Rewind: Taking a Look Back at Saturday Night's Action in the USHL
April 7, 2024 - United States Hockey League (USHL) News Release
Fargo 5, Des Moines 4
The Anderson Cup-winning Fargo Force built an early lead and held on in claiming a 5-4 win at Des Moines Saturday.
Zam Plante scored the first two goals of the game and when Reid Daavettila and Basen Boser also found the back of the net, the Force held a 4-0 lead at the end of the first period.
Connor Bewick and Garrett Drotts goals brought the Buccaneers within two by the end of the second and when Ben Kevan scored at 6:07 of the third, Fargo's lead had shrunk to one goal.
Merril Steenari tallied at 17:39 of the third to make it 5-3. Liam Watkins scored at 18:55 for Des Moines to close out the scoring in the game.
The Force, who extended their winning streak to six games with the victory, now stand 49-9-2-0 for the season. Its 49 wins establish a USHL record for wins in a season, surpassing the 48 wins Des Moines had in 1998-99.
USA Hockey NTDP U18s 4, Muskegon 2
Cole Eiserman scored a first-period power play goal and the USA Hockey NTDP U18s never trailed enroute to a 4-2 home win over Muskegon.
The Lumberjacks tied the game at 1:02 of the second on an unassisted goal from Ethan Whitcomb, but Kamil Bednarik scored four minutes later as the U18s regained the lead. Joe Connor's 30th goal of the year evened the score and at the end of the second period, the score stood 2-2.
The U18s pulled away in the third on goals from Sam Lauila and James Hagens.
Nick Kempf stopped 20 of 22 shots to pick up the win for the U18s, while Shikhabutdin Gadzhiev finished with 24 stops for the Lumberjacks.
Omaha 3, Lincoln 1
Kam Hendrickson's 40-save effort helped boost Omaha to a 3-1 win at Lincoln Saturday.
Hendrickson, who joined Omaha two weeks ago after finishing his high school season at Chaska (Minn.) High School, owns a 3-1-0-0 record with the Lancers with the win over the Stars.
The game stood tied at the end of the opening 20 minutes of play with Omaha's Nick Sykora scoring at 6:14 and Lincoln's Jack Pechar tallying at 9:31.
Lincoln outshot Omaha 15-9 in the second period, but neither team was able to score.
Omaha scored twice in the third period to claim the win with Cameron VanSickle and Nick Pierre doing the damage.
Tri-City 6, Sioux Falls 3
Trevor Connelly, one of the top prospects for the 2024 NHL Draft, scored twice and assisted on two others in helping lead Tri-City to a 6-3 home win over Sioux Falls.
The Stampede took a 1-0 lead at 11:07 of the opening period on a shorthanded goal from Grant Dillard, but Cooper Simpson's tally at 14:06 evened the score and at the end of the first it was 1-1.
Connelly scored his 30th of the year with a highlight-reel goal at 5:59 and Cam Briere's 22nd of the year, which came at the 15:40 mark, gave the Storm a 3-1 edge after 40 minutes of play.
Owen Beckner and Simpson scored before the third period was 10-minutes old to make it a 5-1 game. Noah Eyre and John McNelis goals brought the Stampede within two, but Connelly's empty netter sealed the deal for the Storm.
Cam Korpi had 26 saves to pick up his 26th win of the season, while Christian Manz turned aside 31 shots for Sioux Falls.
Waterloo 8, Cedar Rapids 1
Myles Hilman scored twice and assisted on another and Griffin Erdman had a pair of goals as Waterloo skated to an 8-1 win over Cedar Rapids Saturday.
Erdman, Reid Morich and Tyler Miller goals made a 3-0 Black Hawks lead by the end of the first.
The lead grew to 5-0 in the middle stanza on goals from Hilman and Gavyn Thoreson.
Joel Kjellberg's 11th goal of the year, which came at 1:50 of the third period, put the RoughRiders on the board, but Waterloo closed out the win on goals from Hilman, Eero Butella and Erdman.
Calvin Vachon stopped 28 of 29 shots in the game for the Black Hawks and now stands 22-11-0-0 on the year.
Youngstown 3, Green Bay 1
Including the game-winning goal, Ryan Botterill scored twice as Youngstown earned a 3-1 win over Green Bay.
Botterill, a University of Wisconsin commit, opened the scoring in the contest when he struck for his 28th goal of the season at 3:51 of the first period.
Botterill scored again to make it a 2-0 lead just 13 seconds into the second period and when Mikey Burchill tallied a shorthanded marker two minutes later, the Phantoms held a 3-0 advantage.
Geno Carcone's goal at 5:59 of the second cut the deficit to two, but that was as close as the game got with Youngstown netminder Aiden Wright shutting the door the rest of the way.
Wright who stopped 22 of 23 shots in the game, now stands 12-5-2-2 with the win.
USA Hockey NTDP U17s 3, Madison 1
Conrad Fondrk scored twice in leading the USA Hockey NTDP U17s to a 3-1 win at Madison Saturday.
Cullen Potter opened the scoring in the contest when he tallied at 7:37 of the first period and it was a 1-0 lead for the U17s at the end of the first.
Defenseman John Stout scored at 2:28 of the second, bringing the host Capitols even at 1-1. Fondrk made it a 2-1 U17 lead at 17:54 and when he scored again midway through the third period, the U17s had their 3-1 win.
Joey Slavick stopped 22 of 23 shots for the U17s, while Carsen Musser was credited with 14 stops for Madison.
Dubuque 4, Chicago 2
Juraj Pekarcik had a goal and two assists as Dubuque skated to a 4-2 home win over Chicago Saturday.
The host Fighting Saints held a 2-0 lead at the opening 20 minutes of action on goals from Joona Vaisanen and Erik Pahlsson.
Pekarcik made it 3-0 when he scored at 4:50 of the second. Michael Hage's 33rd goal of the year, which came at 15:48, brought the Steel within two by the end for the middle stanza.
Beckett Hendrickson's goal (his fifth in the last four games), which came at 1:45 of the third, extended Dubuque's lead to 4-1. Chicago's Joey DelGreco scored at 11:40 to close out the scoring in the game.
Dylan Johnson had 14 stops for Dubuque to record the win, while Louka Cloutier finished with 26 saves for the Steel.
Upcoming Games
Sunday, April 7
Sioux Falls at Sioux City - 3:05 PM CDT
Madison at Cedar Rapids - 4:05 PM CDT
Be sure to visit ushl.com for more information on the USHL.
United States Hockey League Stories from April 7, 2024
- Rewind: Taking a Look Back at Saturday Night's Action in the USHL - USHL
- Saints Earn 40th Win With Victory Over Chicago - Dubuque Fighting Saints
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