The Rink Live’s Jordan McAlpine provides the USHL’s Rink Report. Take a look back at the weekend that was, what’s ahead and various other news and notes from around the USHL.
Weekend review
*Home teams in bold*
Fri. March 3
Youngstown 7, USNTDP 1
Des Moines 3, Dubuque 2 OT
Cedar Rapids 4, Muskegon 1
Fargo 6, Omaha 1
USNTDP 6, Green Bay 3
Lincoln 5, Sioux City 3
Tri-City 7, Sioux Falls 4
Sat. March 4
Fargo 1, Omaha 0
Waterloo 6, Lincoln 2
USNTDP 6, Youngstown 1
Cedar Rapids 4, Muskegon 1
USNTDP 3, Green Bay 2
Tri-City 7, Sioux Falls
Dubuque 4, Des Moines 1
Chicago 7, Madison 0
Sun. March 5
Sioux City 6, Waterloo 2
Chicago 6, Madison 4
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Stick taps
Macklin Celebrini, F, Chicago
It’s Celebrini’s world and the rest of the USHL is living in it now. The rookie forward recorded a seven-point (5-2-7) weekend and netted his 40th goal of the season Sunday in a 6-4 win over Madison. Celebrini finished off his fourth hat trick of the season on Saturday and now has 11 multi-goal games during the 2022-23 campaign.
Made ya look!
— Chicago Steel (@ChicagoSteel) March 6, 2023
40 goals in 41 games for the kid 🤯#FeelSteel https://t.co/VJcs3EKJ04 pic.twitter.com/wOPjezkmC6
The 2024 draft prospect leads the USHL in points (71), goals (40), power-play goals (18) and game-winning goals (7). Celebrini is on pace for 96 points this season and his 71 points are the most by a U17 player. He’s also the first U17 player in USHL history to hit the 40-goal mark.
Grant Slukynsky, F, Sioux City
Another one of Sunday’s standouts, the Sioux City captain netted a pair of goals and added an assist in a 6-2 win over Waterloo. Ryan Conmy also scored a pair of goals in the win.
Slukynsky recorded four points this weekend as the Warroad, Minnesota, native also had an assist on Friday. Slukynsky has a career-high 13 goals this season, which is tied for second on Sioux City’s roster, and Sunday was his third two-goal effort over his last seven games. The Northern Michigan commit has 34 points in 46 games this season.
Trevor Connelly, F, Tri-City
Tri-City has won six straight and has points in seven straight as a tem. Individually, Connelly is on fire too. The rookie forward scored three times this weekend and added two assists, giving him 15 goals and 27 points on the season.
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Coincidentally, Connelly has goals in seven straight games going back to Feb. 10. The Tustin, California, product has 12 points (9-3-12) in that stretch and is a big reason why Tri-City now sits just two points behind Lincoln in the Western Conference.
Anton Castro, G, Fargo
While Matej Marinov — who recorded his 19th win Friday night — has gotten most of the attention this season, Castro has been key to Fargo’s success. The Wisconsin commit turned aside all 27 shots Omaha fired his way Saturday night and earned his second shutout.
Castro has won three straight and four of his last five starts. He owns a 2.31 GAA and .917 save percentage on the season, which rank second and third in the USHL respectively. Fargo has won eight of its last nine games and earned points in 13 straight (11-0-2-0).
What’s on tap
The week starts early once again as Green Bay will play in Youngstown on Wednesday and Thursday. Friday’s slate features all 16 teams while 12 of them will be in action Saturday. Sioux Falls and Sioux City will close out the weekend Sunday at the Tyson Events Center.
To view the complete schedule, click here. To view the current USHL standings, click here.
Without further ado, here’s a look at some of the top games on the docket.
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Green Bay (26-17-2-1) at Youngstown (26-15-4-1), Covelli Centre, Wed-Fri., March 8-10, 10:05 a.m., 6:05 p.m. & 7:05 p.m.
The Gamblers and Phantoms will get their fill of each other this week with three games in three days. However, it’s a key stretch with six massive points on the line. Green Bay (fourth, 55) and Youngstown (t-second, 57) come in separate by two points in the standings.
The two have gone back-and-forth atop the Eastern Conference for much of the past month. Youngstown is 7-2-1-0 in its last 10 while Green Bay is 5-4-1-0
Tri-City (24-16-2-3) at Des Moines (18-20-5-3), Buccaneer Arena, Fri. & Sat. March 10 & 11, 7 p.m. & 6 p.m.
Two of the hottest teams in the Western Conference will meet for a pair of games in Iowa’s capital city this weekend. Tri-City has won six straight, has points in seven straight and eight of its last 10.
The Storm are currently fourth in the Western Conference but trail struggling Lincoln by just two points. At the same time, they’ll face a Des Moines team that’s playing on a roll at home and continues to push the right buttons in overtime. The Buccaneers picked up another overtime win last Friday against Dubuque.
Ice Chips
- USHL president and commissioner Bill Robertson announced he will not be seeking a contract renewal Friday afternoon. Robertson’s current contract expires on June 30, 2023.
- Dubuque carries a five-game point streak (4-0-1-0) into this weekend’s games at Muskegon. The Fighting Saints split a pair of games against Des Moines last weekend.
That's a dub 😏#HailToTheHalo #MarchWithUs #StarsRise pic.twitter.com/aUs9PcmmRh
— Dubuque Fighting Saints (@fightingsaints) March 5, 2023 - Cedar Rapids also rides some momentum into this weekend as the RoughRiders have points in four straight (3-0-0-1).
- Sunday’s win snapped a three-game losing skid for the Sioux City Musketeers. However, the Musketeers are still 2-8-0-0 in their last 10. Sioux City is still fifth in the Western Conference with Des Moines and Sioux Falls both in hot pursuit.
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Ryan Conmy,
Michael Emerson
and Jack Harvey are now tied for second in the USHL with 29 goals. Conmy had a six-point weekend with three goals and three helpers.
Ryan Conmy has quietly been one of the USHL's top rookies with 23 goals and 35 points for the Sioux City Musketeers - USNTDP forward Gabe Perreault racked up three more points (2-1-3) Friday night, giving him 31 (15-16-31) in 16 USHL games this season. Perreault’s 1.94 points per game rank second in the USHL, despite the smaller sample size.
- Chicago goaltender Christian Man z recorded his first USHL shutout Saturday against Madison. Although the game finished in a lop-sided 7-0 final, Manz stopped all 32 shots he saw in the win.
- Chicago forward Jayden Perron racked up seven points this weekend, including four (1-3-4) Sunday. Perron is now tied for second in the USHL with 59 points. Perron has 25 points over his last 13 games and points in 12 of those 13.
- Waterloo finished 0-9-0 in the state of Nebraska last season. Following a win in Lincoln Saturday, the Black Hawks are 6-0-0 in the Cornhusker State this season.
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