Preview - Stars at Stampede
February 1, 2019 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Lincoln Stars News Release
PREVIEW: SIOUX FALLS STAMPEDE VS. LINCOLN STARS
FRIDAY, FEB. 1, 2019 | 7:05 P.M. | DENNY SANFORD PREMIER CENTER
RADIO: LINCOLN STARS RADIO | WATCH: HOCKEYTV
Tonight's Contest:
The Stars (10-23-3-2) will head north to take on the Sioux Falls Stampede (23-10-3-1) on Friday night.
Last Game:
The Stars took on the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders in a physical edition of Wednesday night USHL hockey. The opening period saw an high exchange of shot attempts and hits, but not a single puck crossed the goal line in the first. In net for the Stars was a steady Samuel Hlavaj, fresh off his first career win. He stopped all eight shots he faced in the opening frame. To answer, Troy Kobryn manned the crease for the RoughRiders. The '99 was equal to Lincoln's best offerings in the first, stopping seven chances, highlighted by a save made falling backward to keep the game locked in a scoreless tie. In the second, the Stars and RoughRiders resumed their pitched battle of heavy play up and down the ice. The power play struggled for both teams, as both sides took penalties to shorten their own man-advantages in the middle frame. On one such instance, following their own penalty to make play 4-on-4, the Stars capitalized. On an extended shift in the attacking end, Josh Lopina found Hunter Skinner on the back circle where the young defender powered a shot through Kobryn for the 1-0 Lincoln lead. Hlavaj was stellar in the second, stopping 11 shots and one breakaway, to preserve the lead into intermission. The defensive battle spilled into the third, with both teams scrapping down the stretch in the same manner as the prior 40 minutes. At 14:06, Ryan Doolin charged up ice with Wyatt Schlaht and Jordan Power. Doolin's pass acted as the tic, over the blue line to Power. Power's tac found Schlaht's stick on the right post for toe to complete the sequence, building a 2-0 lead, and giving Schlaht his first goal of his Stars career. Cedar Rapids fired right back, as Chase Hamstad notched his first goal of the season, scored off a turnover in the Stars zone. Fueled after cutting the deficit in half, the RoughRiders pushed hard through to the final horn. Samuel Hlavaj and the Stars defense held firm, locking down the 2-1 win, their second-straight victory, and five points in their last three games.
The Stampede played host to the Central Illinois Flying Aces last night at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center. Former Stars forward Phil Lapointe kicked off a high-scoring affair with his seventh tally of the season at 9:20 into the opening frame. Andre Lee beat Mitchell Gibson at 11:06 to answer back for Sioux Falls and even the score. On an early power play in the second, Brian Chambers gave the Stampede the lead with his 13th tally of the season. Artem Ivanyuzhenkov followed up with back-to-back power play goals, extending Sioux Falls lead to 3-1 at 7:09. Stephen Halliday trimmed the Flying Aces deficit back to one as he beat Alec Calvaruso just 1:16 later. Anthony Romano capped a busy period for the scorekeeper with his 13th of the season, sending the Stampede into intermission with a 4-2 advantage. Tate Singleton cut the score back to one for Central Illinois at 4:19 into the third. Trevor Janicke followed up with a Flying Aces power play goal, tilting the see-saw battle back to even at 6:50. Sioux Falls didn't wait long to reclaim their lead, scoring just over a minute later, taking a 5-4 advantage off the back of Austen Swanlker's seventh tally of the season. The surge of goals subsided until the final minute of the contest. Withstanding Central Illinois' empty-net push, Sioux Falls saw Ryan Sullivan seal the game with an empty-net goal with just 49 seconds to play. At the horn, the Stampede finished off January with a win, and a 7-2-1-0 record.
