Ducks’ three game streak ends in slugfest in Lake Delton

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

Riding a wave of success started a week prior in Minnesota, the Dells Ducks earned a split on home ice against the Steele County Blades this past weekend.

The team stretched its winning streak to three games and collected at least a point in the opener of a home series for a third straight time as well with a 6-5 overtime thriller on Saturday night at Lake Delton Ice Arena.

Unfortunately, the streak came to an end the following afternoon as the Ducks continued another trend, dropping the second game of a third straight home set.

As a result of the weekend, the Ducks are a more competitive 3-3 dating back to the start of the Blaine (MN) Showcase tournament. Other teams from the bottom of the Midwest-West Division have collected points as well though the Ducks continue to battle to escape the bottom floor of the nine-team division.

Ducks 6 Blades 5 (ot)

It’s difficult to find a better played game for the Ducks of the 17 played so far this season.

Anthony Falzone went to the crease for a third straight and delivered another solid effort between the pipes. The team continues to struggle getting out of the gate in the opening period. But after Falzone got the team through the opening minutes, things settled in and the Ducks rolled to an 11-9 edge in shots. Almost certainly the first time the Ducks held the edge in shots after 20 minutes this season.

Not only did the locals lead on the shot clock, Jack Kopfstein and Ashot Davtyan both scored second half goals to lift the Ducks into a 2-1 lead after 20.

Kopfstein, the team’s leading scoring also set up the second goal with other assists coming from Lucas Epperson, Quinten Clausen and Keynan Miller.

Owen Plumert made it a two-goal cushion in the first minute of the second period, from Braydan Kirchmann and Reece Atkins, but the visitors rallied back with three goals in the next eight minutes, the second and hird scored just seven seconds apart.

As a result, the Blades owned a 4-3 cushion, but Owen Plumert and Alic Schuster both notched goals before the end off the period as teams entered the third even at 5-5. Assists went to John Scott, Austin Holmberg, Kirchmann and Kopfstein.

With a crazy second period in the rearview mirror, goalies stepped up down the stretch, Falzone and Bence Gaspar of the Blades combined to stop all 31 shots fired in the final frame. For Falzone, his 21 third period saves wrapped up a 45 shot total for the night.

Overtime belonged to the Ducks who fired three shots before Austin Plumert found the mark from Scott and Holmberg.

The Ducks took full advantage of their chances, scoring twice on five powerplays and the Blades also collected one with an exrra attacker on a night that saw teams combine for 54 minutes in the sin bin. Apparently, they were just getting warmed up.

Blades 5 Ducks 1

The Ducks looked to stretch the streak to four Sunday but got sidetracked as discipline was thrown out the window by both teams.

Frustration at some questionable calls in the game played a part, but things went south in the second period with the game very much still up for grabs.

Five misconducts and a major helped the teams combine for 89 minutes in penalties. Both teams were guilty, but a brawl with just over five minutes to play in the second period completely changed the focus of the Ducks who trailed just 2-0 at the time.

This one stayed close until the final minutes.

Owen Plumert scored the lone Ducks goal, from Gabe Krueger and Atkins with 3:44 to play, cutting into a 3-0 Blades lead, but an empty neter with 64 seconds to go and another goal 24 seconds later made the score more lopsided than the game actually was.

Falzone was in goal again and provided his team with another 40 saves as he is delivering what he hoped to bring to the team this season now.

The weekend split leaves the team at 4-11-1-0 so far, sitting in an eighth-place tie with the Minnesota Mullets who also have played 17 games.

The Ducks have played six of the other eight teams in their division and will cross another team off that list with a Friday-Saturday pair at South Wood County Recreation Center in Wisconsin Rapids agaisnt the Riverkings (9-3-0-2).

The Riverkings will be the final team to play on home ice after starting out with six weeks on the road. The rivalry with the Riverkings has built over the past decade primiarily as they are the closest team to the Dells geographically.

Game time for both contests is 7 p.m. and the Riverkings generally draw some big crowds for home games.

Ducks will head to Motown for their second and final Showcase event the following week and will not play on home ice again until Dec. 14 when they begin a stretch of six straight games at the Lake Delton, Ice Arena.

Duck Quacks – Congratulations to Colin Trulock who began this season as the Dells Ducks Assistant Coach, specifically responsible for the Defense corps.

Trulock recently accepted the head coaching position with the Sauk Prairie Eagles varsity hockey team as Head Coach David Lohrei has resigned from the position. Pracitces for varsity teams began Monday in Wisconsin.

Recently Dan Smolen who has transitioned nicely from player to coach this season also announced he will be leaving after the Christmas break as he will attend college.

Head Coach Anthony Rohde forged a solid relationship with both assistants as well as Jeramy Greenwood who helps out with the Ducks whenever he is not needed with the RWD vasity hockey team where he is also an assistant coach.

