THIS WEEK
Friday, December 29, 7:05PM @ Cedar Rapids Ice Arena
Green Bay Gamblers vs. Cedar Rapids RoughRiders
Saturday, December 30, 7:35PM @ Cedar Rapids Ice Arena
Green Bay Gamblers vs. Cedar Rapids RoughRiders
Sunday, December 31, 7:05PM @ Young Arena, Waterloo
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders vs. Waterloo Black Hawks
RECORDS
Cedar Rapids
13-9-1, 27 points, tied 2nd place East Division
Green Bay
12-9-3, 27 points, tied 2nd place East Division
Waterloo
14-4-3, 31 points, 1st place East Division
COMING IN
The RoughRiders went 0-2-1 in their final three games before the United States Hockey League’s holiday break. The Riders have posted a 1-3-1 record in their last five outings.
The Riders wrapped up their pre-break slate with three road games in three days. The Riders earned one point for a 4-3 shootout loss to the Tri-City Storm on December 15 in Kearney, Nebraska. The Storm downed the Riders 4-1 the following evening. The Riders were shutout for the first time this season on Sunday, December 17 as fell to the Musketeers 4-0 in Sioux City.
The December 17 defeat marks the first time the Riders have been shutout since January 31 of last season, when they lost 3-0 at Tri-City. The Riders have gone goalless for 116:04 since Aaron Bogosian scored at 3:56 of the first period of the December 16 loss at Tri-City.
The Riders, who led the league in goal scoring much of the season, now rank fourth in goals per game, averaging a still-healthy four per contest.
Injuries took their toll on the Riders in the days leading up to the break. The 10 forwards in the line-up for the Riders’ December 17 game have totaled 81 points this season, only slightly more than the four forwards (Robin Bergman, Rob Bordson, Jacob Cepis and Tommy Wingels) who missed that game due to injury or illness. The missing quartet has combined for 75 points this year.
Cepis (15-15-30), who suffered a bruised knee during the December 16 game at Tri-City, entered the holiday break tied for second in the league in goals and tied for sixth in points.
Friday’s game will be the Riders’ first on home ice since December 9. The Riders will hit the road Sunday night in hopes of ending a four-game away winless streak (0-3-1).
Rider goaltender Kent Patterson has put up a 2.37 goals against average and a .936 save percentage over his last five games. Patterson set a team season high by making 46 saves in the December 17 game at Sioux City.
The Gamblers were unbeaten in regulation (4-0-1) in their final five games before the break.
Green Bay endured a rare run of four games in five nights leading up to the break. The Gamblers swept a pair of games from the Ohio Junior Blue Jackets in Columbus on December 12 and December 13, downing the Blue Jackets by scores of 2-0 and 3-1. The Gamblers then picked up three of a possible four points from a home-and-home series with the Chicago Steel on December 15 and December 16. Green Bay first dropped the Steel 5-3 at the Resch Center before suffering a 3-2 shootout loss one night later on the road.
The Gamblers are unbeaten in regulation (5-0-1) in their last six road games. On the season, the Gamblers have gone 7-3-1 away from home- the second best road record in the league.
The Gamblers are one of four teams who have given up fewer than three goals per game, allowing just 2.96 per contest. Adam Avramenko has been a workhorse in goal for the Gamblers. Avramenko leads the league in minutes played (1330:14) and has started 14 of Green Bay’s last 15 games and 22 of 24 games on the season.
Segio Somma (16-8-24) leads the league in goal-scoring. Derrick LaPoint (9-17-26) is tied for the league lead among defensemen in goals and points.
The Black Hawks have gone 5-1-1 in their last seven games. Waterloo’s 3-2 defeat in Sioux Falls on December 13 ended the Hawks’ five-game (4-0-1) unbeaten streak. The Black Hawks bounced back to close out their pre-Christmas schedule with a 7-3 win over Des Moines on December 16.
The Black Hawks, who have gone 8-1-1 at Young Arena, are the league’s best home team. The Hawks’ only regulation home defeat came at the hands of the Riders, who won 3-2 in Waterloo on Thanksgiving night.
The Black Hawks are the league’s stingiest defensive team. Waterloo surrenders an average of just 2.3 goals per game. The Hawks have allowed three goals or fewer in each of their last 11 games.
