lifted the Saints' lead at the top of the Eastern Conference to nine points. Including Sunday's matchup in Chicago, the Saints have eight games remaining in the regular season.
2. Powell Power
Noah Powell scored another two goals in Saturday's win and recorded a three-point night to help the Saints past the Gamblers. Powell has 13 power-play goals to tie for the second-most in the league. Powell has seven multi-goal performances this season and has seven goals during his four-game scoring streak.
Overall, his 34 goals trail only Austin Burnevik (Madison) and Kaden Shahan's (Sioux City) 37 tallies at the top of the USHL leaderboard. The modern Fighting Saints' single-season goal scoring record was set in 2012-13 by Mike Szmatula with 37 tallies.
3. Sunday Saints
After winning the first two legs of their final three-game weekend of the season, the Saints have a chance to sweep a three-in-three for the third time this season. Sunday's matinee will finish the fourth three-game weekend of the season for the Saints.
They swept their first three-game set in December, before taking all three against Cedar Rapids, Des Moines and Lincoln in mid-February. This final three-game weekend was the first in which Dubuque had more than one of the three at home, sweeping the first two legs at home this weekend.
4. Clutch Combo
Through the first two games of the weekend, Jake Sondreal, James Reeder and Noah Powell's line has put on a scoring clinic. The trio has combined for seven goals and 13 points in the two wins to open the weekend.
Sondreal and Powell recorded multiple points in each of the first two games, scoring three goals each. Reeder followed his three-assist outing on Friday with another helper on Saturday.
5. Steel Stock
With a 5-0 win on Saturday over Cedar Rapids, the Steel have opened a four-point lead on the RoughRiders for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Steel only skated Saturday so far this week and will wrap up its weekend with the Saints' visit on Sunday.
Michael Hage is the Steel's biggest offensive threat with 68 points this season, the third-most in the USHL. In a nine-game point-streak, Hage has torn opposing defenses apart. During that stretch, he has eight goals and 20 points. Hage has goals in seven of those nine contests and has scored in five-straight games after a tally in Saturday's win.
Sunday's game begins at 3:05 p.m. CDT and can be found on Eagle 102.3 and FloHockey.
United States Hockey League Stories from March 24, 2024
- Hawks Finish Perfect Weekend - Waterloo Black Hawks
- Saints Swat Steel to Sweep Weekend - Dubuque Fighting Saints
- Chicago Held in Check in 5-1 Loss to Dubuque - Chicago Steel
- Storm Drops 7-1 Road Decision to Black Hawks - Tri-City Storm
- Lincoln Lucks into a 3-2 Victory over Omaha - Omaha Lancers
- Lancers Hang on with Shootout Win in Des Moines - Omaha Lancers
- Jacks Defeat NTDP-U17s 4-3 in Postponed Game from 2.17 - Muskegon Lumberjacks
- Storm Set for Sunday Game at Young Arena - Tri-City Storm
- Fighting Five: Saints Visit Steel for First Time - Dubuque Fighting Saints
- Saints Stifle Gamblers to Extend East Lead - Dubuque Fighting Saints
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
