Ultimately, the Dells Jr. Ducks is hoped to be a spring/summer opportunity for youth hockey players of all ages, but Shaun Falzone, owner of the Ducks USPHL junior hockey team eased in with just a peewee level team this season.
The team made its competitive debut at the Clash of Sticks event in a couple Chicago arenas, the final event in a busy 2021-22 season for Ultimate Tournaments May 27-29.
The team, including players from Illinois, Texas along with Landen Uminski, Noah Backeberg and Evelyn Gurney from RWD, played four times, winning once and finishing fourth in its five-team pool.
The Ducks started out on the Friday night (May 27) at Addison Ice Arena, dropping a 7-2 decision against the Chicago Eagles.
The Eagles led 2-1 after a period and added four more in the middle period before both teams added one in the final period.
Pictured from left: Noah Backeberg, Landen Uminski and Evelyn Gurney posed for a picture after one of their games at the Ultimate Tournaments Clash of Sticks event at Fifth Third Arena in the heart of Chicago.
The Ducks returned to play two more on Saturday, beginning with a 4-0 shutout win against Wolverines Hockey. Three of the four goals came in the middle period, including the first, scored by Owen Voller with an assist from Uminski who picked up another point with the lone goal of the third period as well.
Later the same day, the Ducks came up short 6-2 against the Glacier Ice Dogs as a 1-1 tie after a period turned into a 4-1 deficit by the start of the third. The Ice Dogs added another before the Ducks finally scored its second in the final period.
The Ducks wrapped up play Sunday with a tough 1-0 loss against the Vipers, the lone goal scored late in the first period. The narrow win was enough to get Vipers into the championship game where the defeated the Eagles 3-2.
After Friday’s opener, all games were played at Fifth Third Arena in Chicago, the practice facility of the Chicago Black Hawks.
By Jim den Hollander Editor/Publisher Saukhockey.info A large number of RWD hockey players have avoided a lull in their schedule by trying out for and making the Western Wisconsin Blue Devils Summer Hockey teams.
Most of the teams attended three tournaments, wrapping up this past weekend. Details on the events were limited, but following is a list of teams that included local players and the details this reporter was able to garner.
’08 Blue Devils
The ’08 Blue Devils began its three-tournament season at the Border Battle Tournament with RJ Manley, a fixture with the Tomah-based squad for several seasons included in the lineup along with Thomas Sarnow.
Manley, an incoming RWD freshman and his teammates started out with an impressive 8-1 win against Blaze (Gold) at Somerset Ice Arena April 22, then returned the following day battling Breakaway to a 1-1 draw in Forest Lake and moving back to the win column with a 5-2 decision against Ice Edge in Woodbury, MN.
The Blue Devils wrapped up top spot in its six-team group with another 5-2 margin on April 24 against the St. Croix Muskies, played in Forest Lake.
At the Shock Doctor Tournament played in the Twin Cities area, the Blue Devils played in the six-team ’08 Upper draw, beginning April 29 with a 5-2 defeat at the hands of the Lake Superior Pirates at Brooklyn Park.
The following day, the North Metro Stars doubled the Blue Devils 4-2 but the Devils stormed back with an 8-2 win against FCA Hockey (Blue), both games played in Maple Grove.
In the first of two games Sunday, the Blue Devils were shutout 4-0 by Hockey Haven and they wrapped up a busy weekend, settling for fourth place after a 5-2 loss against the Madison Capitols in the third-place contest.
The team wrapped up the compact season playing this past weekend in the Mountain Dew Blast Tournament, also in the Twin Cities area. No details from that event were available at the time of printing this article.
