Lincoln Stars 2024-25 Season Preview
September 18, 2024 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Lincoln Stars News Release
The Lincoln Stars open up their 29th season in franchise history this weekend at the DICK'S Sporting Goods USHL Fall Classic. Lincoln will face the Madison Capitols on Friday at 1:15 p.m. CDT and the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders at 2 p.m. CDT on Saturday at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry Township, Penn.
The Stars are looking to make the postseason for a fourth consecutive season. Their current run represents the franchise's longest playoff streak since qualifying in each of their first 13 seasons of existence.
Last season's Stars rallied from a 3-12-0-2 start to the campaign by winning 19 of their next 30 games to earn the sixth seed in the Western Conference. Lincoln swept third-seeded Waterloo in two games on the road to open the Clark Cup Playoffs before falling to Sioux City in three games in the second round. It marked the second consecutive season and 13th time in club history that the Stars defeated their first-round opponent.
Despite the first-round upset, the Stars have plenty to prove after finishing below .500 for the first time since 2020-21. Lincoln was also the only team in the USHL to not have a player named to the All-USHL Teams or All-USHL Rookie Teams last season.
A notable improvement for the Stars from a year ago is the number of players already committed to colleges. Lincoln opened last season with 15 of its 25 players having announced their college commitments before the start of the season. The 2024-25 Stars have 20 of their 25 players already locked in with a college decision.
"We've got a few guys left to take care of but those will be done in probably the first month of the season," head coach Rocky Russo said. "I don't see this being a group where we're gonna have guys uncommitted by the end of the year. In my previous two years by Christmas just about the entire line chart was done. That allows us to just focus on hockey."
The Stars return 13 players who appeared in at least one game a season ago, including Dashel Oliver (Notre Dame), who has appeared in 112 games over the previous three seasons, the most by any active player. He scored 10-of-12 goals on the road last season and then recorded a two-goal effort in the series-clinching Game 2 win at Waterloo.
"Put in a really good summer of work," Oliver said. "Been really focused on the gym, really focused on the subtle things that I need to work on. Coming into training camp with a lot of confidence. I feel good right now, feel like I'm going to have a good year and be able to step up as a leader."
Blake Montgomery, who tied for the team lead with 22 goals, returns after being selected by the Ottawa Senators in the fourth round of the NHL Draft in June. Defenseman Tanner Henricks (St. Cloud State) was also selected in the fourth round, by the Columbus Blue Jackets, and returns after appearing in 59 games last season, tied for sixth-most on the team.
Lincoln will look to its blueline for strength this season as six different defensemen return for a second season. Six-foot-6 Jake Rombach (Minnesota) headlines the group after scoring a goal in four games for Team USA at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in August. Martin Masa (Providence) played the second-most games (60) of any first-year Star last season and averaged 18:34 minutes per game, the most of any returning player this season.
"For me the biggest thing is that they are returning players but they are veteran returning players," Russo said. "It's not like we had a very old group last year with a bunch of young guys just getting their feet wet. These were the guys who were carrying us. You saw somebody like Tanner who had an unbelievable series in Waterloo in the playoffs last year really coming into his own, and (Ethan Weber), (Nik Young) and (Rombach), those guys have been through it. They are young but they are experienced and they are welcoming the reinforcements to that group. You look at a guy like (Griffin Brown) who was limited in his experience with us last year but he played in 14-or-15 games and got his feet wet. Now he's back in his second year with a lot of confidence."
Yan Shostak returns as the team's no. 1 goaltender after going 20-18-1-1 with a 3.05 goals-against average and a .902 save percentage in 41 games. The Minsk, Belarus native dominated in the Clark Cup Playoffs, recording a 2.01 GAA and a .939 save percentage in five games, including stopping 79-of-80 shots in a two-game sweep on the road against Waterloo in the first round.
One of Lincoln's biggest questions will be who steps up at center. Jack Pechar (Northeastern), who finished fourth on the 2023-24 Stars with 19 goals, is the lone returner at the position but he did not move to center full time in the USHL until late December. Pechar went on to win 53.2-percent of his 402 draws.
"I think I've evolved a lot," Pechar said. "I think I can play a little faster getting the puck through the middle with speed. Playing with some pretty quick wingers also helps. You get the puck a little bit more and with a little more time coming through the middle."
Pechar is joined on the depth chart by several talented options, including 2024 USHL Phase II Draft first-round pick Daniel Shlaine. He recorded 74 points (20+54) in 54 games for Shattuck St. Mary's 18U Prep last season. Gio DiGiulian, like Pechar, played his prep hockey at Kent School in Connecticut and went on to score a shorthanded goal and add an assist against Omaha in the first game of the preseason Sep. 5. Kade Kohanski also scored in the preseason opener with a power-play tally late in the third and will be expected to take on a big role after being selected in the third round of the Phase II Draft in the spring.
"Not only do we have good centers but we have some flexibility at the center position," Russo said." A lot of guys can play the wing or the middle so they give you the ability to be flexible when it comes to how you want to create your lines. Now they've also changed the faceoff rule where they are kicking out the center back out of the dot so that means that you have to have two guys on a line who are capable of winning a faceoff for you. That allows us some flexibility from that spot as well."
Other key newcomers to the Stars include defensemen Caeden Herrington (Vermont) and Etienne Lessard (Union). Herrington was acquired the day of the USHL Phase I Draft from Green Bay for a first-round pick and comes to Lincoln after playing 24 games last year, eight of which were in the postseason.
"He's really mobile," Russo said. "He's a great skater. He's a big body. He defends well but he has offensive instincts. He can really shoot the puck. He's got an outgoing personality. He's jumped right in with two feet and has been a big part of that culture-building process that is so vital early on with the season and he showed some leadership ability right away. He's kind of the total package when it comes to being a 20-foot defenseman. Obviously he's got things to work on just like every other guy in that room does as well but he was certainly a great addition."
Russo spotlighted Lessard as someone who is new to Stars fans but who impressed in the preseason. The Stars' Phase II third round pick in May recorded 15 points (3+12) in 25 games with the Vernon Vipers in the BCHL last season. Lessard helped Canada East earn bronze at the 2023 World Junior A Challenge and added six assists in six games last December.
"The pieces that we brought in via the draft, free agency or trade are experienced players," Russo said, "who are either older or played junior hockey last year and will be able to make an impact immediately when we get started."
Lincoln is 6-3-1-0 at the Fall Classic since the USHL began holding it in Pennsylvania in 2018. The Stars last faced the RoughRiders at the Fall Classic in 2022 (4-1 win) and are 1-1-1 against them at the Lemieux Sports Complex. This will be the first time that they face the Capitols in the Fall Classic. Lincoln split its two games with Madison last season and also split two matchups against Cedar Rapids.
Fans can follow along all season by listening for free on Mixlr at mixlr.com/lincoln-stars or watching with a paid FloHockey subscription. Pregame coverage with broadcaster Joel Norman begins 25 minutes before every game.
The Stars play their first two home games Sept. 27-28 against the Green Bay Gamblers at the Ice Box. This will be Green Bay's first trip to the Capital City since Lincoln went 15-14-1 at the Ice Box last regular season. Tickets are available for purchase now at lincolnstars.com.
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