Head-to-Head:
After winning the first meeting between tonight's competitors, the Stars have lost the previous two. In a New Year's Eve showdown in Sioux Falls, Lincoln fell behind early after Sam Stevens scored a shorthanded goal on Tyler Johnson at 15:51 in the first. In the second, Anthony Romano and Andre Lee built the lead, with each recording their 10th goal at 4:12 and 8:35, respectively. Josh Lopina cracked the scoreboard for Lincoln by beating Jaxson Stauber on a goal in front, trimming the deficit to 3-1 at 11:09 in the second. A tightly-played third saw Devlin McCabe breathe life into a Stars comeback effort with a goal at 11:21. The Stampede answered on the very next shift with Artem Ivanyuzhenkov drawing a penalty shot that he proceeded to score on, giving Sioux Falls back their two-goal lead. It was an advantage they would not surrender as the Stars offense could not muster an answer, handing Lincoln a 4-2 loss to close 2018.
Team Stats:
GF: SF-3.65 (5th) to LIN-2.79 (15th)
GA: SF-3.30 (10th) to LIN-3.76 (15th)
Shots For/G: SF-29.38 (7th) to LIN-28.66 (9th)
Shots Against/G: SF-26.46 (2nd) to LIN-30.47 (13th)
PP: SF-35/155, 22.3% (4th) to LIN-25/157, 15.9% (14th), SHGA: SF-2 (t-2nd) to LIN-7 (16th)
PK: LIN-123/149, 82.6% (3rd) to SF-110/140, 78.6% (12th), SHGF: SF-5 (6th) to LIN-1 (t-16th)
Leading Scorers:
G: SF-Artem Ivanyuzhenkov 17, LIN-Caleb Rule 12
A: SF-Austen Swankler 20, LIN-Brock Bremer 14
TP: SF-Brian Chambers 31, LIN-Brock Bremer 25
Goalies:
W: SF-Alec Calvaruso 11, LIN-Jacob Mucitelli 3
GAA: SF-Alec Calvaruso 2.61, LIN-Samuel Hlavaj 3.49
SV%: SF-Alec Calvaruso .889, LIN-Samuel Hlavaj .882
SO: LIN-Jacob Mucitelli 1, SF-0
MIN: SF-Jaxson Stauber 949, LIN-Jacob Mucitelli 659
What to Watch For:
Hlavaj Heating Up:
The Stars newest netminder is 2-0-0-1 in his last three starts. He's played 185 minutes in that span, stopping 97 of 104 shots in that span, good for a GAA of 2.27 and a save percentage of .933. He'll face one of his toughest challenges to date with a Sioux Falls offense that ranks fifth in goals per game with 3.65 and seventh in shots per game.
Swankler Surging:
Since he came to Sioux Falls in a November trade with Waterloo, Austen Swankler has been a go-to option for the Stampede. The '01 has garnered plenty of NHL draft attention and has continued to show why. Entering play on a four-game point streak, with six points in that same span, Swankler's last two goals have been game-winners. The forward has played just game against the Stars this season and was held scoreless.
The Skinny on Skinner:
Speaking of players on hot streaks, Hunter Skinner continues to thrive in his new Nebraska home. Like Swankler, Skinner was acquired via an in-season trade, and like Swankler, Skinner has garnered NHL attention on both the Central Scouting Players to Watch List and their mid-term rankings. Skinner also enters play on a four-game point streak and is fresh off his first goal with the Stars which he registered Wednesday. In six games with Lincoln, he's recorded one goal and five assists, and has a total of four goals and 17 points this year.
United States Hockey League Stories from February 1, 2019
- Palmer Boosts Clutch Credentials - Waterloo Black Hawks
- Lancers Take Down Capitols, 5-1 - Omaha Lancers
- Pietila Blanks Dubuque as RoughRiders Win 2-0 - Dubuque Fighting Saints
- Stampede Roll Past Lincoln for Sixth Straight Home Win - Sioux Falls Stampede
- Central Illinois Blanks Des Moines, 1 to 0 - Central Illinois Flying Aces
- Stars Snap Streak with 5-2 Loss in Sioux Falls - Lincoln Stars
- Steel Come up Just Short against Team USA U18 5-4 Friday - Chicago Steel
- Preview - Stars at Stampede - Lincoln Stars
- Flying Aces Fall Short of Comeback Win against Stampede - Central Illinois Flying Aces
- Stampede Top Flying Aces for Fifth Straight Home Win - Sioux Falls Stampede
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