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USHL Update - Week 26

Published on March 28, 2013 under United States Hockey League (USHL) News Release


AROUND THE LEAGUE

Chasing the Anderson: It is down to a two-team race in the quest the capture the Anderson Cup as the USHL team that finishes with the best regular season record. The Dubuque Fighting Saints hold a three-point edge (89) over the Sioux Falls Stampede (86) in the standings as the Saints look to claim the top spot for the first time in their modern era. It was 30 years ago when the original Dubuque Fighting Saints last claimed the Anderson Cup during the 1982-83 season. They have already established a team record with 41 victories, including a record 23 wins on home ice. The Stampede are seeking their second Anderson Cup in team history, the first of which came seven seasons ago when they earned a team record 43 victories. Sioux Falls currently has a League best 42 wins this season. Both teams have six games remaining in the regular season.

Logging the Miles: The Sioux Falls Stampede picked up their USHL season-high eighth consecutive road win in Saturday's 6-3 victory over the Tri-City Storm. The Herd have played 10 of their last 13 games away from home, going 9-1-0 in those contests, and have outscored their opponents 40-24 in those 10 games. They currently own a League best 21-8-2 record away from home and have accumulated 44 of their 86 points on the season in hostile territory. The Stampede have nearly completed the road portion of their schedule as five of their final six games will be played at home. Ryan Siiro scored a goal in each period of Saturday's win to record his first USHL career hat trick. Dennis Kravchenko netted the game-winning goal for the Stampede on both Wednesday and Friday and is now tied for third in the USHL with six game-winners.

Settling the East : Heading into last weekend, only the Dubuque Fighting Saints had qualified for one of the four playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. After the final buzzer had sounded on Sunday's USHL games, the Saints clinched the conference title and the other three playoff spots had been secured. The defending Clark Cup champion Green Bay Gamblers earned a playoff berth for the fifth consecutive season, the Muskegon Lumberjacks had earned a team record 30 wins for their second USHL playoff berth in three seasons, and the Youngstown Phantoms made it back-to-back seasons qualifying for the postseason.

Stars Reach 1,000: The Lincoln Stars will play a milestone game on Friday against the Sioux City Musketeers as it will be the 1,000th regular season game in team history. It is the 17th season in the USHL for the Stars as they hold a 595-324-80 all-time record. They have won at least 30 games in 14 of their 17 seasons, including 34 games this year.

Feeling the Force: The Fargo Force picked up a couple of key road wins over the weekend, taking some extra time to do such. On Friday, four different players netted a goal and Jordan Nelson was the only player to convert in the shootout to help his team claim a 5-4 shootout victory against Waterloo. Nelson was the hero again on Sunday when he scored in overtime to give the Force a 2-1 win against Green Bay. Dave Gust tallied a goal in each game and now has 20 for the season. Sunday's victory was their third straight that has gone past regulation and their sixth consecutive win on the road. They have earned points in each of their last seven games (5-0-2).

Rising to the Top: Muskegon Lumberjacks netminder Kevin Lindskoug is the only USHL goaltender ranked in the top five of all five major goaltending categories. He has skated in 44 games this season, ranking fourth in both wins (23) and minutes played (2,590), and is the League leader in shutouts (8), saves (1,312), and save percentage (.927). He has allowed 104 goals this season, which is eighth fewest amongst USHL goaltenders who have appeared in at least 30 games. The Sweden native led the Jacks to a pair of wins over the weekend, stopping a combined 66 shots and posting a 2.00 GAA.

Snapping Out of It: The Cedar Rapids RoughRiders put an end to a five-game winless streak when they earned a 6-5 victory over Green Bay on Saturday. The offensive outburst came after they had scored just eight total goals over the previous five games. The Riders overcame a 5-3 deficit in the third period by scoring three goals in less than four minutes to capture the win. Bryson Cianfrone scored two goals, including the game-winner for Cedar Rapids. He had tallied just three goals total in his previous 45 games. David Goodwin netted the 40th goal of his USHL career in the contest.

The Natural: For the second time this month, Indiana Ice forward Mikhail Plotnikov produced a three-goal game when he netted the natural hat trick in Sunday's 6-3 win over Chicago. His three consecutive goals helped the Ice equal their highest goal total of the season. The Russian forward has scored nine of his 18 goals this year over the last eight games.

Dynamic Duo: The Youngstown Phantoms' forward tandem of Austin Cangelosi and Kyle Connor have provided an offensive spark as of late combining for nine goals and 17 assists over the last nine games. Cangelosi is currently riding a nine-game point streak, totaling 15 points (4g, 11a) over that span. He leads the team and is tenth in the USHL with 58 points (18g, 40a). Connor has tallied points in eight of his last nine games, amassing five goals and six assists in that time. He ranks fourth on the Phantoms in scoring with 38 points (16g, 22a) and is second with 135 shots on goal.

Coming into His Own: After starting the season with a 1-6-4 record, Sioux City Musketeers goaltender Kyle Hayton has been on a tear in the second half, going 8-2-0 over his last 10 starts, including 7-1-0 in his last eight. The rookie goaltender has won his last four starts, allowing two or fewer goals in three of them. The 18-year-old has posted a 2.16 GAA and .924 SV% over his last four wins, two of which have come in the shootout.

Notes: Tri-City Storm defenseman Eli May scored his first career USHL goal in Saturday's 6-3 loss to the Sioux Falls Stampede. He added an assist to earn his first career multi-point game...Team USA forward J.T. Compher scored three points (2g, 1a) in Sunday's 4-2 win over Youngstown. It was his sixth multi-point game in 19 USHL contests this season...Defenseman Jaccob Slavin scored the game-winner for the Chicago Steel in their 3-2 victory over Team USA on Saturday. Three of his nine USHL career goals have been game-winners...Seth Adams scored a goal on three consecutive nights for the Des Moines Buccaneers during the weekend...Forward Michael Marnell has netted five goals over his last five games for Des Moines, including a two-goal game on Sunday in which he scored the game-winner in the 4-2 victory against Omaha...After scoring one goal in his previous 18 contests, Indiana Ice forward Lukas Laub scored two goals in the first period of Sunday's 6-3 win over Chicago...Muskegon Lumberjacks defenseman Doyle Somerby scored his first USHL goal in Friday's 4-1 win against Chicago. It was just the seventh USHL game for the 2012 NHL Draft pick of the New York Islanders...Defenseman Matias Cleland scored three points (1g, 2a) over two weekend games for the Omaha Lancers and is now second among all USHL defensemen with 35 points (9g, 26a)...Justin Kloos tallied three points (2g, 1a) for the Waterloo Black Hawks in Friday's overtime loss to Fargo which was his 22nd multi-point game of the season and gave him five goals over a span of five games. His 75 points (26g, 49a) are second overall in the USHL to his teammate Taylor Cammarata who has produced 78 points (33g, 45a).

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United States Hockey League Stories from March 28, 2013


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