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Three more USHL teams could clinch playoff spots, while NTDP has a five-game winning streak.
Here are some things to watch for this weekend as the regular season winds down.
Playoff Race In High Gear
As the countdown to the USHL Clark Cup Playoffs marches on, the picture becomes clearer with each passing week.
The Lincoln Stars, Sioux Falls Stampede and Dubuque Fighting Saints have all punched their ticket to the playoffs.
Coming into Friday, three clubs have magic numbers of three and could clinch this weekend: the Madison Capitols, Waterloo Black Hawks and Youngstown Phantoms.
Madison is in a tie for third place in the Eastern Conference and will play its second consecutive three-in-three weekend set of games. The Capitols will face the NTDP U18s Friday and Saturday before a Sunday tilt with the U17s.
The three meetings will be the final ones between the two organizations this season. The Caps are 3-0 against the U17s and 0-1 against the U18s in the season series.
Last weekend, the Caps managed just two points in a three-in-three series at Youngstown against the Phantoms, dropping the first two games before a standout performance by goaltender Cale Heil earned them a 1-0 shutout victory.
Youngstown managed to jump the Capitols in the conference standings and sit one point ahead entering this weekend’s action. Every point is crucial, and Madison does have two games in hand over the Phantoms. One win this weekend is all they need to assure themselves of a playoff spot.
Waterloo will face teams on opposite ends of the Eastern Conference standings. The Black Hawks will travel to Chicago to face the Steel on Friday before hosting the Dubuque Fighting Saints Saturday.
Chicago is currently in eighth place, while the Fighting Saints are atop the conference and are playoff-bound.
Waterloo (25-14-6-4, 60 points, third place in the Western Conference) is 2-0-0 against the Steel this season and 0-2-4 against Dubuque.
The Phantoms will pay a visit to the Stampede for games Friday and Saturday. Youngstown secured two wins in a three-game series against Madison last week. The Phantoms are second in the East, trailing Dubuque by six points and leading both Madison and Muskegon by one point.
The Phantoms and Stampede are meeting for the first time this season. They last met in late October 2023, with the Phantoms sweeping a two-game home series against the Herd.
NTDP U18s On A Roll
The USA NTDP U18 squad isn’t going down without a fight. The club has a 10-game winning streak, with five of those victories in USHL play. Two of their non-USHL victories came against NCAA Division I programs.
The U18s host the Madison Capitols in Plymouth on Friday and Saturday. The NTDP organization finds itself seventh in the East with a 18-26-1-2 record, good for 39 points.
With a magic number of 30, the playoffs are a remote possibility. However, any momentum with 15 games left is a positive. In their last matchup with Madison in late February, the U18s trailed 2-1 after 20 minutes before scoring five unanswered goals for a 6-2 win.
Storm Get Ready To Paint The Ice
The Tri-City Storm (25-23-4, 54 points, sixth place Western Conference) will play host to the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders Friday at the Viaero Center.
Friday is Tri-City’s annual Concrete Cares/Paint the Ice Game presented by Kearney Concrete. The Storm will wear special jerseys to honor children and families battling cancer.
The jerseys will be auctioned off live on the ice after the game with proceeds benefiting Concrete Cares’ mission to improve the well-being of individuals who have been impacted by a cancer diagnosis.
As part of the promotional night, all those who have been affected by cancer, whether themselves or others, were invited to paint the Viaero Center ice on Thursday evening. Participants wrote a loved one’s name or inspiring message.
The club will also hold another FunZone Friday, presented by Pizza Ranch. Kid’s tickets are $5.00 with the purchase of a full-price adult ticket at all remaining Friday home games this season.
The first 50 kid’s tickets purchased at the box office for a Friday Storm home game will receive a FunZone Arcade bounce back card, good for $5.00 worth of gameplay. The FunZone Arcade is located inside Pizza Ranch in Kearney.
On The Rise
Lincoln Stars forward Bruno Idzan has scored in19 of his 26 games since joining the squad in mid-December. The Wisconsin commit has not gone more than two games without a point.
Omaha Lancers center Tanner Morgan is on a four-game goal streak. He helped the Lancers earn their first win since November by scoring the overtime game-winner against Tri-City last Saturday.
NTDP U18 center Cole McKinney has 10 points in his last seven games. He also has 15 points (8-7-15) in 11 games since the start of December.
