March 2, 2010
Forwards Derek Arnold of the Waterloo Black Hawks and Jeff Costello of the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders are both riding lengthy point streaks. (USHL Images)
Around the League
Gamblers Clinch…The Green Bay Gamblers earned five of six points in the standings over the weekend and became the first USHL team to clinch a playoff berth this season. Team leading scorer Anders Lee has scored a goal in eight straight games and leads the League with 31 this season. He has tallied 13 goals over his last 12 games, five of which have been the game-winner. Steve Summerhays had his USHL record winning streak halted at 20 games during Saturday's 3-2 home shootout loss to Sioux Falls despite making 33 saves. Over two USHL seasons, Summerhays has yet to lose in regulation on home ice compiling a 23-0-3 record. Reed Seckel has a goal in three of his last four games and now has 20 on the season.
Lancers in Playoffs for 21st Straight Season…The Omaha Lancers also clinched a playoff berth over the weekend, which marked the 21st consecutive season that the club has qualified for the USHL postseason. Goaltender Jeff Teglia stopped all 32 shots he faced to record his fourth shutout of the season in Friday's 4-0 victory at Lincoln. He has won his last four starts on the road posting a 1.00 GAA and a .963 SV% over that span. Troy Power tallied a goal on Saturday and scored two in Sunday's 3-2 shootout win over Sioux City. He now has 20 goals for the season. Erik Haula had his five-game point streak come to an end on Sunday, but added a shootout goal to help seal the win and extend the win streak to six games for Omaha.
Riders Rolling…The Cedar Rapids RoughRiders won the first two games of their current seven-game homestand and pushed their winning streak to six games. They have posted a 13-0-1 record over their last 14 games. Zach Lehrke had his five-game goal streak halted on Saturday, but added a shootout goal to help the Riders to a 3-2 win over Fargo. He has eight goals over his last eight games, three of which have been game-winners. Jeff Costello extended his point streak to eight games (6g, 6a) while also converting the deciding shootout goal on Saturday. Cason Hohmann is riding a four-game point streak (3g, 3a). Defenseman Thomas Fallen tallied his first USHL goal in Friday's 6-1 win over Youngstown while also dishing out an assist on the game-winning goal. Goaltender Troy Grosenick has won his last eight starts while Cody Campbell is 6-0-1 in his last seven starts.
Packing the House...The Indiana Ice held their annual "Pack the House" game at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Sunday. A total of 10, 974 saw the Ice claim their seventh straight win in their home city with a 6-2 win over Team USA. The Ice are now 3-3-0 in the annual game in which has drawn more than 10,000 fans in each year since its inception. Defenseman Anthony Bitetto scored the game-winning goal which was his third goal over his last four games, all of which have been the deciding goal. Blake Coleman has netted a goal in four straight games. Max Cook scored two goals in Sunday's victory and has scored nine goals over his past nine games pushing his season total to 20. Kevin Goumas has collected 14 points (4g, 10a) during his seven-game point streak.
Thanks a Million…On Saturday, the Waterloo Black Hawks celebrated the attendance of one million fans at regular season home games since Butch and Pat Johnson and Northwest Sports Inc. took ownership of the team in 1997. The organization honored their one millionth fan with a ceremonial presentation on ice prior to Saturday's game and the entire team wore a "Thanks A Million" patch on their home uniforms which will remain for the rest of the season. Heading into this season, Waterloo has seen their attendance increase for an unprecedented seven straight years.
Team USA Tales…The Under-18 squad of Team USA won three games in three different USHL cities during the weekend. Brandon Saad collected three points (1g, 2a) in Friday's 6-2 win over Des Moines for his fifth straight multi-goal game in the USHL. He tallied 15 points (9g, 6a) and a plus-13 rating over that span. Bill Arnold added two assists to go along with a game high plus-five rating in Saturday' 7-1 win over Lincoln, a game in which Jason Zucker notched a hat trick. Austin Czarnik had his USHL point streak halted at 11 games when he was held scoreless on Sunday. He amassed 22 points (9g, 13a) and a plus-13 rating during the streak. Three of the last five goals scored by Bryan Rust have been the game-winner. Defenseman Adam Clendening has registered a plus-15 rating over his last seven USHL games.
Notes… The Waterloo Black Hawks equaled their season high in goals during Friday's 8-2 win over Fargo. J.T. Brown equaled a League season high with six points (1g, 5a) and five assists. Forward Derek Arnold has points in 11 straight games (13g, 8a)…Des Moines Buccaneers forward T.J. Tynan dished out two assists on Friday to record his 18th multi-point game of the season…Chicago Steel goaltender Connor Wilson won consecutive starts over the weekend. Over his last five starts, he has posted four victories, 1.60 GAA, and .950 SV%...Fargo Force forward Chase Grant scored two goals on Sunday and now has 25 for the season. He has netted 10 goals over his last 11 games…Tri-City Storm forward Brett Mohler has nine assists over his last 10 games…After scoring one goal in regulation during each of their previous 10 games, the Youngstown Phantoms scored six goals, including four in the first period, of Saturday's 6-4 win over Waterloo. Phantoms forward Adam Berkle has netted four goals over his last three games.
Alumni News…Five USHL alumni helped the U.S. Men's Olympic Hockey Team earn the silver medal at the 2010 Winter Games – Brian Rafalski, Ryan Malone, David Backes, Joe Pavelski, and Paul Stastny. Rafalski led all defenseman during the Olympics with eight points (4g, 4a) in six games on his way to being named the tournament's best defenseman. Pavelski ranked third among all players with a 68.12 faceoff winning percentage.
The Week Ahead
Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, the USHL celebrates its eighth season as the nation's only Tier 1 junior hockey league in 2009-10. With over 200 players already committed to NCAA Division I schools and 13 NHL Entry Draft picks currently on League rosters, the USHL is the nation's foremost producer of junior hockey talent. For more information, visit us on the web at www.USHL.com.
It’s not just hockey. It’s the USHL.