’09 Blue Devils
A group of players from the Regional Champion RWD Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers stayed united on this team. Tyler Krieski and Ethan Pope both made the trip with the team to the Border Battle Tournament in Hudson. Playing at the AAA level is a giant step for players generally playing in smaller centers and the tournament was primarily a learning experience. After dropping a 10-3 decision against the Eskimos in the first game, April 22, the Devils played twice the following day, doubling the Minnesota Magicians 8-4 before falling 7-3 against Tommy Chicago later the same day. The Blue Devils returned to play Tommy Chicago again Sunday falling 8-3. Scoring details were unavailable. Krieski and Pope were joined by Ethan Wilcox and Hailey Dietl a few weeks later at the Shock Doctor Shootout played at several rinks in the Twin Cities area as well as the final tournament. The caliber was tough again in the State of Hockey, the Blue Devils opening April 29 with a tough 3-1 loss against All Out Hockey and returning the following day for a 5-2 loss against Hockey Factory from Fond du Lac, eventual championships in their 12-team division and a 2-2 draw against Arvada 2009. On Sunday, the team played in the 9th place match but settled for 10th following a 5-1 win against the same Arvada team. The team turned in its best effort at the end, settling for fourth place at the Mountain Dew Blast played at the National Sports Center Super Rinks in Blaine, MN, along with a few others. No game or roster details were available from this event played this past weekend but the ’09 team wrapped up fourth place.
’09 Blue Devils
’10 Blue Devils
This team that also included a trio of members from the Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers attended the same events as their ’09 teammates — Landen Uminski, Noah Backeberg and Jesse Arnold. Also, from the Sauk Prairie Flyers, Logan Harrington played in all three events while Michael Jolicoeur and Braden Slough joined for the final two. At the Border Battle Tournament, the ’10 Devils played its first two games in St. Croix, falling 4-1 in its opening contest against MPH Gold before bouncing pack with a 3-2 win against Blaze (Gold) later on Friday April 22. The Blue Devils stepped across the border to Woodbury and collected a 9-3 win against the Rivertown Muskies (Green) Saturday. On Sunday, the Devils wrapped up in Hudson, dropping a 4-0 shutout against the Eskimos. Scoring details were unavailable. At the Shock Doctor tournament, the local players joined the Blue Devils in the 10-team ’10-Lower’ Division. The team again continued its summer arena tour appearing in two more, beginning with a 4-1 loss against the Wisconsin Jr. Jets in Maple Grove, MN. The remaining games were played at Pagel Rink in Minnetonka, MN. The Devils clearly found it to be like home, collecting a 6-5 win against Arvada 2010 Saturday morning and a 4-1 decision against Rivertown Muskies (Blue) later the same day. An 8-2 win Sunday morning against Hockey Factory Lake Country advanced the Blue Devils into the Consolation Championship game and the locals stayed hot with its fourth straight win at Pagel, 7-4 against the MN Lakers (White). The Blue Devils wrapped up its short Spring/Summer season with a spot at the Mountain Dew Blast this past weekend where the ’10 Blue Devils wrapped up its season with a tournament championship.
The 2010 Blue Devils took the championship at the Mountain Dew Tournament Championship on May 15.
U-14 Girls Blue Devils
This division included four locals — Kayla Garbacz and Reese Olson who played as freshmen on the Badger Lightning varsity hockey team this past season along with Paige Othmer and Ryleigh Bychinski who reached the U-14 State Championship match with Tomah’s TNT Squad and will join the Lightning in the late fall. This team first played at the Border Battle Tournament, opening play in Baldwin, WI with a 5-2 loss against the St. Croix Selects Friday April 22, before bouncing back the same day at Woodbury, MN with a 2-0 shutout against Ice Cougar East. The following day, back in Baldwin, the U-14’s played Hometown Hockey to a 2-2 draw before wrapping it up in Baldwin with a 6-0 win against MPH Gold. On May 6 the Devils travelled to the Twin Cities to compete in the Spring Stampede, opening with a 3-0 shutout against Minnesota Hook at the Buffalo Civic Center and following it up with another goose egg, 6-0 against the South DC Tigers at the Super Rinks in Blaine. The Blue Devils moved on to a 4-4 draw in its third game (opponent unclear) at Blaine’s Fogerty Ice Arena, then moved on to Elk River Ice Arena to pick up a 5-2 win against Stampede Green. That moved the Devils into the tournament championship game where they came up just short 3-1 against Northern Elite White. The 14U squad finished it’s summer schedule with a spot at the Midwest Invite Tournament in Appleton May 13-15. In its opening match, the Blue Devils dropped a 3-1 decision against the Green Bay Hornets. Garbacz scored the lone Blue Devils’ marker in the second period. The following day Olson fired a pair and set up another with another goal from Bychinski as the Blue Devils got by the Milwaukee Tuskers 5-1. Later Saturday Hockey Factory Madison handed the locals a 2-0 loss. On Sunday, Othmer led the way with a goal and assist, Olson adding another goal and Garbacz setting up one in a 4-0 shutout against the Fox Cities Bulldogs, wrapping up third place for the Devils.
