Steel Host Turtle Races and Celebration of Women in Sports this Weekend
October 16, 2024 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Chicago Steel News Release
GENEVA, ILLINOIS - Following a challenging road trip, the Chicago Steel will look to recalibrate during their first three-game weekend which includes a pair of exciting home promotions, Turtle Races courtesy of Hickory Knolls Discovery Center on Saturday, October 19 at 6:05 pm against the Madison Capitols and Celebrating Women in Sports on Sunday, October 20 at 4:05 pm against the Des Moines Buccaneers.
Before the pair of home games, Chicago will head to Madison for the first time this season to take on the Capitols on Friday, Oct. 18 at 7:05 pm.
Saturday night features the slowest two minutes in sports with the team's annual Turtle Races in partnership with Hickory Knolls Discovery Center. Turtles Samsonite, Myrtle, Daisy, and Sally Jane will race at center ice during the first intermission in the preliminary race to determine the final two turtles who will race for the title of top turtle during the second intermission.
This is the fifth year the Steel will host the race. Daisy won her first race last season, and Myrtle was crowned winner in 2022. Samsonite reigned victorious in the first two years of the races. Fans will have a chance to meet the turtles in the main lobby before the game and will receive information cards from Hickory Knolls so they can learn about their favorite turtle.
Sunday, Oct. 20, features a Celebration of Women in Sports presented by Angry Gene's Pizza Now. The first 500 fans will receive a Steel 25th season t-shirt.
The event features a special appearance from Olympic gold medalist and PWHL champion Kendall Coyne Schofield.
Schofield, captain of Walter Cup Champion Minnesota, capped the title with an empty net goal in Game 5 of the best-of-five PWHL Finals. She will appear at Sunday's game from 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm, performing the ceremonial puck drop and signing autographs for fans.
Additionally, representatives from the Chicago Red Stars and Chicago Sky will be on hand for the event.
Oct. 20 features a tasty deal for fans with the first Lou Malnati's Family Pack game this season. The Lou Malnati's Family Pack is available for select games this season, where fans can get four tickets, four hot dogs, four chips, four sodas or water, four Chuck-A-Pucks, and two Lou Malnati personal pizza coupons for just $60.
Friday marks the first battle between the Steel (4-4-0-0, 8 pts.) and the Capitols (3-2-1-1, 8 pts.) this season. The Capitols finished fifth in the Eastern Conference standings last year and clinched a playoff spot for the second straight season before falling two games to one against the fourth-seeded Youngstown Phantoms in the first round of the Clark Cup Playoffs.
Chicago was stomped out by the Omaha Lancers in a pair of games last week, including a 2-0 shutout on Oct. 12, followed by a tough 5-1 loss the following night on Oct. 13. Ashton Schultz scored the only Steel goal of the weekend, his first in the USHL and his first point with Chicago.
Jack Parsons allowed just one goal on Friday in his fourth start with the Steel, making 27 saves while facing less than 40 shots for the first time this season. Louka Cloutier followed up Parsons' outing with another solid showing, stopping 41 shots in defeat.
Saturday's shutout loss was the second time this year the Steel were shut out after being blanked only twice last season. Sunday's loss was just the second time in the last six games the Steel allowed more than two goals, and the first time this year the team dropped consecutive games.
Since joining the Steel, forward Ashton Schultz has been a noticeable asset on the ice. In four games with Chicago, he has recorded nine shots and has a +1 rating. Over two seasons in Sioux Falls, Schultz played 12 games and put up 13 shots and one assist.
Chicago's top rookie scorer from last season, Kolin Sisson, has been held off the scoresheet in three consecutive games after scoring three goals over two games. Sisson leads the Steel in shots with 22 in eight games and has recorded a shot on goal in all but one game this season. He has eight shots in the last three games.
Sunday's game against Omaha saw Adam Valentini join Sisson and Ben Yurchuk on the first line of forwards, a playmaking trio that could pan out well over time. Valentini ranks third on the team in shots with 18 and is tied for the team lead in points with four on two goals and two assists. Yurchuk, who was top five on the Steel in assists last year, also has four points this season, all of them assists.
The Capitols had a single game last week against the Green Bay Gamblers that saw Madison come away with a 5-2 win. The Capitols have won two of their last three games after dropping three straight contests following a dominant 7-3 win over Omaha to open the season at the USHL Fall Classic.
