RoughRider Alum Abdelkader Scores Game Winner as Michigan State Wins National Title
April 7, 2007 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders News Release
Cedar Rapids, Iowa- Former Cedar Rapids RoughRiders forward Justin Abdelkader scored the game winning goal with just 19 seconds left in regulation as Michigan State defeated Boston College 3-1 in college hockey's national championship game tonight in St. Louis.
Two more Rider alumni- senior defensemen Chris Snavely and Tyler Howells- also skated for MSU's title-winning team.
Abedelkader (15-18-33) snapped a 1-1 tie at 19:41 of the third period after setting up former Sioux City Musketeer Tim Kennedy for the game tying goal at the 9:53 mark of the third. The Spartans added an empty net goal with just two seconds left in the game to clinch the win.
Abdelkader has collected 55 points (25 goals, 30 assists) in 82 games in his first two collegiate seasons.
In 2004-05, Abdelkader won the United States Hockey League Clark Cup title with the RoughRiders. He finished tied for the team lead in goals (27) and totaled 52 points in what was his only USHL season.
Abdelkader was selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the second round of the 2005 National Hockey League draft with the forty-second overall pick. He was drafted earlier than any other RoughRider in team history.
The 20-year old Muskegon, Michigan, native played for the United States National Junior Team at the International Ice Hockey Federation's World Junior Championship in Sweden in December and January.
Abdelkader joined the RoughRiders after being named Michigan's Mr. Hockey while playing for Muskegon Mona Shores High School in 2003-04.
Snavely, 24, is the RoughRider record holder for most career games played. He skated in 212 games in a Cedar Rapids uniform over four seasons from 1999 through 2003. Snavely scored 18 goals and recorded 63 points over the course of his Rider career. The Lancaster, Pennsylvania, native scored twice and totaled 11 points in 27 games for Michigan State this season and produced seven goals and 43 points in 132 games over the course of his collegiate career.
Howells, 23, was a Rider teammate of Snavely's in 2002-03. The versatile Eden Prairie, Minnesota, product played mostly forward in Cedar Rapids, leading the Riders in goals (22) and finishing second on the team in points (43) in his lone USHL campaign.
Howells scored four goals from the blue line and registered 26 points while playing in each of the Spartans' 42 games this season. He finished his green-and-white career with 16 goals and 86 points in 154 games.
The Spartans are the sixth straight NCAA champion to feature at least one RoughRider alumnus. Matt Olinger (Cedar Rapids 2000-03) won the national title with Wisconsin last year, Ted O'Leary (2000-02) with Denver in both 2004 and 2005, P.J. Atherton (1999-2002) and Brett MacKinnon (1999-2001) with Minnesota in 2003 and MacKinnon with Minnesota in 2002.
This year's edition of the RoughRiders (36-17-5, 77 points) is tied for first place overall in the USHL with the Omaha Lancers and Waterloo Black Hawks and is also even with Waterloo in the race for the top spot in the East Division. The Riders, who defeated the Indiana Ice 4-1 tonight, have just two regular season games remaining. The Riders will visit Indiana next Friday before wrapping up against the Black Hawks next Saturday night at 7:05 on home ice.
Tickets for next Saturday's game are now on sale. Tickets are available for purchase in person at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena ticket office, over the phone at (319) 261-4625 or on line at www.roughridershockey.com. The ticket office is open from noon to 5:00PM on weekdays and from noon through the end of the second period on game days. Ticket prices range from $7 to $17 in advance and from $8 to $18 on game days.
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United States Hockey League Stories from April 7, 2007
- RoughRider Alum Abdelkader Scores Game Winner as Michigan State Wins National Title - Cedar Rapids RoughRiders
- Musketeers Rally Past Lancers in Sioux City - Omaha Lancers
- Clean Sweep - Waterloo Black Hawks
- RoughRiders Drop Ice 4-1 - Cedar Rapids RoughRiders
- Bucs fall in Lincoln 6-5 - Des Moines Buccaneers
- Ice and Target Chip Ganassi - Indiana Ice
- He Who Scores Last Scores Best - Waterloo Black Hawks
- RoughRiders Rally Past Green Bay 3-2 - Cedar Rapids RoughRiders
- Race For The Top Tightens As Sioux Falls Stops Lancers - Omaha Lancers
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