U-12 Girls Blue Devils
The U-12 Blue Devils, including Hailey Dietl wrapped up a solid spring season with the championship banner at the Midwest Invite Tournament in the Madison area.
Hailey Dietl did double duty playing for the U12 Girls Blue Devils as well as the ’09 squad. The team played three events as well, beginning with the Ignite the Ice/Trailblazer Tournament April 8-10 in the Twin Cities. Starting out with a 4-3 edge against the Red River Flames (Red) team on Friday night, they found the Red River Flames (Black) tougher on Saturday morning, falling 4-1. Later on Saturday, the Blue Devils responded with a 7-0 shutout win against Hometown Blue. On Sunday, the second seeded Blue Devils collected a 4-1 win agianst Red River Flames which moved them into the tournament championship where they ran into Red River Flames (Black) again, settling for runners up 6-1. Next up was Spring Stampede, May 6-8 also at the Elk River Ice Arena. The Blue Devils opened with an 8-1 win against the Majors and also blew by Blue Army Red 8-0, then played the Railhawks to a 5-5 draw. A 9-1 win in semis against the Majors sent the Blue Devils to a rematch with the Railhawks in the Championship game, but it was the Railhawks hoisting the hardware with a 1-0 win. Wrapping up the season, the Blue Devils played in the U-12 Midwest-Invite in the Madison area, wrapping up the season in style with five straight wins and a championship trophy. In the first game, the Devils downed Hockey Factory, Fond du Lac 7-1 on Friday at McFarland Community Ice Arena. On Saturday, the Devils earned a 3-2 edge against Milwaukee Tuskers at Verona’s Eagles Nest, then returned to McFarland for a massive 13-0 shutout against Them Girls. A 9-2 win in McFarland against the Hornets send the Devils to the championship game where it was joined by Dietl who played for the ’09 team in Minnesota on the same weekend. Dietl scored twice and set up the other, leading the Devils to a 3-0 win in the championship game against the Tuskers. Brooke Lakowske was on the receiving end of the pass from Dietl for her goal and returned the favor with assists on both Dietl markers.
’11 Blue Devils
Rainier Scott, a member of the RWD Squirts played for the ’11 Blue Devils who attended the same three events as the older Blue Devils’ teams, beginning with the Border Battle April 22-24. The competitition was tough for the ’11 Blue Devils who dropped four games. The first three, an 8-1 loss against the Guardians (Gray), 6-1 against the Blaze (Gold) and 8-1 against the OP Predators were played Friday and Saturday at St. Croix Rec Center and the final game, a 6-3 doubling by the MN Magicians was played in Hudson. At the Shock Doctor event April 29-May 1, the Blue Devils played in the 10-team U-11 Lower Division. After opening with a 4-3 win against the Wisconsin Titans at the Pagel Rink in Minnetonka Friday, the team moved to Eden Prairie Saturday, dropping an 8-1 decision against the Majors and settling for a 5-5 draw against MN Steel. On Sunday, the U11’s wrapped up the weekend, dropping a 7-4 decision to the Wildcats, also at Eden Prairie. Like the others, the U-11 Blue Devils finished the schedule at the Mountain Dew Blast which currently has no details available.