To help, team owner Shaun Falzone stepped behind the bench with Rohde this past weekend along with local hockey talent Derek Tylka.

As a junior player, Tylka played much of his youth hockey with the Madison Capitols and started his junior career as a 18-year-old with the Dubuque Thunderbirds of the former CSHL. The following season he played Tier 2 in the Superior International Junior Hockey League and spent his age out season as the first captain with the Minot Minotauros in the NAHL.

Tylka moved on to play three seasons of ACHA Division 1 hockey with the University of Oklahoma Sooners.

Best of luck to Trulock and Smolen in the months ahead, welcome back to the bench Shaun and a big welcome to Tylka who gives the Ducks yet another strong local presence.

Ducks hope to ride the wave for first home win

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

Coming off what was likely its most emotional and ultimately, best week of the USPHL Premier Midwest-West regular season, the Dells Ducks are looking to pick up their first ‘dub’ on home ice this weekend.

In town on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon will be the Steele County Blades.

Veteran goaltender Anthony Falzone was as much a key as anyone in the team’s 180-degree turnaround last week, kicking out 42 Steele County shots at the Midwest Showcase in Blaine, MN on Friday collecting the shutout and bringing an end to an 11-game losing streak. He followed that up later the same day with a 2-1 win against Decatur.

While the goaltending and defense carried the week, the Ducks offense showed some signs of life as well after scoring two of fewer goals in seven of those 11 games.

This weekend, an angry Blades team will likely be visiting town looking for some revenge. Last season, the Blades collected three of four points against the Blades on the road but surrendered a pair of losses in early January that may have cost the team a shot at seventh place at season’s end.

Safe to say, this series will be vital for both the eighth place (3-10-1-1) Ducks and sixth place (5-5-0-1) Blades who both have sights set higher in the Midwest-West standings.

The 32 goals scored by the Blades this season leaves them as the only club with fewer than the Ducks who have also played four extra games. The 38 goals against for the Blades is among the best in the league so goals will be at a premium this weekend.

Offensively, the Blades are led by returners Brody Ward (‘03/Buffalo, MN 4g, 10a); Noah LaFleur (‘03/Fairbanks, AK 5g, 4a) and Arturas Laurynavichus (‘04/Minsk, Belarus 4g, 5a), three names familiar to the vets on the Ducks.

For the Ducks, third year defenseman Jack Kopfstein (‘05/Vista, CA) is off to a great star with five goals and 13 points in 14 games while Owen Plumert (‘05/Hudsonville, MI) is enjoying a fine rookie season with five goals and nine points.

The Ducks have turned into a deeper and more balanced team this season though. There are five other players within three points of Plumert and of late, they have seen several names appear on game sheet scoring sections.

Special teams could be a big factor in this one. The Ducks rank fifth of nine in their division in penalty minutes and the Blades have about 30 minutes more despite playing in four games fewer.

On paper, the Ducks’ goaltending does not have the type of numbers a player would brag about but it is currently trending better of late. Michael Carden (‘05/Dayton, OH) will likely be sidelined again with concussion symptoms, but Falzone (‘03/St. Charles, IL) is coming off the big games in Blaine while John Freiburger (‘06/Dubuque, IA) and Juan Aguilar (‘07/West Dundee, IL) have both had stretches of brilliance between the pipes as well.

All things considered; the team is in a good position this season compared to a year ago. At the end of October last season, the Ducks sat at 0-11-1-1, so the eight points collected has them six points ahead of last season’s pace.

Despite the dismal month of October, the Ducks enter November with a shot at reversing course and moving toward the division’s mid-pack.

But that move needs to start this weekend.

The Ducks will face off against the Blades at 7 p.m. Saturday, followed up by a 1:30 p.m. battle on Sunday.

The Blades will begin their own weekend on home ice Friday (Nov. 3) against Hudson Havoc.

These will be the team’s lone home games in November but they remain close the following weekend, traveling to Wisconsin Rapids for its first series of the season against the rival Riverkings. The following weekend the team travels to the Detroit area for its second and final Showcase tournament of the season, wrapping up the month with a single contest back in Owatonna, MN against the Blades.

Falzone brilliant in helping Ducks shake off skid

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

Improvements in every area of the game partnered with the best day of his four-season junior career for goaltender Anthony Falzone allowed the Dells Ducks junior hockey team to not only bring an 11-game losing skid to a screeching halt, but begin the team’s first winning streak as well.

There have been plenty of promising signs and games but until Friday (Oct. 27), they had all ended in diappointment.

Falzone did it in a big way, kicking out every one of the 42 shots he faced, leading the Ducks to a 4-0 shutout win agianst the Steele County Blades Friday morning, despite being outshot by a 42-24 margin.

He followed it up with a return to the blue paint a few hours later backstopping the Ducks to its second win of the day, 2-1 in overtime against the Decatur Blaze.