Madison saw its top eight scorers from last season move on to the collegiate ranks, leaving a sizeable absence left to fill this year. The top-scoring returner for Madison is Aiden Long. In his rookie season, Long posted 22 points with nine goals and 13 assists in 57 games. He finished the year with a game-winning goal, two power play goals and two shorthanded goals and scored two goals in three playoff games. This year, Long ranks third in scoring for the Capitols with six points on two goals and four assists.
Returning forwards Diego Johnson and Ryker Lee currently lead the Capitols in scoring with both skaters amassing seven points, three goals and four assists, in seven games this season. The two are both committed to Big Ten schools, Lee to Michigan State and Johnson to Wisconsin.
Johnson played in 31 games during his rookie season with Madison last year, scoring four goals and six assists while recording 28 shots on goal and collecting 31 penalty minutes. Lee skated in two games in his rookie season in Madison, scoring a goal and an assist and posting a +2 rating.
Goaltender Caleb Heil has been solid for the Capitols this season, helping Madison gather a point in all four of his starts with a 3-0-0-1 record. In his four games, Heil has a 2.20 goals against average and has allowed just two goals in each of his last three starts. The North Dakota commit spent the prior two seasons with Sioux Falls where he posted a 3.62 goals against average in 28 games.
The Steel are 45-14-4-0 all-time against Madison, 22-7-3-0 on the road and 23-7-1-0 at home. Chicago went 5-3-0-0 in head-to-head play against the Capitols last season and won four of the last five matchups. The two games this weekend are the first two of seven total games between the teams this season.
The Des Moines Buccaneers (1-5-0-0, 2 pts.) are looking to find their footing, having lost five consecutive games after winning their opening game of the season at the USHL Fall Classic in a 2-1 win over Green Bay on Sept. 19. They have allowed at least four goals in each of their five losses.
Chicago accounted for the first of those losses, defeating Des Moines 5-2 on Sept. 20 at the Fall Classic, a game that featured a 40-save masterclass from Jack Parsons and goals scored by five different Steel skaters.
Luckily for Des Moines, its leading scorer from last season, Ben Kevan, is back for year two with the team and is pacing the roster with six points in five games. Kevan averaged nearly a point per game in his rookie season last year, scoring 57 points (24G-33A) in 59 games while recording 188 shots on goal.
In the season opener this year, Kevan scored two goals on five shots and posted an assist in each of the next two games. He already has 21 shots through the first five games of the season and is coming off a two-point game where he posted a goal and an assist in a 4-3 loss to Muskegon on Oct. 12.
The Buccaneers rank second-last in the league in goals allowed per game, averaging 3.67 despite ranking second-best in shots against, an average of 25 per game. Their penalty kill also ranks second-last in the league, with a success rate of 70%, though they have gone 5-for-5 on the penalty kill in the last two games.
The Steel are 45-24-2-4 all-time against Des Moines and 24-9-0-3 at home. Sunday is the second of three games between Chicago and Des Moines this season. The two will meet for the final time in Iowa on Nov. 22.
Tickets are on sale now for all Steel home games starting at just $10. All Steel tickets are digital, and fans are encouraged to purchase online in advance at ChicagoSteelHockeyTeam.com.
Season ticket plans are on sale now, starting at just 5 games for $50. Season ticket plans are built on flexibility as fans have the option of choosing their own games throughout the season with multiple benefits including season ticket gifts and special events.
Group tickets and experiences, suites and other premium areas, including the Coors Light Chill Zone and Ice Side Tables, are also on sale now.
For more information, call 855-51-STEEL.
Chicago Steel Upcoming Schedule presented by Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush:
Friday, October 18 at Madison Capitols (7:05 pm CT)
Saturday, October 19 vs. Madison Capitols (6:05 pm CT) | Turtle Races in partnership with Hickory Knolls Discovery Center
Sunday, October 20 vs. Des Moines Buccaneers (4:05 pm CT) | Celebrating Women in Sports presented by Angry Gene's Pizza Now with Special Guest Kendall Coyne Schofield | 25th Season T-Shirt Giveaway (first 500 fans) | Lou Malnati's Family Pack Game
• Discuss this story on the United States Hockey League message board...
United States Hockey League Stories from October 16, 2024
- Jacks Travel to East Side for Two Games against USNTDP-U17's - Muskegon Lumberjacks
- Musketeers Split Weekend with USA Hockey - Sioux City Musketeers
- Lumberjacks Announce Roster Moves: Add Ivan Ryabkin and Trade Jake Merens - Muskegon Lumberjacks
- Steel Host Turtle Races and Celebration of Women in Sports this Weekend - Chicago Steel
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