Joshua Turnbull (12-8-20) and James Marcou (7-13-20) share the Black Hawks’ point-scoring lead.
The Hawks’ Matthew DiGirolamo and Ryan Rondeau have formed perhaps the top goaltending tandem in the league. DiGirolamo leads the league in goals against average (1.96) and ranks second in save percentage (.925). Rondeau (6-1-3) has suffered just one regulation defeat and ranks fourth in goals against average (2.45).
Like the Riders, the Black Hawks will also play three games in three nights this weekend. The Hawks visit Indiana Friday and travel to Chicago Saturday.
RECENT ACTION
Cedar Rapids
Friday, December 15: Tri-City 4 Cedar Rapids 3 (SO)
Mike Seidel scored twice as the Riders rallied to earn one point. Goals from Seidel in the second and third periods enabled the Riders to erase a 3-1 deficit, but Tri-City would outscore Cedar Rapids 2-1 in the shootout.
Saturday, December 16: Tri-City 4 Cedar Rapids 1
The Storm rang up four straight goals after the Riders’ Aaron Bogosian opened the scoring at 3:56 of the first period.
Sunday, December 17: Sioux City 4 Cedar Rapids 0
Kent Patterson’s 46-save effort kept Cedar Rapids in the game, but the Riders were unable to find the back of the Sioux City net. The Musketeers outshot the Riders 50-26.
Green Bay
Tuesday, December 12: Green Bay 2 Ohio 0
Green Bay goaltender Adam Avramenko made 25 saves to blank the Junior Blue Jackets while Sergio Somma keyed the Gambler attack with a goal and an assist. Somma set up Steve Silva’s shorthanded goal in the first period and provided some insurance with a goal of his own in the third period.
Wednesday, December 13: Green Bay 3 Ohio 1
The Gamblers used second period goals from Steve Silva and Bryan Haczyk to turn a 1-1 deadlock into a 3-1 lead they never surrendered. Haczyk and Derek LaPoint- who opened the scoring late in the first period- both had one goal and one assist.
Friday, December 15: Green Bay 5 Chicago 3
Mike Sislo had a hat trick as the Gamblers bounced back to win after surrendering a 3-0 lead. Sislo snapped a 3-3 tie at 17:21 of the third period with his second goal of the night and completed the hat trick with an empty netter with just over a minute left in the contest.
Saturday, December 16: Chicago 3 Green Bay 2 (SO)
The Gamblers fell 2-1 in the shootout after twice taking the lead in regulation. Taylor McReynolds and Mike Sislo scored first period goals for Green Bay.
Waterloo
Wednesday, December 13: Sioux Falls 3 Waterloo 2
The Black Hawks rallied but came up short after falling behind 2-0 in the first period. Keegan Meuer and Mike Marcou scored the Waterloo goals. The Hawks out shot Sioux Falls 23-11 over the final two periods.
Saturday, December 16: Waterloo 7 Des Moines 3
Kyle Reeds led a balanced Waterloo attack with one goal and three assists. Reeds was one of seven different Hawks who scored a goal apiece.
