USHL Dubuque Fighting Saints

Steel Top Fighting Saints 4-2 Friday Night

Published on April 13, 2012 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Dubuque Fighting Saints News Release


DUBUQUE, Iowa - The Fighting Saints had their five-game winning streak snapped by the Chicago Steel by a 4-2 score at the Mystique Community Ice Center on Friday night. Zemgus Girgensons contributed a pair of points for Dubuque in the loss, bringing his total to 52 on the year.

Neither team found the back of the net in the first period, and the best scoring opportunities for each team - a powerplay for Chicago and and breakaway for Dubuque's Zemgus Girgensons - were denied by the goaltenders at both ends of the ice. Chicago outshot Dubuque 12-8 in the opening frame.

Andrew Miller broke the scoreless tie midway through the second period, corralling a rebound in front of the net and firing the puck past Matt Morris to give Chicago the 1-0 lead. When Bo Pieper blocked a shot and slid the puck forward to Ray Pigozzi around five minutes later, Chicago stretched the lead to 2-0 with a Pigozzi breakaway finish. The Fighting Saints would not be held scoreless in the second period, however. Late in the period, Girgensons got the puck from Mike Matheson in the neutral zone and turned on the jets to get the puck to the net, flipping it past Mathias Dahlstrom to bring the Fighting Saints within one goal.

Morris exited the game prior to the third period with a lower-body injury, and emergency backup goalie Dillon Kelley made his USHL debut. Michael Fallon scored just eighty seconds into the third period to restore the two-goal lead for Chicago once again. Less than five minutes later, Alex Roos received a pass from Christian Heil and fired a puck from the slot to beat Kelley and put Chicago up 4-1. The Fighting Saints got a lift later on in the period when Cody Bradley, playing in his first game since January, scored a powerplay goal from the slot to bring Dubuque back within two goals. Jono Davis and Zemgus Girgensons assisted on the tally. Neither team scored over the final twelve minutes of the game, however, and the Fighting Saints dropped their second game of the season to the Steel by a 4-2 score. The win concluded the season for the Steel, whose 25 wins this season represent a 16-win improvement over last year's total of 9.

Dubuque will host Muskegon Saturday night at 7:05, before opening the playoffs on Monday against Team USA. The best-of-three series against the Americans will be played exclusively in Dubuque. Should the Fighting Saints win two games over Team USA, they will travel to Indiana at the end of the week to open the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Ice.

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United States Hockey League Stories from April 13, 2012


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