USHL Muskegon Lumberjacks

Jacks Welcome Madison to Trinity Health for Two Games 11/24 & 25

Published on November 22, 2023 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Muskegon Lumberjacks News Release


MUSKEGON, MI - This Friday and Saturday the Muskegon Lumberjacks will take on the Madison Capitols in a two-game weekend matchup at Trinity Health Arena. Friday night features Black Friday deals on tickets and team merchandise while Saturday is Egor Afanasyev Night featuring a special Egor Afanasyev tee shirt.

The Matchup

The Jacks are coming off a much-needed win on Saturday night 6-5 over the Tri-City Storm to earn a weekend split in Kearney, NE. The Capitols are also coming off a weekend split, though theirs comes from a home and home series against the Green Bay Gamblers. In both games the away team went home victorious. Friday night the Caps fell 5-3, then picked up the Saturday night win 6-4.

The last time these two teams met was for a two game weekend series at the Bob Suter's Capitol Ice Arena in Middleton, WI. Madison won the first matchup 4-1 to hand the Jacks their first loss outside of the Fall Classic. The next night it was Muskegon who was victorious by a 5-2 scoreline.

The Friday night matchup treated fans to a goaltending battle. Despite earning the loss on his record Lukas Swedin (Stockholm, SWE) stopped 44 of 47 shots fired his way by the Capitols in the contest. Patricks Berzins allowed just one goal on the 29 shots that were fired by the Lumberjacks offense.

Saturday night was much different as the offense was flowing for Muskegon especially from the Captain Cody Croal (North Branch, MN) who picked up four points in the win. In the crease Paxton Geisel (Estevan, SK, CAN) earned the win for the Jacks.

About Last Weekend

It was shaping up to be a tough weekend for the Muskegon Lumberjacks. Going though a rough patch in the results column and staring at a long trip to Kearney, NE for a weekend series against the Tri-City Storm. Despite falling in the first game on Friday night 6-3 the Jacks were able to bounce back and pick up the Saturday night win to salvage the weekend sweep. Sacha Boisvert (Trois-Rivieres, QC, CAN) was a big part of the teams success on Saturday with a 3 point performance with a goal and two assists in the win. The Jacks went with veteran a netminder in Geisel for both nights and were treated to strong goaltending both nights from the former USHL All-Rookie team member.

Back in Wisconsin the Capitols played a home and home series against their cross-state rival, the Green Bay Gamblers. Friday night at the Capitol Ice Arena the Gamblers took care of business with a 5-3 win over the Caps. The next night in Green Bay it was the Capitols who took care of business with a 6-4 win at the Resch Center. Austin Burnevik recorded a hat trick in the win to help him to the USHL's Forward of the Week award for week 9 of the regular season.

Alumni Spotlight: Egor Afanasyev Night

Hockey fans in Muskegon have been treated to many great players representing the city over the years. Back in the UHL days names like Todd Robinson of the Fury Brian McLay of the Mohawks were fan favorites on their teams. When the USHL came to town that trend continued, and still jerseys donning the names of Svechnikov, Daccord, and others are represented in the crowd at Trinity Health Arena on Jack's game days. Egor Afanasyev is one of those players that Muskegon fans have loved since day one.

The Tver, Russia native came to America to play a year of youth hockey in Eastern Michigan during the 2016-2017 season before joining the Lumberjacks and the USHL in the 2017-2018 season. In his first season with the Jacks Afanasyev took time mid-season to represent his country at the World Juniors Under-17 Championship where he was a point per game producer in 5 contests.

The next season in 2018-2019 is really when Afanasyev started to turn heads. In 58 games played Afanasyev recorded a 27 goal, 35 assist, 62 point stat line helping the Jacks to a deep playoff run. After the season ended Afanasyev heard his name called in the second round of the NHL draft by the Nashville Predators.

Today, Afanasyev plays in the AHL for the Predators affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. On Saturday the Jacks will honor Afanasyev with a specialty tee shirt on Egor Afanasyev Night at Trinity Health Arena.

Player Spotlight: Ethan Whitcomb

USHL careers can span from one season, to three or four in the league with multiple teams. Ethan Whitcomb (St. Catherines, ON) is one of a few players in the USHL playing in his third season, all with the Muskegon Lumberjacks. His lengthy tenure with the Jacks has helped him build a leadership role within the locker room. "Guys can come and talk to me before they go to the coaches" said Whitcomb "I've got a lot of expereience and can help them get what they are looking for."

During his time in the USHL Whitcomb has been a consistent leader on the offensive side of the puck for the Jacks. Whitcomb added "Obviously the production is something that's there, but the wins come first before anything else. Stats and personal success come with the team success."

His success on the ice has helped him earn a commitment to play NCAA Division I Hockey at UCONN. "I wanted to go somewhere that is as committed to me as I am to them. After talking with the coaches at UCONN I knew there was nowhere else I wanted to go.

Whitcomb credits the player development facilities at UCONN as another big reason for his recent commitment.

Over the Airwaves

Catch the action all season long with the USHL's official video streaming partner FloHockey, and with the free radio stream on the Lumberjacks Hockey Network on Mixlr.

Upcoming Games

Fri. November 24 | 7:00 pm EST | vs Madison Capitols

Sat. November 25 | 7:00 pm EST | vs Madison Capitols

Fri. November 30 | 7:05 pm EST | vs Youngstown Phantoms - American Cup

Sat. December 1 | 6:30 pm EST | vs Youngstown Phantoms - American Cup

Check out the Muskegon Lumberjacks Statistics

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United States Hockey League Stories from November 22, 2023


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