This Weekend
Friday, March 7, 7:05PM
Mid-America Center, Council Bluffs
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders vs. Omaha Lancers
Saturday, March 8, 7:05PM
95 KGGO Arena, Urbandale
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders vs. Des Moines Buccaneers
Recent Action
Tuesday, February 26
Cedar Rapids 4 Green Bay 1
Friday, February 29
Waterloo 3 Cedar Rapids 2 (SO)
Saturday, March 1
Chicago 2 Cedar Rapids 1
At a Glance
Cedar Rapids
28-17-3, 59 points
tied 2nd place East Division
Coach/GM: Mark Carlson
Omaha
35-10-4, 74 points
1st place West Division
Coach/GM: Mike Hastings
Des Moines
11-32-4, 26 points
6th place West Division
Coach: Todd Knott
Headlines
So Near Yet So Far: The Riders gave up crucial goals in the final minute of both of their games last weekend. Last Friday in Waterloo the Black Hawks’ Paul Weisgarber scored to tie the game with just 13.4 seconds left in regulation and the Black Hawks went on to down the Riders 3-2 in a shootout. While the Riders did earn one point for that result, they came out of last Saturday’s game against Chicago empty handed after the Steel’s Brian O’Neill scored the game winning goal with 25.8 seconds left in the third period.
Dead Heat: The Black Hawks defeated the Green Bay Gamblers 2-1 yesterday to move into a tie with the RoughRiders for second place in the United States Hockey League’s East Division. Both teams have 59 points with 12 games remaining.
One Is the Loneliest Number: The Riders have won just one of their last five games (1-3-1). The lone Rider victory during that stretch was a 4-1 defeat of the Green Bay Gamblers last Tuesday.
Corridor Cup Clincher: By earning one point for last Friday’s shootout loss in Waterloo, the Riders clinched the i wireless Corridor Cup, the trophy awarded to the winner of the Cedar Rapids-Waterloo regular season series. The Riders (4-1-2) have earned 10 points from the first seven games of the eight-game season series, the Black Hawks (3-3-1) 7 points. The I-380 rivals will wrap up the season series April 5 in Waterloo. This marks the fifth time in the nine year history of the rivalry that the Riders have won the Corridor Cup. The trophy returns to Cedar Rapids after the Hawks took home the hardware last season.
First and Worst: The Riders this weekend will meet both the team in first place overall in the USHL (Omaha) and the team in the league basement (Des Moines).
Go West, Young Men: After playing their last six games against East Division opposition the Riders will play eight of their next nine against foes from the West Division. The Riders have gone 5-1-1 in their last seven games against the west.
Powering Up: The Riders, who have scored at least one power play goal in each of their last four games, have retaken the league lead in power play efficiency (19.4 percent).
Second Best: The Riders give up just 2.5 goal per game, the second best average in the league. The Riders have allowed three goals or fewer in six of their last seven games and have surrendered one goal or none at all in each of their last seven wins.
Jonesing: Doug Jones (12-33-45), who scored the only Cedar Rapids goal last Saturday night, ranks fifth in the league in assists and tenth in points.
Alumni Spotlight: P.J. Atherton (2000-2002) of the Reading Royals leads ECHL defensemen in goals (13) and is tied for fourth among blue liners in points (39). The University of Minnesota alumnus has collected eight points (three goals, five assists) in just his last six games.
Scouting Report
Des Moines: Regg Simon resigned as Buccaneers Coach and General Manager last Friday and was replaced on an interim basis by Associate Head Coach Todd Knott…In his first game in charge Knott piloted the Bucs to a 4-3 win over the Chicago Steel. One night later Des Moines fell to Lincoln 5-1…Des Moines has already been eliminated from playoff contention… The Bucs will finish the season with a losing record for just the second time in the last 13 years and the just third time in 18 years…There is also a chance the Bucs will set team records this year for fewest wins and fewest points in a 60-game season. The existing records of 17 wins and 40 points were established in 2004-05…Des Moines ranks last in the league in goal scoring (2.2 per game), power play efficiency (12.9 percent) and penalty killing (80.6 percent) …For all their struggles this season the Bucs have gone 3-3-0 in their last six games and have won their last three against East Division foes…Taylor Matson (10-19-29) leads the team in points, while Chris Knowlton (13-10-23) is the Bucs’ top goal scorer…The Riders have outscored Des Moines 12-2 while winning the first two meetings of the season between the two teams. All-time the Riders have gone 29-12-4 against the Buccaneers and have posted a 16-4-3 record in Urbandale.
Omaha: The Lancers suffered a 3-2 shootout loss last Friday in Sioux City, a setback that ended Omaha’s 12-game winning streak. One night later a 5-2 loss in Lincoln halted the Lancers’ 18-game regulation unbeaten streak (16-0-2). The loss to the Stars was Lancers’ first regulation defeat since January 5. Both streaks are the longest of their kind in the USHL this season… The Lancers have also won nine straight home games... Omaha is one point ahead of the Indiana Ice in the race for the Anderson Cup (regular season) title. Indiana does have two games in hand on the Lancers…Lancers Coach and General Manager Mike Hastings set the USHL career record for most coaching wins- 518- on February 16 when Omaha defeated the Sioux Falls Stampede 7-0. Hastings is now up to 521 wins in 14 seasons behind the Lancer bench…The Lancers score more goals (3.8 per game) and give up fewer (2.3) than any other team in the league…Omaha’s power play (19.4 percent) ranks second only to the Riders’…Barry Almeida (19-35-54) ranks fourth in the league in assists and fifth in points; Chris Connolly (23-26-49) ranks fifth in goals and ninth in points; Matt Thurber (13-32-45) leads the league in shorthanded goals (6), ranks sixth in assists and is tied for tenth in points…veteran defenseman Keir Ross leads the league in plus/minus rating (+30)…goaltender Drew Palmisano leads the league in wins (25), ranks second in goals against average (2.07), third in save percentage (.921) and minutes played (2002:26) and fourth in shutouts (2)…The Lancers won their first meeting of the season with the RoughRiders, scoring a 4-2 victory in Cedar Rapids on November 9. All-time the Riders have gone 12-20-4 against the Lancers and have posted a 5-11-1 record on the road against Omaha.
Promotions
Jimmy Neutron: Jimmy Neutron, the star of his own Nickelodeon animated series and of the Academy Award-nominated film The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, will entertain fans young and old during the Riders Satruday, March 22 game against the Tri-City Storm.
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 half hour show is broadcast live from Union Station on 16th Avenue SW in Cedar Rapids. RoughRiders Coach and General Manager Mark Carlson and RoughRiders radio broadcaster Brian Lavelle are joined by Riders players on each edition of 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.