Former Cedar Rapids RoughRiders goaltender Richard Bachman, now a freshman at Colorado College, has been named Western Collegiate Hockey Association Rookie of the Week while former Rider defenseman Evan Stephens, who is now in his freshman season at Dartmouth, has earned ECAC Hockey League Rookie of the Week honors.
Bachman, 20, posted back-to-back shutouts against Minnesota-Duluth last weekend. Bachman made 31 saves in the Tigers’ 3-0 win over UMD last Friday in Duluth. One night later the Highland Ranch, Colorado, native turned aside 29 shots in a 4-0 victory over the Bulldogs.
For the season, Bachman ranks first in the nation in save percentage (.935), ranks second in goals against average (1.71) and ranks third in wins (21) and shutouts (4). Bachman’s superb play has helped propel fourth ranked C.C. to the top of the WCHA. This marks the third time this season he has been named conference Rookie of the Week.
Last year Bachman went 14-10-2 with a 2.99 goals against average, two shutouts and a .913 save percentage in 26 games with the RoughRiders after being acquired in an early-season trade with the Chicago Steel. Bachman was superb for Cedar Rapids in last spring’s Clark Cup playoffs, going 4-1 in six games while posting a microscopic 1.28 goals against average, two shutouts and a .951 save percentage.
Bachman was selected by the Dallas Stars in the fourth round of the 2006 National Hockey League Draft with the one hundred twentieth overall choice.
Stephens, 20, collected four points in two games last weekend. The Bessemer, Michigan, native scored one goal and assisted on another last Friday in Dartmouth’s 5-4 loss to Brown. One night later Stephens picked up a pair of assists in the Big Green’s 7-2 win over Yale. On the season Stephens (5-14-19) is Dartmouth’s third leading point scorer.
Stephens spent four seasons in the United States Hockey League- his last two with the RoughRiders. Last year Stephens, who was a Rider co-captain, scored eight goals and recorded 34 points while also posting a plus/minus rating of +15. After starting his USHL career with the Sioux Falls Stampede, Stephens played 114 career games in a Cedar Rapids uniform, totaling 12 goals and 50 points.
The RoughRiders (28-16-2, 58 points) are currently in second place in the USHL’s East Division. The Riders return to action with a pair of games this weekend. The Riders will visit the Waterloo Black Hawks Friday night before returning home to take on the Chicago Steel the following evening at 7:05.
Tickets for all remaining RoughRider regular season home games- including Saturday’s game- are now on sale. Tickets are available for purchase in person at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena ticket office, over the phone at (319) 261-4625 or on line 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.