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Here are some things to watch for this weekend as the regular season winds down.
Playoff Race In High Gear
As the countdown to the USHL Clark Cup Playoffs marches on, the picture becomes clearer with each passing week.
The Lincoln Stars, Sioux Falls Stampede and Dubuque Fighting Saints have all punched their ticket to the playoffs.
Coming into Friday, three clubs have magic numbers of three and could clinch this weekend: the Madison Capitols, Waterloo Black Hawks and Youngstown Phantoms.
Madison is in a tie for third place in the Eastern Conference and will play its second consecutive three-in-three weekend set of games. The Capitols will face the NTDP U18s Friday and Saturday before a Sunday tilt with the U17s.
The three meetings will be the final ones between the two organizations this season. The Caps are 3-0 against the U17s and 0-1 against the U18s in the season series.
Last weekend, the Caps managed just two points in a three-in-three series at Youngstown against the Phantoms, dropping the first two games before a standout performance by goaltender Cale Heil earned them a 1-0 shutout victory.
Youngstown managed to jump the Capitols in the conference standings and sit one point ahead entering this weekend’s action. Every point is crucial, and Madison does have two games in hand over the Phantoms. One win this weekend is all they need to assure themselves of a playoff spot.
Waterloo will face teams on opposite ends of the Eastern Conference standings. The Black Hawks will travel to Chicago to face the Steel on Friday before hosting the Dubuque Fighting Saints Saturday.
Chicago is currently in eighth place, while the Fighting Saints are atop the conference and are playoff-bound.
Waterloo (25-14-6-4, 60 points, third place in the Western Conference) is 2-0-0 against the Steel this season and 0-2-4 against Dubuque.
The Phantoms will pay a visit to the Stampede for games Friday and Saturday. Youngstown secured two wins in a three-game series against Madison last week. The Phantoms are second in the East, trailing Dubuque by six points and leading both Madison and Muskegon by one point.
The Phantoms and Stampede are meeting for the first time this season. They last met in late October 2023, with the Phantoms sweeping a two-game home series against the Herd.
NTDP U18s On A Roll
The USA NTDP U18 squad isn’t going down without a fight. The club has a 10-game winning streak, with five of those victories in USHL play. Two of their non-USHL victories came against NCAA Division I programs.
The U18s host the Madison Capitols in Plymouth on Friday and Saturday. The NTDP organization finds itself seventh in the East with a 18-26-1-2 record, good for 39 points.
With a magic number of 30, the playoffs are a remote possibility. However, any momentum with 15 games left is a positive. In their last matchup with Madison in late February, the U18s trailed 2-1 after 20 minutes before scoring five unanswered goals for a 6-2 win.
Storm Get Ready To Paint The Ice
The Tri-City Storm (25-23-4, 54 points, sixth place Western Conference) will play host to the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders Friday at the Viaero Center.
Friday is Tri-City’s annual Concrete Cares/Paint the Ice Game presented by Kearney Concrete. The Storm will wear special jerseys to honor children and families battling cancer.
The jerseys will be auctioned off live on the ice after the game with proceeds benefiting Concrete Cares’ mission to improve the well-being of individuals who have been impacted by a cancer diagnosis.
As part of the promotional night, all those who have been affected by cancer, whether themselves or others, were invited to paint the Viaero Center ice on Thursday evening. Participants wrote a loved one’s name or inspiring message.
The club will also hold another FunZone Friday, presented by Pizza Ranch. Kid’s tickets are $5.00 with the purchase of a full-price adult ticket at all remaining Friday home games this season.
The first 50 kid’s tickets purchased at the box office for a Friday Storm home game will receive a FunZone Arcade bounce back card, good for $5.00 worth of gameplay. The FunZone Arcade is located inside Pizza Ranch in Kearney.
On The Rise
Lincoln Stars forward Bruno Idzan has scored in19 of his 26 games since joining the squad in mid-December. The Wisconsin commit has not gone more than two games without a point.
Omaha Lancers center Tanner Morgan is on a four-game goal streak. He helped the Lancers earn their first win since November by scoring the overtime game-winner against Tri-City last Saturday.
NTDP U18 center Cole McKinney has 10 points in his last seven games. He also has 15 points (8-7-15) in 11 games since the start of December.
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