Those wins came in the final two games for the Ducks at the Midwest Showcase Tournament at Fogerty Ice Arena in Blaine, MN. The Ducks had another close but no cigar game against the Isanti Outlaws Wedesday, an empty netter clinching a 3-1 win against the team that has found more ways to escape that Houdini against the Ducks in the past two seasons.

The most disappointing contest was Thursday against the Chicago Cougars who pulled away to a comfortable 6-1 win.

Following is a closer look at each of the four games

Wednesday Oct. 25 – Ducks 1 Outlaws 3

Jack Freiburger gave an indication of the goaltending the Ducks could expect at the event, making the most of his first start in goal for the team after being added to the roster recently.

Tyler Schmitt was the only Outlaws player able to find a way past thedid it twice in the opening period. His goals came 3:21 apart allowing the Isanti squad to build a 2-0 first period lead. The opening 20 has been torturous for the Ducks all season long and this one stayed true to the course as the Outlaws slammed 15 shots at Freiburger in the frame.

Freiburger was flawless the rest of the way stopping all 13 shots he faced in the second and third periods before Easton Parnell sank the clincher with Freiburger sitting on the Ducks bench in favor of an extra attacker.

Ducks turned the tables in the second period, peppering Zach White with a 14-4 shots margin but the only one to elude White came from the blueline as Austin Holmberg’s wrister took a trick arc into the top part of the mesh. Assists on his first goal of the season went to his former Amery High School teammate Reece Atkins and his defense partner, Jack Kopstein.

The Ducks have played Outlaws close in almost every match through the past two seasons but in three games this year, all they have to show for it is one shootout point.

Thursday Oct. 26 – Ducks 2 Cougars 7

Thursday’s game saw another goaltender looking to impress as Juan Aguilar made his first start since taking the Outlaws to a shootout in September.

The Cougars simply wore down the goaltender, carrying a 2-0 lead out of the opening period with a 15-6 edge on the shot clock. This time though, the trend continued through the next 40 minutes as well as the Ducks were pounded by an overall shot margin of 51-16.

John Scott gave his team some hope with his goal, cutting the lead in half in the opening minute of the second period, from Braydan Kirchmann and Owen Plumert, but the Cougars snatched that hope away, scoring the next four before Scott struck again with his third of the season on a feed from Kopstein.

The game was all but over after 40 but the Cougs made sure with one more in the final frame.

Arthur Pawlik fired three for Chicago with others added by Aidan Canady, Liam Norton, Ryan Johnson and TJ Haas.

Friday, Oct. 27 Ducks 4 Blades 0

Falzone showed the best way to get through the horrendous first periods for the Ducks was to simply weather the storm and kick out everything he saw. The rest of the team responded though, the defense limiting the Blades to 13 mostly outside shots in the period while the offense triggered 10 the other way.

Anthony Falzone celebrates at the buzzer after his 42-save shutout against the Steele County Blades at Fogerty Ice Arena in Blaine, MN Friday (Oct 26) morning. The four year goaltender for the Ducks has had some big moments but this was easily the best day of his junior career. Photo Courtesy Midwest PIx

All things considered; this was the Ducks’ best opening period of the season so far. Alic Schuster’s goal late in the opening segment gave the Ducks its first lead since the second game of the season when they defeated the Minnesota Moose. Holmberg and Ashot Davtyan collected assists on the Schuster goal.

Despite facing another 15 shots through the midtams werew dle frame, Falzone kept the 1-0 cushion in tact and in the final 20 minutes, the Ducks found the mark three more times, the first from Quinten Clausen with his first junior goal.

Owen Plumert notched his fifth and Damien Calzada wrapped it up with his fourth while also collecting an assist. Other helpers went to Davtyan, Scott, Atkins, Kopstein and Lucas Andruskiewicz.

Falzone made them all stand up though with his 42-save performance coming in his first game back from a bruised sternum suffered the previous weekend agianst the Minnesota Moose.

Ducks 2 Blaze 1 (ot)

Falzone returned to the crease for the team’s final game in Blaine and helped them rally from behind for the overtime win.

Clearly inspired by the previous game, the Ducks oushot on opponent for the first time through the opening period, but despite a 13-12 margin, the Ducks and Blaze remained scoreless heading to the second

Before the halftime break, Connor Wilson put the Blaze on the board. Teams returned with 10 minutes to play in the second and Zach Halling responded for the Ducks with his first career junior goal, with help from Andy Gonzalez and Lucas Epperson.

Teams entered and exited the third period in the 1-1 deadlock and Kirchmann’s solo effort 77 seconds into the overtime segment lifted the Ducks to its second win of the day.

Falzone put up a goose egg after the second period goal, stopping 24 of 25 in the contest and 66 of 67 on an unreal day at the office.

