Dubuque plays host to Sioux Falls in a showdown of the top two teams in the USHL.
A meeting of division leaders highlights a full slate of Friday games in the USHL. The Dubuque Fighting Saints, leaders of the East, host the West Division-leading Sioux Fall Stampede.
The Saints (25-10-0-1, 51 points) maintain a five-point lead over the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the East and hold a three-point advantage over Sioux Falls (23-8-1-1) in the league standings. The Stampede maintain a narrow one-point lead over second-place Lincoln in the West.
Dubuque had its point streak snapped at eight Thursday night with a 4-2 road loss in Green Bay against the Gamblers. It was their longest point streak this season.
The Saints fired 32 shots at Gamblers netminder Gavin Moffatt but only two got past him. Dubuque thought it had tied the game midway through the middle frame on a Jonathan Morello redirection shot; however, Green Bay successfully challenged goaltender interference, and the goal was overturned.
Friday’s contest against the Stampede begins a five-game homestand for Dubuque, who boasts a 10-5-0 record on home ice. The homestand is their longest of the season.
The Saints’ Michael Barron leads the team and is 13th in the USHL in scoring with 32 points (15-17-32) in 36 games. With a goal on Thursday night, he extended his point streak to four games, tying his longest of the season.
Matthew Desiderio is second among all league defensemen with 29 points (12-17-29) over 36 contests. Jan Spunar ranks fourth among goalies with a 2.50 goals-against average and .918 save percentage.
Dubuque has netted a power-play goal in eight straight games and are at 21.8% on the season with the man advantage.
Sioux Falls split a series with the Team USA Ntdp U17s last weekend, winning a 10-3 rout on Saturday before falling 6-2 Sunday. The team is 7-3-0 over their last 10 games.
The Herd’s Ethan Wyttenbach leads all USHL rookies in scoring with 36 points (15-21-36) through 32 games. Aiden Wright is the second-leading goaltender in the USHL with a 2.46 goals-against average and .907 save percentage.
Sioux Falls packs quite a scoring punch, coming into Friday as the second-highest scoring team in the USHL at 136 goals. Only 17 of those have come on the power-play, but the Stampede’s penalty-kill ranks second in the league at 84.6%.
The two teams last met Oct. 11 in Sioux Falls, where the Herd came out on top 6-3. It’s been a while since Sioux Falls has paid a visit to ImOn Arena. The last time was Feb. 29, 2020, when Dubuque came away with a 4-2 victory.
Puck drop for Friday’s contest is set for 7:05 Pm CT.