Weekly Preview: First Place Steel Hit the Road this Weekend
December 16, 2020 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Chicago Steel News Release
GENEVA, ILLINOIS - The Chicago Steel (9-2-0-0; 18 pts.) look to extend their current seven-game win streak as they travel to Michigan for a pair of matchups against the Muskegon Lumberjacks (6-2-1-0; 13 pts.) on Dec. 18 & 19.
The back-to-back set at Mercy Health Center pits the highest-scoring teams in the USHL against each other as the Steel pace the league with 5.36 goals per game and the Lumberjacks rank second, scoring an average of 5.22 goals per game.
After nine games on the road to start the 2020-2021 season and another matchup as the visiting team on Wednesday night against Team USA, Muskegon will play on home ice for the first time when they face the Steel on Friday. The Lumberjacks have won three in a row and four of their last five heading into Wednesday's contest.
The Lumberjacks are responsible for one of Chicago's two losses this season when they defeated the Steel 10-8 at Fox Valley Ice Arena on Nov. 14. Tyler Dunbar and Danil Gushchin each netted hat tricks for the Lumberjacks in the wild win.
Chicago and Muskegon combine to boast the top seven scorers in the league thus far. The Steel account for the first through fourth place skaters with Matt Coronato (11G, 15A), Sean Farrell (7G, 13A), Erik Middendorf (8G, 10A) and Mackie Samoskevich (4G, 12A) while Muskegon's Cameron Berg (10G, 5A) and Danil Gushchin (8G, 7A) share fifth in the league. Steel defenseman Ryan Ufko rounds out the top seven with 13 points (4G, 9A) to lead all USHL blueliners.
Berg, a University of Nebraska-Omaha commit, has reached the scoresheet in his last seven games, accounting for 13 points (8G, 5A) over that stretch. Gushchin, selected by the San Jose Sharks in the third round (#76 Overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft, has totaled 98 points (46G, 52A) through 102 games in his USHL career, all in a Lumberjacks sweater.
Steel forward Erik Middendorf and defenseman Ryan Ufko were named USHL Players of the Week for their positions on Tuesday thanks to prolific performances in a three-game weekend sweep over the Youngstown Phantoms. Middendorf picked up seven points (2G, 5A) over the three-game stretch while Ufko added a goal and five helpers from his defensive position.
The Steel took down the Phantoms by a 5-3 score on Dec. 10 and defeated Youngstown 5-4 the following night. In the series final, Chicago extended their win streak to seven games with a 6-1 victory on Dec. 12.
Steel forwards Adam Fantilli and Luke Levandowski each netted their first USHL goal in the weekend series against Youngstown while netminder Jack Stark turned away 17 of 18 Phantoms shots to earn the win in his first start for Chicago on Dec. 12.
Following the weekend set, Chicago returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 2 against the Green Bay Gamblers at Fox Valley Ice Arena where the team currently owns a 5-1-0-0 mark in the 2020-2021 campaign.
Chicago Steel games can be heard on Mixlr at http://mixlr.com/chicago-steel/ (AUDIO) and video may be streamed on available devices through HockeyTV at www.hockeytv.com (VIDEO/AUDIO).
Chicago Steel Upcoming Games:
Friday, December 18 @ Muskegon Lumberjacks 6:00 pm CT
Saturday, December 19 @ Muskegon Lumberjacks 6:00 pm CT
Saturday, January 2 vs Green Bay Gamblers 7:05 pm CT
For more information, call 855-51-STEEL or visit ChicagoSteelHockeyTeam.com.
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- Weekly Preview: First Place Steel Hit the Road this Weekend - Chicago Steel
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