This Weekend

Friday, January 11, 7:05PM

Resch Center, Green Bay, Wisconsin

Cedar Rapids RoughRiders vs. Green Bay Gamblers

Sunday, January 13, 1:05PM

Resch Center, Green Bay, Wisconsin

Cedar Rapids RoughRiders vs. Green Bay Gamblers

Recent Action

Friday, January 4

Cedar Rapids 5 Waterloo 3

Saturday, January 5

Cedar Rapids 4 Green Bay 0

At a Glance

Cedar Rapids

19-7-1, 39 points

2nd place East Division

Coach/GM: Mark Carlson

Green Bay

9-17-2, 20 points

5th place East Division

Coach/GM: Mark Mazzoleni

Headlines

Back-to-Back: The Riders won back-to-back games over the weekend and have taken four of five since returning from the United States Hockey League’s holiday break.

Home Sweet Home: Last Saturday night’s win over Green Bay was the Riders’ team record-setting ninth in a row on home ice. The Riders broke the old record of eight consecutive home victories set between February 17 and April 7 of last year. The Riders have not lost at home since suffering a 4-2 defeat to the Omaha Lancers on November 9. On the season the Riders are 13-1-1 at the ice arena- the best home record in the USHL.

Tripleheader: The Riders are in the midst of a stretch of three straight games against the Gamblers as they visit Green Bay for a pair of games this weekend after shutting out the Gamblers last Saturday night in Cedar Rapids. The Riders were originally scheduled to play the Gamblers this Saturday night. However, that game was moved to Sunday afternoon because the original date conflicts with the Green Bay Packers’ National Football League playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks. Lambeau Field, the historic home of the Packers, is directly adjacent to the Resch Center.

Nine is Fine: The RoughRiders have won nine straight games against the Gamblers. The Riders have won the first three meetings between the two teams this season and won the final six head-to-head match-ups last year. The Riders have not lost to Green Bay since a season opening 4-2 defeat at the hands of the Gamblers on October 7, 2006 in Cedar Rapids.

Well Done: Casey Wellman scored two goals- including the game winner- last Saturday night. He scored three times and totaled four points on the weekend while posting a plus/minus rating of +4. Wellman has now produced eight points (four goals, four assists) in his last five games and 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in his last nine outings. Wellman is a +12 over his last eight games and is now tied with teammate Tyler Thompson for seventh in the league with a +15 for the season.

Jonesing: Doug Jones (8-19-27) remains the Riders’ leader in points and assists. Jones is tied for ninth in the USHL in assists.

Hjelle Donut: Brady Hjelle last Saturday night posted his second shutout of the season. Both shutouts have come against Green Bay. Hjelle made 26 saves last Saturday and has stopped 75 of the 76 shots he has faced in three games against the Gamblers this season. Hjelle recorded his first USHL shutout on October 12 as he turned aside 34 shots in a 4-0 win in Green Bay.

D-Fense!: In the wake of last Saturday’s shutout of the Gamblers, the Riders once more rank first in the league defensively. The Riders allow just 2.4 goals per game and are the only team in the USHL to have surrendered fewer than 70 goals- they have given up just 65.

Powering Up: The RoughRiders have converted 20.5 percent of their power plays. They are the only team in the league to have met with success on better than 20 percent of their man advantages.

Shoring Up Shorthanded: The Riders went three-for-three on the penalty kill last Saturday against Green Bay after giving up two power play goals in each of their prior two games and surrendering at least one power play goal in each of their previous seven outings- a stretch that had seen opponents go 11-for-32 against the Riders on the man advantage. The riders rank ninth (82.4 percent) in the league on the penalty kill.

Attendance on the Up: After 15 home games, RoughRiders attendance is up by 10 percent- an average increase of 256 fans per game- compared to the same point last season. The Riders have averaged 2,803 fans per game this season compared to 2,547 per game through 15 dates last year.

Ins and Outs: Defenseman Paul Phillips (shoulder) has missed the Riders’ last six games.

Alumni Spotlight: Bowling Green freshman Jacob Cepis (2004-2006) scored twice as the Falcons upset top ranked Miami (Ohio) 4-2 last Friday. On the season Cepis (9-8-17) ranks second on the team in goals and is tied for third in points. He leads all BGSU freshmen in goals, assists and points. Miami did bounce back to down Bowling Green 5-2 last Saturday in a game that saw five former Riders- Cepis and MU’s Pat Cannone, Billy Loupee, Alec Martinez and Tommy Wingels- record at least one point.

Scouting Report

Green Bay: The Gamblers are winless (0-4-1) in their last five games…Green Bay lost to Ohio 5-1 last Friday at home before falling in Cedar Rapids one night later…The Gamblers allow a league-high average of four goals per game and have surrendered 28 goals in just their last five games…C.J. Lee (12-7-19) leads the Gamblers in goals and points. Lee has scored five goals in his last six games…Joe Schiller (10-7-17) is the Gamblers’ second-leading point producer. Schiller scored Green Bay’s goal in a 4-1 loss in Cedar Rapids on December 14- the only goal the Gamblers have scored in three games against the RoughRiders so far this season…Goaltender Neil Conway is winless (0-3-1) in his last four games…Defenseman Kyle Ensign played in both games for the Gamblers last weekend after being acquired from the Tri-City Storm in a trade for forward Phil Ginand last Thursday... The RoughRiders are 3-0-0 against the Gamblers this season. All-time they have gone 35-16-3 against the Gamblers and have posted a 14-9-2 record in Green Bay.

Promotions

Hawkeye Jersey Auction: The RoughRiders will wear special edition Iowa Hawkeye jerseys during their Saturday, January 19, game against the Sioux Falls Stampede. Following the game, the jerseys will be auctioned off with proceeds benefiting the ALS Association and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Iowa.

Watch/Listen

That’s The Ticket!: RoughRiders single game tickets can be purchased in person at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena ticket office, over the phone at (319) 261-4625 or online at www.roughridershockey.com. The ticket office is open from noon to 5:00PM on weekdays and from noon through the end of the second period on game days. Ticket prices range from $7 to $17 in advance and from $8 to $18 on game days.

Be Flexible: The RoughRiders are again this season offering the Flex Plan, which enables fans to purchase books of ten ticket vouchers that can be redeemed in any quantity for any regular season home game during normal box office hours. Fans who purchase the flex plan receive a significant discount ($21 off game day ticket prices) and can still enjoy the games of their choice in the seats they want.

On the Air: All RoughRiders regular season and playoff games are broadcast on AM-1360 The Fan in Cedar Rapids. Brian Lavelle provides play-by-play.

Catch the Coach: Catch up on all the latest Rider news with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders’ Coach’s Show with Mark Carlson Wednesday nights at 6:00 on AM-1360 The Fan. The weekly half hour show is broadcast live from Union Station on 16th Avenue SW in Cedar. RoughRiders Coach and General Manager Mark Carlson and RoughRiders radio broadcaster Brian Lavelle will be joined by Riders players each week on the Coach’s Show.

Online: Courtesy of B2 Networks, free audio webcasts of Riders games are available at www.roughridershockey.com. The RoughRiders and B2 also offer pay-per-view video webcasts of all RoughRiders games. Fans can click on the “Watch RoughRiders’ Games Live” icon at www.roughridershockey.com to catch the action. The broadcast is available to fans with a high speed DSL or cable modem internet connection. The charge for video webcasts is $6 per game.