January 20, 2010
Youngstown Phantoms forward Cody Strang recorded a "natural" hat trick on Monday while Green Bay Gamblers goaltender Steve Summerhays posted his 13th straight victory over the weekend. (USHL Images)
Around the League
Gamblers Deal 10th Straight…The Green Bay Gamblers picked up a pair of victories over the weekend and pushed their winning streak to 10 games which equals the League season high established earlier in the season by the Omaha Lancers. The Gamblers wrapped up their six-game homestand on Friday with a 4-3 victory over Cedar Rapids. Anders Lee scored two goals in the contest including the game-winner with just over three minutes to play in the third period. Ryan Furne scored two first-period goals on Saturday and Lee scored his third goal of the weekend as Green Bay defeated Waterloo 3-1. Goaltender Steve Summerhays made both starts and has now pushed his unbeaten streak to 13 straight games. Defenseman Nick Jensen has dished out an assist in fourth straight contests.
Oh What a Night in Omaha…It was a packed house at the Omaha Civic Auditorium on Saturday as the Omaha Lancers won their 25th game of season in the 4-1 victory over Lincoln. A total of 7,178 fans were on hand which was the largest home crowd in the 24-year history of the Lancers. Matt White recorded three points (2g, 1a) and built his USHL-leading scoring total to 56 points (24g, 32a). Dakota Eveland scored the game-winning goal, his sixth of the season which ranks tied for the League lead. Jeff Teglia made 35 saves to post his 19th win of the season which ranks him tied for first among USHL goaltenders.
Musketeers Trio…The Sioux City Musketeers snapped a three-game winless streak (0-2-1) with three straight victories during the week. On Tuesday, the team established a new season high in goals during the 8-2 win over Lincoln shattering their previous high of five goals which they have done twice this season. Eight different Sioux City players tallied a goal and 14 different skaters registered a point in the victory. Jeff Silengo led the way with three points (1g, 2a) including the game-winning goal. Billy Latta scored two goals and the deciding shootout goal in the 3-2 win over Chicago on Friday. Matt Skoff won his third straight start on Saturday by turning away all 17 shots in the 1-0 win vs. Indiana, the first shutout of the season for the Musketeers. Stephan Vigier scored his 15th goal of the season in the victory equaling his goal total in 56 games last season.
Force Earning Points…The Fargo Force had their winning streak halted at nine games, but it took more than 60 minutes to do so, as Des Moines defeated them 3-2 in a shootout on Saturday. The following evening, the Force fell 2-1 in overtime to Sioux Falls, their first overtime loss of the season (4-1). Fargo is unbeaten in regulation over their past 13 games (10-0-3) and trail Omaha by just three points for the top spot in the West Division.
Extra Hockey for Stampede…A week after claiming a shootout win, their first victory of the season in a game that has gone past regulation, the Sioux Falls Stampede earned their first overtime victory in the 2-1 win over Fargo on Sunday. Anthony Day was the hero scoring with just over a minute to play in the extra frame. The overtime win came one day after the team fell in overtime to Tri-City making it three straight games for the Stampede that have gone past regulation.
Moving Up…The Waterloo Black Hawks have moved up to fourth place in the East Division standings after winning two of three games over the weekend. C.J. Groh stopped all 39 shots in the 5-0 win over Tri-City on Friday to earn his first USHL shutout. Derek Arnold netted two goals in the win and now has eight points (4g, 4a) over his last five games. Tyler Barnes equaled a season high with four points (2g, 2a) in Sunday's 5-3 win vs. Tri-City and has collected 12 points (5g, 7a) during his current six-game point streak. Defenseman Dan Sova dished out three assists in Sunday's victory.
The Natural…Youngstown Phantoms forward Cody Strang registered the "natural" hat trick on Monday when he scored all three of his goals in succession over a span of 4:55 during the second period of the 7-3 win over Team USA. It was part of a five-goal second period for Youngstown. Strang more than doubled his season output as he had two goals coming into the contest. The victory snapped a six-game winless skid for the Phantoms as they equaled their season high for goals in a game and established a new high with 44 shots on goal. Forward Taylor Holstrom collected four points (1g, 3a) in the victory.
Notes…Tri-City Storm forward Jaden Schwartz netted the overtime winner in the 3-2 win over Sioux Falls on Saturday. The goal came one week after he scored the game-winner vs. Sioux Falls in a 4-3 victory….Playing in just his second USHL game, Tri-City forward Matthew Friese scored his first USHL goal in the 5-3 loss to Waterloo on Sunday…Team USA forward Brandon Saad recorded four points (2g, 2a) in the 6-3 win over Youngstown on Saturday while teammate Austin Czarnik is riding a six-game point streak (4g, 6a) including goals in three straight…Indiana Ice forward Bryon Paulazzo dished out four assists in the 6-3 win over Des Moines on Thursday which extended his assist streak to five games…Des Moines Buccaneers forward T.J. Tynan is riding a five-game point streak (3g, 4a) while teammate Ryan Walters is on a six-game point streak (1g, 8a) and has a point in 16 of his last 17 games…Lincoln Stars forward Andrew Ammon scored a goal in each period to earn his first USHL hat trick in the 5-1 win over Indiana on Friday and help the Stars snap a nine-game winless skid (0-6-3).
The Week Ahead
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