Men's Ice Hockey | 5/23/2026 7:59:02 PM

The Sioux Falls Stampede clinched its fourth Clark Cup in team history with a 4-3 double overtime win against the Muskegon Lumberjacks on Saturday at Trinity Health Arena in Muskegon, Mich.

Merrimack commit Linards Feldbergs stopped 41 shots, including a crucial save moments before Joey Macrina took the puck in transition and scored off the rush to give Sioux Falls its title. Feldbergs finished the Clark Cup Playoffs with a 1.91 goals-against average, .939 save percentage, and two shutouts. He had a 1.66 goals-against average, .952 save percentage, and a shutout in the Clark Cup Final series.

It was the second straight night of overtime in Muskegon. Buffalo Sabres prospect and University of Massachusetts commit Melvin Novotny hammered a one-timer with 1:28 left in regulation to push the game into overtime for the second straight night. The goal was scored with the extra attacker, similar to Friday when the Lumberjacks scored twice to rebound from a 3-1 deficit with less than four minutes remaining and the goalie pulled.

Tied after two periods, Sioux Falls took back the lead at 3:35 of the final frame with Providence commit J.J. Monteiro catching a stretch pass through the neutral zone, shielding the puck as he drove the net on his backhand before flipping a snap shot over Minnesota Duluth commit Carl Axelsson‘s blocker to make it 3-2 on his second goal of the evening.

Muskegon carried Friday’s momentum into the early stages of Saturday’s game, outshooting the Stampede 10-1 midway through the first period. For the first time since Game 1, the Lumberjacks struck first. At 8:20 of the opening frame, Philadelphia Flyers prospect and Boston University commit Carter Amico sifted a shot through traffic that caromed off RIT commit Louis Jonerheim before Minnesota State commit Jack Christ buried the rebound for his fifth goal of the playoffs. Sioux Falls rallied back 2:17 later on the power play with a similar tally when Thomas Zocco’s shot left a rebound for Monteiro to even the score.

It was clear from the opening puck drop that finding space at the net front was a key for both sides. Feldbergs entered the game with a .939 save percentage and 1.90 goals-against average for the Stampede, and Axelsson carried a 2.48 goals-against average and .916 save percentage into Game 4. Feldbergs finished with 41 saves on 44 shots. Axelsson made 43 saves.

Detroit Red Wings prospect and Wisconsin commit Brent Solomon and Colgate commit Tobias Öhman each had a chance to put Sioux Falls ahead before the game’s midway point. Axelsson turned Solomon’s shorthanded breakaway early in the second, then at 10:35 Öhman’s shot on a two-on-one rang off the post.

Solomon buried his second chance of the game, this time on the man advantage, tapping in a backdoor pass from Cooper Soller to give the Stampede its first lead of the night, but like Muskegon’s advantage, it evaporated quickly. Four minutes later, Jonerheim used his 6’4”, 207-pound frame to take a puck from below the goalline and stash it past Feldbergs.

Sioux Falls previously won the Clark Cup in 2007, 2015, and 2019.

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 nine 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).