Saints to Finish Season Series with Bucs Tonight
Published on February 18, 2011 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Dubuque Fighting Saints News Release
The Fighting Saints and Buccaneers wrap up their regular season series Friday at the Mystique Community Ice Center. The Saints struggled this past weekend against the Waterloo Black Hawks, suffering a shootout loss at home, and the Green Bay Gamblers, falling on the road to the league's best home team. After earning only one of a possible four points on the weekend, the Fighting Saints fell out of first place for the first time since early November, as the Omaha Lancers have gone 9-0-1 in their last ten games.
The previous six meetings between Dubuque and Des Moines saw the Fighting Saints compile a 3-2-1 record against their and Western Conference in-state rival. The first match up between the two teams featured forty penalties and 200 penalty minutes at Buccaneer arena. Though Dubuque won the first two meetings, the Bucs have controlled the series from that point, compiling a 2-1-1 record.
The Buccaneers have a record of just 1-5-0 over their last six games, though four of those losses were at the hands of Eastern Conference powers Cedar Rapids and Green Bay. Despite the recent struggles, Des Moines has a winning record and is in fifth place, nine points behind second place Dubuque.
The Coaches
Jim Montgomery was named the Dubuque Fighting Saints Head Coach and General Manager on April 12, 2010. The 40-year-old Montreal native spent the last four years as the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. Montgomery began his college coaching career as a volunteer assistant under Jeff Jackson at the University of Notre Dame.
Montgomery played college hockey at the University of Maine, and is the NC's 4th all-time leading point scorer. Prior to becoming a coach, Montgomery played professional hockey from 1993-2005, spending parts of six seasons in the National Hockey League. Montgomery resides in Dubuque with his wife Emily and son James Peter. Montgomery is assisted by Joe Coombs and Bobby Kinsella.
Regg Simon entered his second stint as Head Coach and General Manager of the Des Moines Buccaneers prior to the 2010-11 season. Simon is a former player for Des Moines, and coached the Buccaneers from 2005 until 2008, when he took an assistant coaching job at his alma mater, the University of Alaska Anchorage. Simon has been a part of Buccaneer teams that have won championships as both a coach and player.
Quick Hits
- Vinny Saponari is tied for 4th in the USHL scoring race, having tallied 47 points on the season on twelve goals and thirty-five assists. Saponari led the USHL in points scored for much of the season, but had dipped with the Saints' early January scoring struggles and the meteoric rise of Indiana's Blake Coleman.
- Matt Morris leads the USHL in goals against average with an average of 1.98. His save percentage of .929 nearly tops in the league as well. Morris has shut out opponents three times this year, and two of those games were decided by a score of 1-0. Jackson Teichroeb has earned one shutout for the Saints this year.
- Two Fighting Saints will be out of the lineup with injuries for tonight's game, both sustained on February 5th at Youngstown. Luke Curadi has injured his shoulder and is available day to day. Brooks Bertsch will be unavailable for a significant amount of time with a groin injury for the Fighting Saints. Despite the injuries, Jim Montgomery stood pat at the trade deadline and has said, "these are the 23 guys we are going to win with "
- Three Fighting Saints were named to NHL Central Scouting's midseason watch list for the NHL Draft. Jackson Teichroeb was ranked 22nd among goaltending prospects, Joakim Ryan and John Gaudreau were ranked 128th and 209th among skaters, respectively.
- The Fighting Saints' record in one goal games is 10-2-7, after a 0-1-2 start in this category. Conversely, the Saints are just 2-4-0 in games decided by a two goal margin. The Saints have won only one game in the five minute overtime so far this season, having dropped four games in this fashion, and they have won two shootouts, losing three.
- The Fighting Saints will hit the road next weekend for their final two game weekend road swing. The Saints will first head east and north to play fellow expansion team Muskegon Lumberjacks, and then head to Indiana to play the Ice. That game will be held at Conseco Fieldhouse, home of the Indiana Pacers, as part of Indiana's "Pack the House" night
- John Gaudreau has a six game point streak headed into tonight's game. In that span, Gaudreau has tallied seven goals and one assist in that span. Dating back to January 8th , Gaudreau has scored sixteen points over twelve games.
- John Gaudreau, Zemgus Girgensons, Matt Morris, Joakim Ryan, and Vinny Saponari are Dubuque's All-Star selections for the Western Conference. Dubuque's five selections are the most in the West and tied for most overall.
United States Hockey League Stories from February 18, 2011
- Ice Snuff Out Spark - Waterloo Black Hawks
- Ice Snuff Out Spark - Waterloo Black Hawks
- Saints defeat Bucs - Dubuque Fighting Saints
- Bucks Bolster Roster with Signing of Giants Draft Pick Kramp - Waterloo Black Hawks
- Phantoms Earn First USHL Shutout, Beat Steel 6-0 - Youngstown Phantoms
- Setback Halts Lancers Season-High Six-Game Home Winning Streak - Omaha Lancers
- Jacks outlasted by Team USA 1-0 at Ice Cube - Muskegon Lumberjacks
- Des Moines Buccaneers Coldwell and Decowski Named USHL CCM All-Stars - Des Moines Buccaneers
- Saints to Finish Season Series with Bucs Tonight - Dubuque Fighting Saints
- Storm Captain Named USHL All-Star - Tri-City Storm
- Five Saints Named to USHL All-Star Team - Dubuque Fighting Saints
- USHL Announces Midseason CCM All-Stars - USHL
- Three Muskegon Lumberjacks Named CCM All-Stars - Muskegon Lumberjacks
- Omaha's Ambroz, Oddo, Marshall Named Midseason CCM All-Stars - Omaha Lancers
- Stampede's Jacobson Named USHL All-Star - Sioux Falls Stampede
- Captain Picked Among Stars - Waterloo Black Hawks
- Jacks Forward Lochner Commits to Niagara - Muskegon Lumberjacks
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