’12 Blue Devils
Briar Messer, another member of the RWD Squirt ‘A’ squad played for the ‘U12 Blue Devils which opened its season at the Border Battle event April 22-24 as well. The Devils started on the Friday in Somerset dropping a 3-1 decision against the Guardians (Gray), then headed to Woodbury on the Minnesota side of the border, battling the Ice Hawks to a 3-3 draw Saturday morning. Back in Somerset later Saturday, the Devils collected an 8-1 win against Lake’s Elite and they wrapped up play Sunday with a 6-3 doubling of Blaze (Gold). At the end of April at the Shock Doctor tournament, the ’12 Blue Devils played all games at Shakopee Rink, starting out with a 7-0 win Friday against. the Daggers. On Saturday, Devils collected an 8-1 win against the B-E Bombers (Red) but suffrered a 5-1 loss later in the day against the Fox City Bulldogs. On Sunday, the Devils suffered a 9-1 loss against the AAA Velocity who later claimed the division championship while the Blue Devils moved on to down the Wisconsin Jets 5-1 and wrap up third place. Like many of the other Blue Devils teams, the ’12 squad finished at the Mountain Dew Blast this past weekend, wrapping up the spring schedule with a third place showing.
’13-14 Blue Devils
Jase Uminski, Owen Meyer and Bentley Meyer played a part for the ’13-14 Blue Devils who attended the same three events as the other Blue Devils teams. At the Border Battle, April 22-24, the ’13 Blue Devils won four straight games, beginning Friday with a 7-6 edge against the Blaze (Gold) squad in Hastings, MN. On Saturday, the Devils pounded PH Grit 10-3 and downed the Guardians (Gray) 5-2, both games played in St. Croix. The team wrapped up top spot with a rematch and a 9-3 win against Blaze (Gold). Blue Devils were one of 16 teams at the Shock Doctor Shoot Out and got the tournament off to a great start with a 7-0 win against the WI Jr. Jets at Eden Prairie Friday followed by a 6-3 decision against Ice Edge (Blue) Saturday at the same rink. Later Saturday, the Blue Devils dropped an 8-1 decision against the MN Lakers at Braemar Arena in Edina. Those results put the team into a 7th place battle against the same Guardians (Gray) team it played a few weeks earlier. The Devils clinched the spot with a 5-3 edge. Last weekend, the ’13 Blue Devils finished the schedule at the Mountain Dew Blast, reaching the championship game.
The 2013-14 Blue Devils took top spot at the 2022 Border Battle Tournament.
By Jim den Hollander
Editor/Publisher
Saukhockey.info
The RWD Peewee A Cheavers, closing in on their trip to the WAHA Peewee 3A State Championship tournament in Somerset March 12-13 got another tournament test this past weekend.
Looking to add to hardware collected as champions at the Ultimate Tournaments Dairyland Classic in all the local rinks the previous weekend, the Cheavers won two of three at a tournament in Green Bay last weekend (Feb. 26-27).
After opening the event with a 6-2 win against the Ozaukee Ice Dogs Saturday morning at Cornerstone Community Center, the Cheavers hit the ice again Saturday afternoon, falling by the same 6-2 margin against eventual tournament champion Escanaba (Michigan) Hawks.
The loss Saturday afternoon snapped a six-game unbeaten string for the Cheavers, and they went right back to work starting a new streak Sunday with a 4-0 win against the Iron Kings, another Michigan-based squad.
Cheavers 6 Ice Dogs 2
In the first game, the Cheavers carried a 2-0 lead out of the person and had the game in hand with a 6-1 cushion heading to the third.
Landen Uminski paced the offense with a three-goal game, Ethan Wilcox scoring twice and setting up another and Tyler Krieski scoring the other, along with two assists.
Evelyn Gurney and Andrew Stando picked up assists as well and Jesse Arnold picked up the win in goal with nine saves.
Blake Atchison kicked out 23 shots for the Ice Dogs.
Cheavers 2 Hawks 6
The Cheavers gained some consolation in the knowledge they played the Hawks closer than any other team as the Hawks collected their second win of the week and claimed the title with a 12-4 margin against the host Green Bay squad.
Hawks were up 4-0 after a period and 5-1 after the middle frame, both teams adding one more in the third.
Hailey Dietl fired the first RWD goal, unassisted and the other game from Uminski with a feed from Wilcox.
Arnold kicked out 19 shots in the contest while Bryce Bichlor stopped six to pick up the win for the Hawks.
Cheavers 4 Iron Kings 0
The Cheavers shrugged off the loss to the Hawks and went back to work Sunday, collecting the 4-0 shutout against the Iron Kings.
The game winner came in the first period and the other three goals all game in the middle period.
