USHL Notes: November 28, 2023
November 28, 2023 - United States Hockey League (USHL) News Release
Efforting: With a 14-3-1-2 record and 31 points the Dubuque Fighting Saints remain atop the standings in the USHL Eastern Conference.
Dubuque, which split a home-and-home series with Des Moines last week, has gone 7-2-0-1 in its last 10 outings and with 99 goals in 20 games and a 4.95 goals per game average owns the highest-scoring offense in the league.
Youngstown has gone 7-1-2-0 in its last 10 games to keep pace with Dubuque and with a 13-4-2-0 record on th season, stands second in the Eastern Conference with 28 points. Green Bay, which owns an 8-1-1-0 mark in its last 10 games, is third in the East with 27 points.
Fargo has been the top team in the Western Conference since the start of the season and with a 16-2-1-0 record for 33 points, have more points than any other team in the USHL. The Force, who have given up a league-low 36 goals on the season (in 19 games for a league-best goals against average of 1.89) are the only team in the USHL without a regulation home loss (6-0-1-0).
Sioux City has 28 points by virtue of its 12-5-4-0 record to rank second in the Western Conference. Owners of a 7-2-1-0 record in their last 10 games, the Musketeers enter this weekend's action having won their last three contests.
American Cup: The United States Hockey League is bringing the top junior hockey league in the nation to Rochester, N.Y., for the third annual USHL American Cup Powered by Wegmans from November 30-December 3 at Tim Hortons Iceplex and Rochester Ice Center.
The USHL is proud to partner with Wegmans, a local grocery chain, to put on this event, which features a pair of regular-season USHL games and a youth hockey tournament.
When the USHL comes to Rochester, it will bring with it the Youngstown Phantoms and the Muskegon Lumberjacks. The Phantoms, the defending Clark Cup champions, enter the game with three NHL Draft selections including Brandon Svoboda (San Jose Sharks, 2023, Third Round, #71), Andrew Strathmann (Columbus Blue Jackets, 2023, Fourth Round, #98) and Tomas Machu (New York Islanders, 2021, Round 7, #221), while the Lumberjacks have one of the top-rated prospects for the 2024 NHL Draft in forward Sacha Boisvert, along with NHL draftees Ty Henricks (NYR, 2023, Round 6, #183) and David Klee (SJS, 2023, 7th round, #196).
Mark the Spot: Cedar Rapids head coach Mark Carlson's career record with the RoughRiders entering the weekend stands at 771-568-121.
Carlson, who has stood behind the bench at Cedar Rapids since the 1999-2000 season, ranks only behind P.K. O'Handley's 783 victories in terms of most career coaching wins in the USHL. O'Handley served as head coach of the North Iowa Huskies from 1991-98 and the Waterloo Black Hawks from 2002-21.
Players of the Week: John Mustard (Waterloo/USHL Forward of the Week) had three goals over the course of three games in helping Waterloo to a 2-0-0-0 mark last week. The Providence commit scored three times and had the game-winner in overtime as the Black Hawks claimed a 4-3 road win at Cedar Rapids last Saturday. He has 20 points on 11 goals and nine assists to lead all USHL rookies in scoring.
Andrew Strathmann (Youngstown/USHL Defenseman of the Week) is now a three-time USHL Defenseman of the Week for his career after tallying three points on a goal and two assists in a 5-4 win over USA Hockey NTDP last Friday. Strathmann, the Youngstown captain this year, has 4-12--16 in 15 games to tie for third in defenseman scoring in the USHL.
Hampton Slukynsky (Fargo/USHL Goaltender of the Week) went 2-0-0-0 in posting back-to-back shutouts last week. The Warroad, Minn., native registered 18 saves on 18 shots in an 8-0 win over Chicago last Friday. He then had 33 stops in a 6-0 win over the Steel Saturday. The Northern Michigan commit has a 9-0-0-0 record to go along with a 1.53 goals against average and a 0.927 save percentage on the season.
Keeping Count: Currently in the midst of an 11-game point-scoring streak during which he's racked up 7-8--15 Dubuque center Erik Pahlsson ranks first on the USHL scoring list with 12-15--27 in 19 games. Pahlsson, a University of Minnesota commit, enters this week's action tied for third in the league in goals (12).
Strength and Energy: Given that Fargo leads the USHL with the fewest goals allowed with 36 in 19 games, it stands to reason that rookie netminder Hampton Slukynsky and his veteran goaltending partner with the Force Anton Castro lead the league in several statistical categories. Slukynsky's goals against average (1,53) is #1, while Castro's GAA (2.24) is second. Slukynsky leads the league in shutouts with three and his 0.927 save percentage also ranks first.
Put Some Mustard on it: Waterloo forward John Mustard is the top-scoring rookie in the USHL with 20 points, having scored 11 times and assisted on nine others. Mustard, who leads all rookies in goals (11) and is tied for third in assists (9), stands tied for the league rookie lead with three power play goals and has the most game-winning tallies with three.
Triple Crown: Lincoln forward Keaton Peters tallied a shorthanded goal, a power-play goal and an empty-net goal in boosting the Stars to a 7-3 win at Sioux Falls last Friday. The win ended an 11-game losing streak for Lincoln. Peters, a Northern Michigan commit who's in his third season with the Stars, has 4-5--9 in 19 games on the season.
Streaming: Just a reminder that all league games are streamed live via FloHockey.
United States Hockey League Stories from November 28, 2023
- Wood Makes College Commitment - Lincoln Stars
- Waterloo Black Hawks Weekly Preview - Waterloo Black Hawks
- USHL Notes: November 28, 2023 - USHL
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