Men's Ice Hockey | 5/1/2026 9:51:04 PM

The Madison Capitols and Sioux Falls Stampede took an early advantage in the first game of the Conference Finals of the Clark Cup Playoffs on Friday. 

Madison Capitols 2, Muskegon Lumberjacks 1 | VIDEO RECAP
(Madison leads series 1–0)

Tyden Bergeson scored the go-ahead goal with less than one minute left in regulation to lift the Madison Capitols over the Muskegon Lumberjacks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final on Friday. With the win, the Capitols take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series.

Following a scoreless first period in which Muskegon dominated the shot volume 17–7, the Lumberjacks finally opened the scoring late in the second. At the 15:00 mark, Ty Bergeron notched his second goal of the postseason on a chaotic play in front of the Madison net.

The Capitols wasted no time mounting a comeback. Just 2:59 into the third period, Jackson Nevers scored on a redirect from John Stout to even the score.

The game looked destined to go to overtime. However, with just 56 seconds remaining on the clock, Bergeson found the back of the net to give Madison its first lead of the night.

Caleb Heil earned the victory with a massive 39-save effort, improving to a 6-1-0-0 record in the postseason thus far.
 
Sioux Falls Stampede 6, Fargo Force 2 | VIDEO RECAP
(Sioux Falls leads series 1–0)

J.J. Monteiro scored twice and added an assist as the Sioux Falls Stampede skated past the Fargo Force 6–2 on Friday night. With the victory, the Stampede take a 1–0 lead in the Western Conference Final.

Sioux Falls overwhelmed the Force with a four-goal barrage in the opening period. Brent Solomon started the scoring with a backdoor tap-in at 3:57, followed by Monteiro’s first of the night four minutes later. The Stampede then broke the game open on the man advantage, getting power-play tallies from Jake Prunty and Brock Schultz to take a commanding 4–0 lead after the first 20 minutes of play.

In the second period, Anthony Bongo extended the cushion to 5–0 on a wrister from the point before Fargo finally found the scoresheet. Mason West spoiled the shutout bid with just one minute remaining in the frame to make it 5–1.

Fargo showed life early in the third period when Saxton Tess netted a shorthanded partial breakaway goal at 7:05 to cut the lead to three. However, the comeback attempt was short-lived. Monteiro struck again on a give-and-go play in transition at 12:48 to restore the four-goal lead and effectively ice the game for the Stampede.

Linards Feldbergs earned the Game 1 win, stopping 22 of 24 shots.

About the USHL

The United States Hockey League (USHL) and its 16 teams are committed to being the world's leading junior hockey league. This season, more than 50% of NCAA Division I men's hockey players and nearly 25% of NHL players have USHL experience. The USHL has developed more than 285 direct NHL Draft picks since 2020, and eight of the last 10 Hobey Baker Award winners, including Macklin Celebrini (Chicago Steel).

Elevated through the recently announced Declaration of Excellence with the NHL and USA Hockey, the league's player-first approach, including a 2:1 practice-to-game ratio and a schedule with 90% of games played on weekends, provides its players with the optimal environment for athletic and personal growth, creating pathways for the next generation of stars like Auston Matthews (NTDP), Kyle Connor (Youngstown Phantoms), Jeremy Swayman (Sioux Falls Stampede), and Johnny Gaudreau (Dubuque Fighting Saints).