Duck Quacks — The two wins bring an awesome finish to a rough month with a record of 2-7-1-1. The eight points has the Ducks sitting eighth overall in the nine-team division ahead of only the 3-10-0-0 Minnesota Mullets. However, the Ducks sit just three behind both the Blades and Outlaws currently tied for sixth. The Blades will be in Lake Delton Saturday and Sunday for a pair of games against the Ducks.

— November will be another busy month for the Ducks who will play nine times, the Nov. 4-5 contests the only ones on home ice. They will pay a visit to Wisconsin Rapids to play the Riverkings the following weekend, then attend the Detroit Showcase Tournament for four games Nov. 17-19, wrapping up in Owatonna Nov. 26 against the Blades.

–Jack Kopstein is inching closer to some major milestones for the Ducks. With the games in Blaine, the smooth skating defender is now 14 away from becoming the ninth player in team history to play 100 games for the Ducks. Currently Kopstein’s 86 leaves him in a three-way tie with John Urgo and Ian Harris.

Points-wise, Kopstein has a career total of 22 goals and 59 points, good enough for fourth all time among Ducks defenders. His next point will move him into a tie with Sean Teske for third. Jake Stima remains the leader among Ducks’ blue liners with 51 goals and 121 points. Bradley Hefner scored 20 goals and 84 points and

Ducks head to Blaine for first Showcase tests

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

October has been a crazy month for the Dells Ducks and they saved the craziest part for month’s end.

The team will wrap up a six-game week with four games at the Blaine (MN) Showcase being held at Fogerty Ice Arena starting tomorrow (Wednesday, Oct. 25). They will be one of eight Midwest-West Division teams taking part along with others from the Midwest-East, Great Lakes and Northwest Divisions.

Showcase play began Tuesday with a pair of games and the Ducks will open its Showcase with the third start of the day Wednesday, against the Isanti Outlaws who will be already facing off for a second time, dropping an 8-4 decision to the Nashville Spartans Tuesday.

On Thursday, the Ducks will return to play its first cross-division match of the season when they lineup against the Chicago Cougars. Friday the Ducks will play twice, facing off against the Steele County Blades from their own division and followed up by the Decatur Blaze from the Midwest-East.We

Following is a quick look at each game Ducks will play.

Game 1 – Wednesday Oct. 25, 11:10 a.m. (CDT) vs. Isanti Outlaws.

A case can be made why all four games are vital for the Ducks, but this one out of the gate carries a ton of importance.

A quick look at the division standings shows the Ducks at 1-8-1-1 currently sitting at the bottom of the Midwest-West Division in ninth place. The team has had plenty of promising moments and periods but so far has gotten just one win to the finish line.

As the ninth-place team, the Ducks would be excluded from the playoffs if it started today.

Particularly disappointing was the Ducks’ home opening weekend against the Outlaws who captured the first win in a shootout and wrapped up the weekend with a more lopsided 6-2 win.

Take away its pair against the Ducks and the Outlaws have just one other win, also coming in a shootout.

It’s way too early to panic, but the Ducks clearly need to make the most of the games against teams close to them in the standings if they hope to be playing playoff hockey this season. The Outlaws currently sit three points and three positions in front of the Ducks so if they don’t want to see the Outlaws riding off into the sunset, they need to get things together Wednesday and close the gap.

Game 2 – Thursday, Oct. 26 10:40 a.m. vs. Chicago Cougars

The Cougars and Ducks play in different divisions but there is a rivalry between them going back to the Cougars’ first days.

Both teams were brought to the league by former owner John Schwarz so until a few seasons ago, they were sister clubs. In their early seasons, the teams squared off frequently and had a couple memorably playoff series.

Since the Midwest-East was formed, the Cougars have been the division’s top entry, but the Ducks always seem to play them tough. Last season, thanks to the goaltending of Chris Maszurek, but the Ducks captured a 1-0 win against the Cougars at the Chicago Showcase.

The Cougars roll into Blaine playing at .500 with a 3-3-1-1 record an both teams will be hungry for a ‘W’ on Thursday.

Game 3 – Friday Oct. 27, 11:40 a.m. vs. Steele County Blades.

The Blades are one of three Midwest-West Division team the Ducks have yet to play this season.

Both the Ducks and 2-4-0-1 Blades expected to be off to stronger starts this season. The Blades hae played four fewer games than the Ducks

Currently both are in a pack of bottom four teams, sixth to ninth separated by a total of three points. A good Showcase could move one or more of those teams closer to the top five which is starting to move away from the bottom pack.

Last season, the Ducks and Blades split their four meetins. This season with the Showcase game, they will faceoff five times against each other.

Game 4 – Friday Oct. 27, 5 p.m. vs. Decatur Blaze

The Blaze had no wins in 44 games last season, but turned some heads when they opened the 2023-24 season taking two of three on home ice against the Cougars. Since then, the Blaze has lost eight straight and come into the Showcase even with the Ducks, both with four points in 11 games.