TOP POINT SCORERS
Cedar Rapids GP G A PTS
Jacob Cepis 20 15 15 30
Pat Cannone 23 8 13 21
Robin Bergman 15 9 10 19
David Boehm 23 7 9 16
Kevin Wehrs 23 5 11 16
Green Bay GP G A PTS
Derrick LaPoint 24 9 17 26
Sergio Somma 24 16 8 24
Steve Silva 21 10 12 22
Mike Sislo 24 13 5 18
Shea Walters 20 1 17 18
Waterloo GP G A PTS
Joshua Turnbull 21 12 8 20
James Marcou 19 7 13 20
Matt Arhontas 21 7 6 13
Brett Barta 19 4 9 13
(two players tied with 12 points)
LEADERS
Cedar Rapids
Goals- Jacob Cepis (15)
Assists- Jacob Cepis (15)
Points- Jacob Cepis (30)
Plus/Minus- Rob Bordson, Pat Cannone, Kevin Wehrs (+7)
Penalty Minutes- Kevin Wehrs (56)
Power Play Goals- Robin Bergman (5)
Shorthanded Goals- Aaron Bogosian (2)
Green Bay
Goals- Sergio Somma (16)
Assists- Derrick LaPoint, Shea Walters (17)
Points- Derrick LaPoint (26)
Plus/Minus- Steve Silva (+7)
Penalty Minutes- Taylor McReynolds (74)
Power Play Goals- Sergio Somma (8)
Shorthanded Goals- Derrick LaPoint, Steve Silva, Mike Sislo (1)
Waterloo
Goals- Joshua Turnbull (12)
Assists- James Marcou (13)
Points- Joshua Turnbull, James Marcou (20)
Plus/Minus- Tim Gilbert (+12)
Penalty Minutes- Pasko Skarica (74)
Power Play Goals- Matt Arhontas (4)
Shorthanded Goals- Joshua Turnbull (2)
WHO’S HOT
Cedar Rapids
Aaron Bogosian: four points (two goals, two assists) in his last four games
Pat Cannone: seven points (four goals, three assists) in his last eight games
Mike Seidel: five points (three goals, two assists) in his last five games
Scott Wietecha: seven points (one goal, six assists) in his last seven games
Kent Patterson: has posted a 2.37 goals against average and a .936 save percentage while going 2-1-1 in his last five
games
Green Bay
Steve Silva: seven points (three goals, four assists) in his last six games
Mike Sislo: four goals (and one assist) in his last two games…six goals (and two assists) in his last six games
Sergio Somma: five points (two goals, three assists) in his last four games…12 points (seven goals, five assists)
in his last 11 games
Adam Avramenko: unbeaten in regulation (3-0-1, 1.68, .926, 1SO) in his last four starts
Waterloo
Brett Barta: seven points (one goals, six assists) in his last five games
Tim Gilbert: seven points (three goals, four assists) in his last six games…+8 in his last six games…+11 in his last
nine games
James Marcou: five-game point-scoring streak (3-3-6)…13 points (four goals, nine assists) in his last ten games
Kyle Reeds: four points (one goal, three assists) December 16 against Des Moines
Matthew DiGirolamo: has allowed three goals or fewer in each of his 11 appearances
Ryan Rondeau: unbeaten in regulation (3-0-1, 2.24, .896) in his last five games
GOALTENDERS
Cedar Rapids GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT
Richard Bachman 5 292:15 4.11 2-3-0 0 .885
Kent Patterson 13 735:01 3.02 8-3-1 0 .909
Green Bay GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT
Adam Avramenko 22 1330:14 2.84 11-8-3 2 .901
Nicholas Graves 2 115:57 2.59 1-1-0 0 .896
Waterloo GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT
Matthew DiGirolamo 11 610:51 1.96 8-3-0 1 .925
Ryan Rondeau 12 661:12 2.45 6-1-3 1 .901
WIN-LOSS
Cedar Rapids Green Bay Waterloo
Home: 6-5-0 Home: 5-6-2 Home: 8-1-1
Away: 7-4-1 Away: 7-3-1 Away: 6-3-2
vs. East: 9-3-0 vs. East: 11-5-2 vs. East: 11-2-2
vs. West: 4-6-1 vs. West: 1-4-1 vs. West: 3-2-1
GOALS
Cedar Rapids Green Bay Waterloo
Goals For: 4.00 (4) Goals For: 3.21 (8) Goals For: 3.62 (6)
Goals Against: 3.57 (9) Goals Against: 2.96 (4) Goals Against: 2.33 (1)
SPECIAL TEAMS
Cedar Rapids Green Bay
Power Play: 17.2 30/174 (6) Power Play: 19.6 32/163 (4)
Penalty Kill: 80.0 28/140 (10) Penalty Kill: 83.2 27/161 (8)
Shorthanded Goals For: 5 Shorthanded Goals For: 3
Shorthanded Goals Against: 3 Shorthanded Goals Against: 2