Krieski and Uminski scored two goals each, Krieski adding an assist. Other assists were credited to Dayne Wagner, Noah Backeberg and Ethan Pope.
Arnold picked up his third shutout of the season and second in the past two weeks with eight saves, Aubree Moore stopping 16 for the Kings.
The 2-1 win boosted the Cheavers’ overall record to 27-17-2 and the team is an impressive 6-3-1 in its past 10 games.
The Cheavers were ranked fourth at the tournament based on some points system used for the event.
The final chance to catch the Cheavers on home ice will be this weekend as they get some tough tests on home ice at Reedsburg Area Community Arena Saturday, playing the Sun Prairie ‘A’ peewees Saturday (March 5) at 10:45 a.m. then return for a 4:45 ‘B’ test against the Waunakee ‘B’ Wildcats at 4:45 p.m.
On Sunday, the Cheavers will play the Tomah ‘A’ peewees at 9:15 a.m.
The RWD Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers wrapped up what it hopes is the first of two banners, claiming the championship in its Ultimate Tournaments Dairyland Classic Division over the President’s Day weekend.
The Cheavers kicked off the tournament Friday (Feb. 18) afternoon with a 4-0 win against the Waconia (MN) Wildcats at Lake Delton Ice Arena returned with an early morning 1-1 draw against a familiar opponent, the Waunakee Wildcats at Reedsburg Area Community Arena (RACA).
On Sunday morning, the Cheavers wrapped up division play and earned a spot in the championship game with a 3-1 against the Chicago Hawks also at RACA
Later Sunday, the Cheavers returned to Lake Delton to face the Waunakee crew again, claiming the banner with a 3-2 win.
RWD Cheavers 4 Waconia Wildcats 0
Two goals in the first and another pair in the second sent the Cheavers to a win in its opening contest.
Three goals came from Landen Uminski and Teaghen Geffert notched the other. Ethan Wilcox and Dayne Wagner each collected an assist and Jesse Arnold recorded his second shutout of the season in goal for the Cheavers.
RWD Cheavers 1 Waunakee Wildcats 1
A tight defensive battle against a Wildcats team the Cheavers have run into a few times this season saw teams battling to a draw.
Braxton McGuigan put the Wildcats up with the lone goal of the first period, but Uminski equalized the score in the second from Wilcox and Tyler Krieski early in the second.
From there it was the goaltenders taking charge, Arnold wrapping up with 10 saves while the Cheavers tested the Wildcats’ keeper with 25 shots.
RWD Cheavers 3 Chicago Hawks 1
The Cheavers clinched a spot in the championship game with a win Sunday morning in Reedsburg.
Wilcox fired the first goal of the game, late in the first period from Wagner and Krieski and Wagner converted a feed from Uminski early in the second with what turned into the game winner.
The Hawks pulled one back late in the middle period, but Krieski restored the two-goal margin in the final period with help from Wilcox.
Arnold stopped eight shots to pick up the win while the Cheavers peppered the Hawks’ goaltender with 27 shots.
RWD Cheavers 3 Waunakee Wildcats 2
The final brought a rematch with the Wildcats, and they engaged in another close battle Sunday afternoon.
Teams were tied in the standings, but the Wildcats got the nod as the home team based on goal differential through the preliminary contests.
That didn’t matter to the Cheavers who played even through the opening frame, opened a 2-1 edge in the second and widened the gap early in the third.
Uminski’s unassisted goal opened the scoring, and it was Wilcox with another unassisted goal in the second to put the Cheavers up 2-1.
Another Wilcox goal in the final period, from Andrew Stando widened the gap and turned into the game winner when the Wildcats pulled one back later in the period.
Arnold kicked out another dozen while the Cheavers fired 33 at the Waunakee goal.
Three wins and a tie boosted the Cheavers’ overall record to 27-16-2 and they will be looking for another tournament title attending an event in Green Bay this weekend.
That will leave one more weekend of play before the team heads to the WAHA Peewee 3A State Championship in Somerset. More information on that event will be on these pages in the days ahead.
