Thanksgiving Thoughts
With two months behind us, the USHL race is shaping up to be one of the most exciting in several seasons. This article presents a few random thoughts on happenings around the league so far this season.
With more than a quarter of the USHL season in the books, there are no major surprises around the league. The days of a handful of teams pulling away from the pack early in the season are behind us, and that is good for the league. In the West, Sioux Falls threatens to edge ahead of the competition with a 15-2-1 record as of Nov. 20, but they lead Des Moines by just six points, and the Buccaneers have two games in hand. And don't count out the Lincoln Stars, who are 10 points back of Sioux Falls but have played four fewer games.
- Don't be surprised if the Chicago Steel become the league's next powerhouse team. The Steel, who are 8-6-2 and in a first place battle in the East Division, have shown a remarkable improvement over the past several seasons, when they were located in Fargo, N.D. Coach Steve Richmond has the Steel playing an entertaining and tenacious style of hockey, and it's starting to pay off in the standings. With the hockey resources of the Chicago metro area and top-notch facilities, look for the Steel to be a perennial contender in the USHL.
- It might have happened a bit later than the locals would have liked, but hockey reached central Nebraska Saturday night when the Tri-City Storm hosted Des Moines in their first home game since relocating from Fridley, Minn. After two games, the Storm have drawn a total of 8,451 fans, which roughly equals their typical total attendance for the season when they were known as the Twin Cities Vulcans. Nebraska has always been supportive of new sports franchises, and there's no reason to believe it will be any different with the Storm.
- The playoffs might be four months away, but it already appears the Sioux City Musketeers will be the team nobody wants to play in the first round. The Musketeers, who have given Lincoln all it can handle in the first round the past three seasons, will likely not be in the race for home ice advantage, but they have the type of team that could give the top teams nightmares. Even if the Muskies don't pull out a first round upset, their physical style will let teams know they were in for a battle.
- Speaking of Sioux City, the Muskies' 1998-99 squad could end up developing several solid NHL players. Defensemen Rostislav Klesla and David Hale were selected in the first round of the 2000 NHL Draft, while sniper Ruslan Fedotenko has been getting significant ice time with the NHL's Philadelphia Flyers in his rookie season.
- Through the traditionally slow-drawing months of September, October, and November, the USHL average attendance is a very respectable 2,856. If the trend continues, this could be the year the league tops the 3,000 mark in average attendance. The only team to sell out all home games so far this season is Lincoln, which are second in the league with an average attendance of 5,010.
- Just how good is the Sioux Falls Stampede's offense? After 18 games, the Stampede have scored 90 goals, 24 more than any other team in the league. Sioux Falls boasts six of the league's top seven scorers and the power play leads the league at 23.07 percent. James Massen, Thomas Vanek, Chad LaRose, Jamie Mattie, J.B Bittner, and Mike Doyle are all averaging more than a point per game through the first 18 games.
- At his current pace, Beau Fritz could put Dan Ellis' record for shutouts in a single season in danger. The Lincoln goaltender has three shutouts in his first five games, posting a 0.60 goals against average and a 97.7 percent save percentage. Fritz is tied with Omaha's Ray Fraser for the league lead in shutouts.
- Don't let the numbers fool you - the Rochester Mustangs are an improved team compared to last season. Despite a 3-17-0 start, the Mustangs have been competitive in recent games, and have shown an improvement on defense and in their physical play. Unfortunately for Rochester, they picked a tough year to improve, as the league is stronger top to bottom than it has been in several years.
- If I had to pick the final standings today, the playoff teams would go something like this: Lincoln, Sioux Falls, Des Moines, Green Bay, Chicago, Omaha, Waterloo, Sioux City. Tri-City and Dubuque could make things interesting, however. The Storm could be especially dangerous once they adjust to their new surroundings, as they have a second-half schedule laden with home dates.
By Trevor Grimm
Published 11-22-2000