Waterloo
Power Play: 16.9 29/172 (7)
Penalty Kill: 87.4 17/135 (2)
Shorthanded Goals For: 4
Shorthanded Goals Against: 2
SEASON SERIES
Cedar Rapids vs. Green Bay
10/7/06 Green Bay 4 at Cedar Rapids 2 1/5/07 Cedar Rapids at Green Bay
11/25/06 Cedar Rapids 4 at Green Bay 3 (OT) 1/20/07 Green Bay at Cedar Rapids
12/29/06 Cedar Rapids at Green Bay 4/6/07 Cedar Rapids at Green Bay
12/30/06 Green Bay at Cedar Rapids
GP W-L-SOL PTS H A OPP REC OPP PTS
2006-07 2 1-1-0 2 0-1-0 1-0-0 1-0-1 3
All-Time 46 27-16-3 57 16-7-1 11-9-2 19-19-8 46
Cedar Rapids vs. Waterloo
11/23/06 Cedar Rapids 3 at Waterloo 2
11/24/06 Waterloo 4 at Cedar Rapids 3
12/31/06 Cedar Rapids at Waterloo
1/27/07 Waterloo at Cedar Rapids
3/3/07 Cedar Rapids at Waterloo
3/30/07 Waterloo at Cedar Rapids
3/31/07 Cedar Rapids at Waterloo
4/14/07 Waterloo at Cedar Rapids
GP W-L-SOL PTS H A OPP REC OPP PTS
2006-07 2 1-1-0 2 0-1-0 1-0-0 1-1-0 2
All-Time 48 24-20-4 52 13-8-2 11-12-2 24-20-4 52
Top Point Scorers/Season Series
Cedar Rapids vs. Green Bay
Cedar Rapids GP G A PTS
Jacob Cepis 2 1 4 5
David Boehm 2 3 0 3
(three players tied with two points)
Green Bay GP G A PTS
Steve Silva 2 2 1 3
Sergio Somma 2 2 1 3
(eight players tied with one point)
Cedar Rapids vs. Waterloo
Cedar Rapids GP G A PTS
Jacob Cepis 2 3 1 4
Scott Wietecha 2 2 0 2
David Boehm 2 0 2 2
Waterloo GP G A PTS
(four players tied with two points)
Goaltenders/Season Series
Cedar Rapids vs. Green Bay
Cedar Rapids GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT
Richard Bachman 1 60:47 2.96 1-0-0 0 .912
Pat McGann 1 59:59 3.00 0-1-0 0 .900
Green Bay GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT
Adam Avramenko 2 120:47 2.98 1-0-1 0 .912
Cedar Rapids vs. Waterloo
Cedar Rapids GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT
Richard Bachman 1 60 2.00 1-0-0 0 .935
Kent Patterson 1 58:56 4.07 0-1-0 0 .892
Waterloo GP MIN GAA W-L-SOL SO SPCT
Ryan Rondeau 1 60 3.00 1-0-0 0 .912
Matthew DiGirolamo 1 58:40 3.07 0-1-0 0 .875
COACHES
Cedar Rapids
Mark Carlson, 8th year (231-168-39)
Mark Carlson has been the RoughRiders’ coach since the team arrived in Cedar Rapids in 1999. In 2005-06 he led the Riders to their second straight East Division title.
He has also piloted the Riders to six straight winning seasons and six straight Clark Cup playoff berths. The Riders are one of just two USHL teams to have reached the postseason each of the last six years.
The Riders are the only team to have advanced at least as far as the Clark Cup semi-finals/East Division finals each of the last two springs and four of the last five years. On December 3, 2005 Carlson picked up his two hundredth career coaching win as the Riders defeated Omaha 2-1 in a shootout. Carlson’s RoughRiders went 218-159-38 in his first seven seasons with the club.
The high point of his tenure was leading the RoughRiders to the first Clark Cup (playoff) title in team history along with a share of the Anderson Cup regular season title and the East Division title in 2004-05. The Riders went 42-13-5 during the regular season- the best record in club history- and swept through the first two rounds of the playoffs before defeating Sioux City three games to two in the finals. For his efforts, Carlson was named the 2004-05 USHL Coach of the Year.
Carlson, a native of Lawrenceville, New Jersey, is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts-Lowell where he earned a B.S. in Business Administration and Marketing. Also while at Lowell, Carlson skated in the highly competitive Hockey East conference as a forward on the River Hawks’ hockey team. His on-ice talent was recognized even before he arrived in Lowell when he was taken in the 1987 National Hockey League draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins.