Hopefully by the time the Ducks roll into this finale, they will be looking for a cherry on top of a great showing in Blaine and not looking for some consolation to take home. The Ducks seldom match up with the Blaze but have mostly been successful against them in the past.

Overall – This is a chance for the Ducks to salvage the month and head into an equally busy month of November. The main thing missing for the young squad is game confidence and backing it up by doing whatever it takes on the ice. This week could decide whether the Ducks make their move as expected into the Midwest-West mid-pack or continue to slog with the other teams in the basement. These are four big games.

Duck Quacks – So far this season, the Ducks have relied heavily on goaltenders Anthony Falzone and Michael Carden. Injuries have delivered a great opportunity for Juan Aguilar and Jack Freiburger to make decisions tougher for the coaching staff. bru

Both Carden and Falzone turned in solid efforts against the Moose the past weekend. Carden got to the end, but later displayed concussion symptoms so he is out of action this week. Falzone left the game early suffering what turned out to be a bruised sternum. He would currently be classed as questionable for these games.

Aguilar went to the crease against the Isanti Outlaws in the Ducks’ home opener and turned in an amazing effort, ultimately surrendering a 4-3 decision in Shootout. An’other solid performance or two in Blaine would make the goaltending decision tougher.

Freiburger joined the team recently from Dubuque and got his first chance to stop pucks Saturday after the injury to Falzone. He came off the bench and stopped 10 of 11 against the Moose.

It will be interesting to see where the Ducks sit, but the time they arrive back in the Dells Friday night.

Ducks manage to take single point out of weekend

By JIm den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The Dells Ducks turned in a jeckyl-hyde impression at its latest homestand weekend but it was only good for one of a possible four points.

On Friday night, the Ducks entertained the Minnesota Moose, a team it defeated for the first time in team history a month prior, battling them throughout before ultimately coming up just short in a 5-4 overtime loss.

Saturday night, the Ducks kept it close for a bit, but the Mose dominated on both the shot clock and the score sheet, heading home happy with a 7-1 win.

Moose 5 Ducks 4

The Ducks’ only regulation win this season came in Blaine on Sept. 23 and that also might be the last time the team held a lead in a game as first periods have not been friendly to the team this season.

On Friday, Michael Carden, the same goalie that kicked out 52 of 54 shots the night they picked up that win turned in another strong goaltending effort, this time in front of the hometown faithful.

On the scoresheet, teams were even after all three periods, 0-0 after the first and second frames and 4-4 after a wild third period.

But on the shot clock there was a major difference. The Moose dominated the opening period by a 20-8 margin and the game was still scoreless heading to the third despite a 35-17 margin for the visitors.

The Moose grabbed control with two goals in the first five minutes of the final period but Jack Kopfstein, the team’s third year vet from Vista, California notched two for the Ducks 1:11 apart to pull them level. The first goal came with the Ducks shorthanded on a feed from Alic Schuster and he second was an even strength goal from Owen Plumert.

John Becker and Evan Doan fired the earlier Moose gals and Derek McGrew put his team in front again with 7:20 to play, Kopfstein again replying on a powerply from Owen and Austin Plumert 5:46 from the buzzer.

A second for Becker had the Moose up again with just 4:14 to go but the Ducks applied intense pressure down the stretch with Carden on the bench in favor of an extra attacker and it paid off with eece Atkins firing his first of the second, eight ticks from the buzzer, from Kopfstein and Austin Plumert.

Becker wrapped up his own hat trick with the overtime game winner just before the end of the opening minute.l

The end result was disappointing but the promise of better things to come had fans interested on Saturday night. The crowd was also bolstered by many who spent most of the day Saturday taking part in the EV42 Tournament.

Moose 7 Ducks 1

Another thing that helped build the crowd was news spreading around town Saturday the Brandt brothers – popular twins Caden and Carsen who graduated from Reedsburg Area High School thias past spring were going to put on Ducks jerseys for the Saturday game.

The crowd was ready to be wowed, but it never took place on Saturday unfortunately as the Moose agan piled up the shots. Anthony Falzone faced the barrage bravely, but the Moose turned a 24-6 first period shot total into a 2-0 lead, adding antoer 21 in the second to build it to 6-0 before Ashot Davtyan fired the lone Ducks’ marker in the final minute of the second period, from Gabe Krueger and Carsen Brandt.

Falzone was forced to the sidelines with what turned out to be a bruised sternum late in the second period and Jack Freiburger, a recent addition for the Ducks from Dubuque faced his first junior shots, stopping 10 of 11.

On Friday night, the team welcomed young fans to the locker room after the contest for autographs and the traditional Saturday night skate with the Ducks wrapped up things a night later.

