Stars Dominate 5-On-5 But Fall Short in Des Moines
November 21, 2020 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Lincoln Stars News Release
DES MOINES, IOWA - The Lincoln Stars (0-1-1) controlled the play at even-strength, but fell short to the Des Moines Buccaneers (1-0) 4-3 on Saturday night.
Lincoln got behind early thanks to Zach Faremouth's power-play goal on a 5-on-3 advantage as Des Moines struck at the 5:42 mark of the first period.
Zach Urdahl continued his hot start, knotting the game up at one goal apiece with under two minutes to go in the opening frame. Urdahl solved Bucs goaltender Derek Mullahy on a breakaway after being sprung by a pass in the defensive zone by Stars captain Tony Follmer. Urdahl's third goal of the season came at 18:41.
Logan Anderson's PPG gave Des Moines the lead once again, finishing off a pretty passing play from Logan Mercuri and Matt Choupani at 8:16. The Stars would once again answer in the form of Aidan Thompson's first career USHL goal at 18:17. Thompson fed Yu Sato from the neutral zone, Sato then differed back to Thompson in the slot, who ripped one past Mullahy's glove side. Sato registered his first USHL point with the helper and Follmer picked up his second assist, as well.
Directly a minute after, Dominic James negated an icing against Bucs defenseman Braden Rourke and cashed in on the Des Moines blunder by rocketing a quick shot past an unsuspecting Mullahy. The Minnesota-Duluth commit's first goal of the season (third career USHL goal) was scored at the 19:17 mark. Jacob Bauer and Urdahl were credited with the assists.
Lincoln would head into the third period with the lead for the first time in the young 2020-21 season, outshooting Des Moines 27-15 through 40 minutes. The Stars started the final frame of regulation shorthanded after a penalty to Jack Horbach following a scrum.
Choupani scored inside the first half-minute of the third, tying the game once again, this time at three. Horbach would find himself in the box the following shift, sending the Bucs to another man-advantage opportunity. Right off the ensuing face-off, Choupani beat Stars goaltender Ryan Ouellette over the left shoulder for his second of the game. The Northeastern commit, who scored 17 goals last season, scored two goals separated by 22 seconds.
Down 4-3, the Stars had numerous chances to tie the game late, including a 5-on-3 for two minutes following a major penalty assessed to Alex Laferriere and a minor penalty to Owen Fowler. Despite the disadvantage, Mullahy and the Bucs stood tall until the final horn.
Lincoln outshot the Bucs 38-22 and dominated even-strength play. However, the special teams battle became the story as the Stars went 0-for-6 on the power-play and 1-for-5 on the penalty kill. Ouellette made 18 saves in the defeat while Mullahy stopped 35 shots in the victory.
The Stars are scheduled to play three games in three days on the road in Fargo against the Force, beginning on December 3rd.
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United States Hockey League Stories from November 21, 2020
- Storm Defeat Force in Overtime - Tri-City Storm
- Fargo Falls in Thrilling Fight to the Finish - Fargo Force
- Herd Comeback Upended 6-3 at PREMIER Center - Sioux Falls Stampede
- Stars Dominate 5-On-5 But Fall Short in Des Moines - Lincoln Stars
- Storm Seek Bounce Back Win Tonight against Force - Tri-City Storm
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