After graduating from UML, Carlson spent one season as an assistant coach at Lawrenceville School before returning to Lowell to serve as an assistant to head coach Bruce Crowder. After helping the River Hawks to a berth in the 1996 NCAA tournament, Carlson spent another three seasons beside Crowder as an assistant at Northeastern University in Boston, where he also acted as recruiting coordinator. He earned a master’s degree in education from N.U.
During his time at N.U. Carlson also acted as recruiting coordinator. Among those he recruited for the Huskies were Jim Fahey, who now skates for the National Hockey League’s San Jose Sharks, and Mike Ryan, who would later be the top draft pick of the NHL’s Dallas Stars.
Green Bay
Mark Mazzoleni, 3rd year (63-72-9)
Mark Mazzoleni is in his third year in charge of the Gamblers. Last season he piloted Green Bay to the club’s first Clark Cup playoff berth in three years.
Mazzoleni took over the Gamblers after spending 16 years as a collegiate head coach, the last five at Harvard. Mazzoleni went 82-72-13 behind the Harvard bench, leading the Crimson to three NCAA tournament berths and two Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament titles.
Prior to taking over at Harvard, Mazzoleni spent five years at Miami (Ohio) University, where he piloted the Red Hawks to an 85-83-20 record and the second NCAA tournament berth in school history.
The vastly experienced Mazzoleni began his coaching career as an assistant at the University of Illinois-Chicago (1980-85). His first head coaching job was at Division III Wisconsin-Stevens Points (1986-91) where he piloted the Pointers to three straight national titles. Mazzoleni next spent three years as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Minnesota (1991-94).
In his playing days, Mazzoleni was a goaltender at Michigan State from 1976 to 1980.
Waterloo
P.K. O’Handley, 11th year (274-290-45); 5th year Waterloo (134-103-24)
O’Handley is now in his fifth season with the Black Hawks. He guided the Hawks to the 2003-04 Clark Cup title and the 2002-03 East Division title. He also led Waterloo to three straight playoff berths before that streak was snapped last year.
O’Handley won his one hundredth game as Waterloo coach when the Black Hawks defeated the Indiana Ice 5-4 in overtime on October 14, 2005.
O’Handley spent seven years (1991-98) as the head coach of the North Iowa Huskies, the team that moved from Mason City to Cedar Rapids to become the RoughRiders after the 1998-99 campaign. He posted a 140-187-21 record behind the Huskies bench. Prior to returning to the USHL with Waterloo, O’Handley was an assistant coach in the pro ranks for four seasons.
HISTORY
The Riders have gone nearly two full games (116:04) since Aaron Bogosian scored the last Cedar Rapids goal at 3:56 of the first period of the December 16 loss at Tri-City. That drought is still well shy of the team record for longest goalless streak. That mark was established when the Riders went 208:24 between Justin Micek’s goal at 12:32 of the first period of an October 2, 1999 game at Des Moines and their next goal three games later from Mike Brickley at 19:56 of the second period of an October 16, 1999 contest at Fargo-Moorhead.
The December 17 loss in Sioux City marked the first time the Riders have been shutout since January 31 of last season, when they were held without a goal in a 3-0 loss at Tri-City.
Last season was the Riders’ third straight 30-win campaign and also the fifth time in the last six years that the Riders have picked up at least 30 victories.
The Riders went 42-13-5 on the road over the last two seasons combined. The Riders’ road record was superior to their home record both last season season and in 2004-05.
The Riders are, along with the Omaha Lancers, one of just two teams who have reached the playoffs each of the last six years. As all 12 USHL teams will qualify for the postseason this year, that streak will be stretch to seven consecutive playoff berths in April.
The Riders are the only USHL team to advance at least as far as the division finals each of the last two years. Furthermore, Cedar Rapids is also the only team to reach the league’s final four in four of the last five years. Only one team (Sioux City) has even reached the second round three times in the last five years.
The Gamblers were swept in three straight games by the Des Moines Buccaneers in the first round of last spring’s Clark Cup playoffs. That postseason appearance was Green Bay’s first in four years. Prior to last year, Green Bay last appeared in the playoffs in 2001-02. The Gamblers also won what was then their fourth straight East Division title in 2001-02.