Local hockey fans got a treat on Saturday night as the Brndt brothers helped the Ducks out while home on a visit from UW-Platteville. From left: Carsen Brandt, John Scott and Caden Brandt all played together on the RWD varsity team for four seasons and on local youth teams before that.

The Ducks will wrap up the month October with four games at the first of two Showcase tournaments, this one in Blaine, MN starting Wednesday. A preview on that event will be in this space Tuesday night.

Ashot Davtyan, a Ducks veteran signs an autograph for a young fan after Friday’s game against the Minnesota Moose.

Ducks return home looking to end seven-game skid

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

On September 23 Dells Ducks celebrated its first ever USPHL Premier Midwest-West Division win against the Minnesota Moose and a promising 1-1 opening weekend setting the stage for what was supposed to be a bounce back season for the team.

The following weekend, a losing sweep back in the Twin Cities against the Minnesota Mullets wrapped up a 1-3 month of September and October has been worse.

Ducks will be happy to rip this page off the calendar, suffering five straight losses so far, although the team did collect a shootout point in its previous homestand against the Isanti Outlaws.

There’s still time to salvage a decent month though with the Minnesota Moose paying its return visit to Lake Delton Ice Arena for 7 p.m. contests on both Friday and Saturday followed by the first of two Showcase tournaments, back in Blaine through the week.

The Ducks will be looking to bring an end to a seven-game skid when the puck drops against the Moose Friday night, and it will take a marked improvement on both offense and defense.

The Ducks played three times this past weekend, scoring one goal in each game and just five in its last four games. Defensively, the team has had some good moments, but against a Minnesota Squatch team that could be even more offensively mighty than it was last season, the team was outscored 22-2. In the seven-game skid the total score was 49-17.

There hasn’t been much to smile about recently for the Ducks, but veterans Lucas Epperson and Alic Schuster brightened spirits at practice Thursday, giving the Ducks players a preview of their Halloween costumes at the Lake Delton Ice Arena.

The Ducks scored nine goals in two games against the Mullets at the end of September and five more against the Isanti Outlaws the final weekend, but the offense dried up between games. Afer taking the Outlaws to a shootout before dropping a 4-3 decision in the first game, the Ducks managed just two the following night and haven’t scored more than that since.

Meanwhile, the Moose followed up its season opening set with the Ducks with another split against the Wisconsin Rapids Riverkings the following weekend and have captured wins in three of four since.

Head Coach Anthony Rohde and his staff have continued to work hard in practice to get the team on the right track and this past week, did a bit of line juggling, including moving second season vet Gabe Krueger up to a top line as a reward for his strong play so far. Krueger collected five points in 35 games last season and has already scored a pair of goals this season.

The team will deal with a few nagging injuries this weekend, including Braydon Kirchmann, a valuable player up front, but he could be back as early as Wednesday when the Ducks travel to Blaine to play four games in three days, wrapping up a busy and disappointing month (so far) at the Showcase event.

Of course, the Ducks know now it can beat the Moose but expect a Moose team anxious to show its first loss ot the Ducks was not the start of a trend this weekend.

DUCK TRACKS– Congratulations to Coach Danny Smolen who played for the Ducks last season. He recently announced he will be attending College and playing hockey at Aurora University near Chicago at the start of the January semester. A hardnosed rugged and physical defender, Smolen will no doubt prove to be a great asset to the Aurora squad. In the meantime, Smolen will continue behind the bench with the Ducks until Christmas Break.

— Looking for a bit more variety in the teams it plays at the Blaine Showcase next week, there has been a minor change to the schedule. Play begins, as regularly scheduled on Wednesday (Oct 25) against the Isanti Outlaws Wednesday at 11:10 a.m. (CDT).

The change will be on Thursday as the Ducks are now scheduled to face off against the rival Chicago Cougars from the Midwest-East Division. Current players are not familiar with the longstanding rivalry, but the teams that used to be sister clubs under the ownership of John Schwarz seem to run into each other at least once every season.

The connection still exists. The Cougars are coached by Former Ducks bench boss Josh Dallman and among the players on the Cougars roster is former RWD player and Dells resident Trevor Slaght, although he will likely not be taking part after a recent knee injury.

That game will take place at 10:40 a.m. on Thursday, followed by the final two games on Friday, against the Steele County Blades at 11:40 a.m. and the Decatur Blaze from the Midwest East Division at 5 p.m.

Ducks will be home team in two games and visitors in the other two, but it is unclear which ones as this is written.

— After Friday’s game, the Ducks will welcome young players seeking autographs a chance to enter the Ducks’ locker room and the Ducks will continue its tradition of allowing fans to skate with the Ducks for a few minutes after Saturday’s games, so if you are a local youth hockey player, make sure to bring your skates.

Squatch mauls Ducks in weekend series

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The Dells Ducks limped home from a rough USPHL Premier Midwest-West Division weekend that has run its current losing streak to seven games.

