Stampede Battles with Force But Comes up Short
April 12, 2024 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Sioux Falls Stampede News Release
FARGO, N.D.- The Sioux Falls Stampede battled through three periods with the Fargo Force but ultimately came up short, falling 2-1 in the final road game of the regular season. Chris Pelosi tabbed the Herd's solo goal while Christian Manz stopped 34-of-36 shots on his net.
The first period saw just two moves on the board with a Fargo goal from Mac Swanson and a penalty on former Stampede forward Michael LaStarza. The Herd was able to out shoot the Force in the first frame, tallying 15 shots against the Force's nine. The next two periods, the teams kept shots closer with the Force having the upper hand in both, 13-10 in the second and 14-13 in the final frame.
Scoring in the second period was even with each team tallying a goal. Fargo's Harper Bentz started the period off with his goal at the 52 second mark. The team of Chris Pelosi, Jake Delaney and Kaz Sobieski pulled the team within one just past seven minutes into the period. Delaney shot hard from the blue line and the puck was diverted into the net by Pelosi, making it 2-1 in favor of Fargo.
There were no changes to the scoreboard in the third period with the only notable event coming from a hooking call on Stampede defenseman Jack Phelan. Phelan also marked a career landmark of 100 games in the United States Hockey League with this game.
As mentioned, Christian Manz stopped 34 of the 36 shots on his net. He marked a .944 save percentage, his best save percentage since his last start against Fargo on March 1 where he stopped 47-of-49 shots on his net. His 2.04 goals against average moves his season average to 4.35. Manz now holds a 13-14-1-1 record with a .880 save percentage.
In terms of playoff proceedings, the Herd is now in danger of slipping to sixth place as the Lincoln Stars defeated the Sioux City Musketeers, 2-1, and is now one point behind the Stampede. On the top end of the Western Conference, the Musketeers remain in second place with the Waterloo Black Hawks sitting just one point behind in third after falling to the Dubuque Fighting Saints this evening. If playoffs were to start this evening, the Herd would still be set to play the Tri-City Storm in Kearney, Neb. in the first round of playoffs, but movement is still possible with all teams playing one final regular-season game tomorrow night.
The Herd and Force now come back down to Sioux Falls for the final regular-season game. The Herd is holding Kid's Takeover Night on Saturday at the PREMIER Center. Kids will be taking over the arena as junior In-Arena Hosts, Junior Public Address Announcers, Warm-Up Benchwarmers and Game Operations Assistants. Thanks to Dental Solutions, the first 1,000 kids through the doors will receive custom Stampede coloring books. Along with the coloring books, the first 500 fans will receive this season's team poster, thanks to Orthopedic Institute and Sioux Falls Specialty Hospital. Tickets to the lower bowl are very limited and there are still select seats available in the upper bowl. Tickets are available through the Stampede office, KELOLAND box office and Ticketmaster.
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