Green Bay has twice claimed each of the Clark Cup (1996 and 2000), Anderson Cup (1996 and 1997), and junior A national titles (1996 and 1997).
The Black Hawks missed last spring’s Clark Cup playoffs after qualifying each of the prior three years. The Hawks went 23-30-7 last year after posting winning records each of the prior three seasons.
The 2003-04 Clark Cup title was the first in Black Hawk history. The 2002-03 division title was the first in twenty-four years for the Hawks. Prior to that campaign, Waterloo last finished at the top of a division in 1979-80, the USHL’s first season as a junior league.
COLLEGE COMMITMENTS
Cedar Rapids (11)
Richard Bachman (Colorado College), Robin Bergman (Notre Dame), David Boehm (Massachusetts), Jacob Cepis (Bowling Green), Brett Dickinson (Quinnipiac), Evan Stephens (Dartmouth), Matt Tomassoni (Miami of Ohio), Kevin Wehrs (Minnesota), Scott Wietecha (Ferris State), Tommy Wingels (Miami of Ohio)
Green Bay (8)
Adam Avramenko (Niagara), Channing Boe (Minnesota State-Mankato), Michael Borisnok (New Hampshire), Bryan Haczyk (Niagara), Derrick LaPoint (North Dakota), Steve Silva (Northeastern), Sergio Somma (Ohio State), Shea Walters (Bemidji State)
Waterloo (11)
Matt Arhontas (Princeton), Ryan Cramer (Bemidji State), Jan-Mikael Juutilainen (Nebraska-Omaha), John Lee (Denver), Vince LoVerde (Miami of Ohio), Billy Maday (Notre Dame), James Marcou (Massachusetts), Ryan Rondeau (Yale), Anthony Schooley (Michigan Tech), Craig Smith (Wisconsin), Joshua Turnbull (Wisconsin)
NHL DRAFT PICKS
Cedar Rapids Year Round Overall Team
Sergei Kolosov 2004 5th 151 Detroit
Richard Bachman 2006 4th 120 Dallas
Waterloo Year Round Overall Team
Jan-Mikael Juutilainen 2006 6th 156 Chicago
ROUGHRIDER ALUMNI
Division I GP G A PTS
Justin Abdelkader (Michigan State/sophomore) 17 5 8 13
Phil Axtell (Michigan Tech/freshman) 17 2 4 6
GP G A PTS
Casey Bickley (Army/senior) 15 3 8 11
James Brannigan (Colorado College/junior) 14 0 3 3
Jamie Carroll (Providence/senior) 16 3 1 4
Greg Collins (New Hampshire/sophomore) 10 0 1 1
Chad Costello (Northeastern/freshman) 15 6 7 13
Ray Eichenlaub (Miami of Ohio/sophomore) 20 3 9 12
Jon Grabarek (Wayne State/sophomore) 12 0 3 3
Jordy Hart (Merrimack/junior) 10 1 0 1
Bryan Horan (Providence/senior) 15 1 2 3
Tyler Howells (Michigan State/senior) 17 0 9 9
Ray Kaunisto (Northern Michigan/freshman) 19 0 0 0
Steven Kaunisto (Lake Superior State/freshman) 17 1 3 4
Billy Loupee (Miami of Ohio/sophomore) 15 1 2 3
Shane Lovdahl (Alaska-Anchorage/sophomore) 16 0 4 4
Alec Martinez (Miami of Ohio/sophomore) 20 8 10 18
Zach Miskovic (St. Lawrence/sophomore) 17 2 4 6
Sean Muncy (Brown/sophomore) 12 5 5 10
Brandon Naurato (Michigan/sophomore) 18 6 3 9
Matt Olinger (Wisconsin/senior) 18 0 0 0
Zach Pearson (Ferris State/senior) 15 5 7 12
Derek Peltier (Minnesota/junior) 19 1 2 3
Nate Perkovich (Lake Superior State/freshman) 18 8 4 12
Jordan Pietrus (Brown/freshman) 7 0 1 1
Ted Purcell (Maine/freshman) 15 5 13 18