It was expected to be a tough three-game weekend against the division’s only remaining undefeated teams. The Minnesota Squatch outscored the local side 22-2 in games Friday and Saturday running its own record to 6-0. On the way home, the Ducks stopped in Hudson and turned in a much more competitive effort, but ultimately fell 4-1 against the host Hudson Havoc.

For the young Ducks it’s hoped the experience will be a tough but beneficial lesson. Last season there were some lopsided losses early but the team showed a marked improvement over the second half of the season. October has been a tough month and there are some difficult tasks before the month ends as well.

The Squatch joined the division last season an have a 7-0 record against the Ducks since then. The team boasted some of the leatgue’s top scorers last season and despite most of them moving on, the Squatch boasts a similarly explosive offense made up of secondary players from last season and some new hot shooters this time around.

Goaltenders were simply overworked, facing a total of more than 130 shots in the two games. On Friday night, the Squatch was held off for nearly a half period, but then fired two in 23 seconds on its way to a 3-0 first period lead and a 6-0 cushion by the end of the second period.

Gabe Krueger Mhis second of the season early in the third period for the Ducks on Friday and Saturday’s goal came from Owen Plumert, his fourth of the season.

On Sunday, goaltender Michael Carden helped the team weather an early storm. Outshot 17-5 in the opening period and 12-9 through the middle period the Ducks trailed just 1-0 heading to the final 20 minutes.

The visitors wrapped up the weekend with its best period, outshooting its host 12-8, but Evan Luxford fired his second of three in the sixth minute to give the Havoc a 2-0 cushion.

Defenseman Jack Kopfstein fired the team’s lone goal, his second of the season just 26 seconds later but the Havoc fired another pair shortly after.

The Ducks will look to snap its current skid playing in front of friendly fans this weekend when the Minnesota Moose pays a visit to the Lake Delton Ice Arena with 7p.m. games on both Friday and Saturday night.

A preview on the series and an early look at next week’s Blaine Showcase will be available Thursday night.

Outlaws rob Ducks of home opener weekend wins

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The Dells Ducks took just one of a possible four points on its USPHL Premier Midwest-West Division opening weekend but the young squad continues to show promise for the long season ahead.

Slow starts continue to haunt the team but also showed heart and resilience in a pair of games against the Isanti Outlaws who captured a 4-3 shootout win Saturday followed up with a 6-2 win in the getaway game Sunday afternoon.

Saturday’s game featured a pair of teams looking to shake off a slow start to the season. The Ducks were 1-3 and coming off a couple tough losses on the road against the Mullets the previous weekend while the Outlaws dropped four straight after winning its season opener.

The Outlaws were outscored 27-2 in those four games but certainly found their scoring touch on a 10-goal weekend in the Lake Delton.

Teams were even at 2-2 after a period and 3-3 after 40 minutes before playing through a scoreless third and five-minute overtime segment that saw the clubs combine on more than 100 shots.

The Ducks peppered Zach White with 64 chances and Juan Aguilar (‘07/Elgin, IL) saw 40 tough shots in his junior hockey debut for the Ducks.

Aguilar turned in a stellar effort in goal, especially in the overtime period when he calmly stopped three chances with the Ducks playing three against four thanks to an infraction called with four seconds to play in regulation.

William Stornello (‘04/Brookfield, WI) and Bryce Purtill (‘03/Ames, IA) both connected on their first junior goals and the other came from Alic Schuster (‘04/Broofield, WI), his third of the season.

The game went to shootout where goals from Dillon Meyer and Lyndon Orr lifted the Outlaws to the win, the Ducks settling for its third point of the season.

On Sunday afternoon, the Outlaws scored twice in the opening 10 minutes and carried a 2-1 cushion into the middle period.

Ducks’ starter, Anthony Falzone (‘03/St. Charles, IL) shook off the early goals and provided nearly 30 minutes of shutout hockey until the Outlaws found a way past him again in the final minutes of the second to break a 2-2 deadlock. That goal was the lone one of 21 in the period to get by Falzone.

The final period got away from the Ducks who became frustrated with what they thought were some missed calls and the Outlaws added three more during a period that saw teams combine for 57 minutes of infractions.

While the results were not exactly what the team hoped for, the Ducks picked up a point and played in front of what might be the largest home crowd since it captured the Bush Cup in 2015. A mix of players parents and local fans packed the two home bleachers and took up a fair chunk on the visitor’s side on Saturday night.

The Ducks have a challenging three-game road trip ahead this weekend making the trip to Furniture And Things Community Event Center in Elk River, MN for a pair against the 4-0-0-0 Minnesota Squatch Friday and Saturday and a stop in Hudson WI Sunday to play the Hudson Havoc (1-0-0-1). Next home games will be Oct. 20-21 when the Minnesota Moose pay a visit.

Ducks hoping September lessons lead to October results

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

Ok, September is in the books, and it didn’t go exactly as planned.

The Dells Ducks can chalk it up to a steep learning curve and some early season nerves and consider themselves lucky that the month included just four games.

After gaining a split with the always strong Minnesota Moose including the Ducks first win against the same team on opening weekend, there was excitement around the team.

But a flat first period against the Minnesota Mullets saw the team trailing 6-0 before the halfway mark of the second period at Augsburg University Ice Arena Friday. To their credit, the Ducks never surrendered and actually had an extra attacker on the ice in the final minute, trailing 7-6. The Mullets ended the drama with an empty net goal, but it seemed the Ducks held all the momentum heading into Saturday’s game.

A much better defensive game ensued for both teams, but the Ducks found themselves trying to rally from behind again. Despite erasing 2-0 and 3-2 deficits the Ducks ultimately fell again by a 5-3 cound, an empty netter again providing the insurance for the home team.

Two losses and no points is the ultimate result, but the spirited rally and nine goals scored were promising signs heading forward.

Desperate is too strong of a term for a team just entering its fifth game of the season, but as of Thursday, the Ducks and Outlaws both sit at 1-3 and both expected to be in a better position.

Outlaws will start the weekend on Friday in Blaine, MN against the Moose.

For the Ducks, the weekend series kicks off an 11-game month of October – all but four of those games on the road including four at their first Showcase event back at Fogerty Ice Arena in Blaine Oct. 25-27.

Notables

— It’s a way off yet, but it seems likely Jack Kopfstein will become the ninth player in Ducks’ history to play in 100 games. With the four games played so far this season, Kopfstein sits at 76 games in his third season with the Ducks. He currently sits 28^th overall on the list. Kopfstein is tied for 23^rd overall in points with 18 goals and 32 assists for an even 50 points, sitting level with Milwaukee’s Conner Aguilar.

— Way too early to make any predictions but the 14 goals scored in the team’s first four games, including three game scoring streaks for both of the Plumert twins (Owen and Austin) make one wonder if Ian Wood’s single season record of 36 goals could be approached this season.

Coach Rohde is looking for some better results in October

Meet the Ducks — Epperson and Schuster

Ducks overcome horrific start, but fall just short to Mullets

By JIm den Hollander
Editor/Publisher
Saukhockey.info
The Dells Ducks kicked off a second straight weekend trying to rally back from a horrific period of play at Augsburg University Friday (Sept. 29) night.

The Ducks made the trip to Augsburg in the Twin Cities to take on the Minnesota Mullets, a team it dominated last season, winning all four regular season meetings, but the team didn’t realize the game was underway until the end of the opening peirod . Despite a frantic third period rally, an empty netter carried the Mullets to an 8-6 win.
The Mullets took full advantage of a lackadaisical start to the contest for the Ducks, scoring its first goal 5:15 into the contest and piling on another four by the end of the opening period despite a slim 16-10 edge on the shot clock.

A more inspired Ducks team showed up for the team period but it was the Mullets adding another before Braydan Kirchmann (’04/Waterloo, IA) finally got the visitors on the with 6:53 to play in the middle period.
Alic Schuster (’04/Menomonie Falls, WI) notched a second a little over four minutes later and the Ducks, who outshot their host 18-11 in the period carried some momentum into the final 20 minutes.
Again, it was the home team on the board first in the final period, making it a 7-2 game in the second minute.
But the Ducks never surrendered, beginning the long road back with a goal from Damien Calzada (’06/Plainfield, IL ) 5:32 into the frame.
Jack Kopfstein (’05/Vista, CA) scored what seemed a meaningless goal with 7:10 to play but then the Plumert twins — first defenseman Austin (’05/Hudsonville, MI) with 5:56 to go and another from forward Owen with 2:10 to go had the Ducks within a shot of tying the score.
The Ducks had an extra attacker on the ice and goaltender Anthony Falzone (’03/St. Charles, IL) on the bench looking to complete the amazing comeback, but Caden Sutter (’03/Eau Claire, WI) slid his second of the game into an empty Ducks’ goal with less than a minute to play, ending the threat.
The slow start was shocking, but the Ducks’ rally was inspiring and its hoped the team can follow it up with a win for a split in the weekend series, as it did the previous weekend in Blaine, MN against the Minnesota Moose, battling back from a 7-1 loss in the opener with a 4-2 win the following night.

The Ducks held a 42-35 edge on the shot clock and outscored its host 6-3 through the final 40 minutes.

Falzone came into the game to mop up with the Ducks trailing 4-0 in the first period, Michael Carden (’05/Colorado Springs, CO) getting his second straight start.

Game time at Augsburg University Ice Arena will be 7 p.m. tonight (Saturday, Sept. 30).