The RWD Cheavers won three and tied one to claim the Ultimate Tournaments Dairyland Classic Peewee Division championship at Lake Delton Ice Arena on Sunday afternoon. Peewee Cheavers team members include: Hailey Dietl; Tyler Krieski; Landen Uminski; Ethan Wilcox; Dayne Wagner; Teaghen Geffert; Noah Backeberg; Evelyn Gurney; Andrew Stando; Jesse Arnold and Ethan Pope.
After qualifying to reach the championship game with a 10-3 win the previous day against the Monroe Avalanche, the RWD Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers punched its ticket to the WAHA Peewee 3A State Championship tournament with a 3-1 win against the host Sauk Prairie ‘A’ Flyers at SPARC on Sunday (Feb. 6) afternoon.
Cheavers 10 Avalanche 3
The three-team regional pool had a semi-final Saturday at McFarland, the Cheavers advancing with the lopsided win.
The game was all but over after the opening 15-minute period as the Cheavers held a 7-1 edge. A 2-1 margin through the second had them up 9-2 and both teams added one in the final frame.
Ethan Wilcox led the way for the locals, firing four goals and adding an assist, Landen Uminski scoring a hat trick and an assist while Tyler Krieski notched two goals and set up another. The other Cheavers’ goal came from Evelyn Gurney with single assists for Teaghen Geffert and Noah Backeberg.
Jesse Arnold collected another win in goal with 13 saves and the Cheavers held a 39-16 edge on the shot clock.
Cheavers 3 @ Flyers 1
The win advanced the Cheavers to an all-Sauk County championship game at SPARC Sunday and Arnold came up huge in that one, kicking out all but one of the 32 shots he faced, including 14 down the stretch from a desperate Flyers’ team that threw everything it had at the Cheavers goal.
After a scoreless first period, all four goals came in the middle stanza, Michael Jolicoeur opening the scoring in the fifth minute for the Flyers with an unassisted goal.
Uminski evened the score, from Wilcox a short time later and it was Geffert burying the game and regional championship winner with 6:50 to play with assists for Uminski and Wilcox.
Kreski’s unassisted goal 100 seconds later added some insurance but this one had a long way to go to reach the finish line.
The peewee Cheavers will advance to the WAHA Peewee 3A State Championship tournament March 12-13 at Somerset. The entire field was filled on Sunday and the first game for the Cheavers at 11 a.m. March 12 will be against region 1 champions – Amery Warriors. More details on the tournament will appear in the days leading up to the opening game.
Members of the Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers celebrated its WAHA Region 4 Championship and berth in the WAHA State 3A Peewee Championship tournament. Pictured from right to left are: Evelyn Gurney, Dayne Wagner, Ethan Wilcox, Jesse Arnold, Noah Backeberg, Landen Uminski, Hailey Dietl, Teaghen Geffert, Tyler Krieski, Ethan Pope. PHOTO CONTRIBUTED.
The RWD Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers stayed hot, rebounding from its first loss in seven games the previous weekend with 16 goals in two wins on a Mississippi Valley swing Sunday.
After collecting a 9-4 win against the La Crosse Flames at Green Island Ice Arena, the Cheavers stopped at the Panther Den in West Salem on the way home, collecting a 7-2 win against the West Salem Panthers.
Cheavers 9 @ Flames 4
Six third period goals turned a close game into a cakewalk for the Cheavers who led 1-0 after a period and 3-2 heading to the final period.
Tyler Krieski scored the first two for the Cheavers and ended the game with three goals and an assist. Dayne Wagner and Andrew Stando both scored twice, Wagner assisting on one and Stando setting up a pair. Ethan Wilcox and Teaghen Geffert both collected a goal and assist, and Ethan Pope also had a helper.
Jesse Arnold stopped 17 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Cheavers.
Cheavers 7 @ Panthers 2
Wilcox donned the pads for the second game and kicked out 10 of 12 to pick up the win in goal.
The Cheavers helped him out jumping into a 4-1 first period lead and extending the margin to 5-2 in the middle frame.
Wagner, Landen Uminski and Geffert each fired a pair in the game, Wagner adding three assists to wrap up a nine-point road trip. Krieski scored the other and picked up an assist.
The Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers have gotten hot at the right time, picking up wins in eight of 10 since putting up the 2022 Calendar. Overall, the team sits at 18-11-2. After a couple weeks on the road the team returns home for a busy weekend as it goes through final preparations before Regionals the following weekend.
The team will play a rare game at the Lake Delton Ice Arena playing the Waunakee ‘B’ Wildcats at 9:30 to start a three-game day. The other two games, at 2 and 5 p.m. will be against the La Crosse Flames at Reedsburg Arena Community Arena (RACA).
Sunday the Cheavers will play two more at RACA against at 10:45 a.m. and 2:45 p.m. against the Madison Patriots.
The RWD Peewee Cheavers took its act on the road to the Northern Shootout tournament in Spooner last weekend (Jan. 15-16) collecting a pair of wins to reach the championship game and extend its longest streak of the season before running into a Minnesota powerhouse.
A 7-0 shutout against the Dodgeville Ice Wolves and a 4-2 doubling of the Ashland Youth Hockey Program advanced the Cheavers to the championship game where it ran into a Cottage Grove, MN team playing below its level. As a result, the locals saw its streak end by an 8-0 margin.
Ice Wolves 0 @ Cheavers 7
The Cheavers took care of things quick in the opening game on Friday with five unanswered first period goals, four of them scored in a span of 3:06 in the middle part of the period.
Meanwhile, goaltender Jesse Arnold stopped all 13 shots he faced to collect the shutout win in goal.
Tyler Krieski paced the Cheavers’ offense with a three-goal game, Landon Uminski adding two goals and two assists. Dayne Wagner and Evelyn Gurney fired the other RWD goals while Ethan Wilcox and Noah Backeberg picked up assists.
Ashland Youth Hockey 2 @ Cheavers 4
The Cheavers were home team again for the second game and made it work thanks to a pair of unanswered middle period goals. Both teams fired once in the first and final periods.
This time it was Uminski with the hat trick, the final three after Krieski notched the first period marker. Wagner and Wilcox collected assists and Arnold kicked out 11 of 13 to pick up the win in goal.
Cheavers 0 @ Cottage Grove Wolfpack 8
The Cheavers were unfortunately no match for the Wolfpack who were playing in a division below their level. Arnold was the busiest player in the game with 50 stops despite the lopsided score.
The loss ended a six-game winning streak for the locals who will stay on the road Saturday with games at Green Island Ice Arena in La Crosse and the Panther Den in West Salem Sunday.
RWD Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers won two of three and wrapped up the Finalists trophy at the Northern Shootout in Spooner this past weekend. Team members (in no specific order) include Hailey Dietl; Tyler Krieski; Landen Uminski; Ethan Wilcox; Dayne Wagner; Teaghen Geffert; Noah Backeberg; Evelyn Gurney; Andrew Stando; Jesse Arnold and Ethan Pope.
The RWD peewee ‘A’ Cheavers wrapped up its most successful weekend of the season so far with four wins, all on home ice at Reedsburg Area Community Arena (RACA).
The Cheavers had double win days, picking up 6-2 and 7-4 victories against the visiting Madison Patriots on Saturday and matching it with 11-6 and 10-6 wins against the Black River Falls Tigers on Sunday.
Several players enjoyed huge offensive weekends – that happens when a team scores 34 times — including Landen Uminski with 21 points, Ethan Wilcox with 11 and Tyler Krieski with nine.
Patriots 2 @ Cheavers 6
The Cheavers set the tone in the first game Saturday, turning a 1-0 lead after a period into a 5-1 cushion in the second.
Dayne Wagner set the pace with a hat trick, Wilcox scoring twice and Noah Backeberg adding the other. Uminski set up three, Evelyn Gurney adding two assists and Hailey Dietl helping out on one.
In goal for his first of four weekend games, Jesse Arnold stopped 15 of 17 shots to pick up the win.
Owen Hadden fired both goals for the Patriots.
Patriots 4 @ Cheavers 7
In the rematch, the Cheavers carried a 2-1 lead into the second period and both teams fired a pair in the second before the hosts put it away with a 3-1 margin down the stretch.
Uminski, Dietl and Wilcox fired two goals apiece for the Cheavers, Uminski adding two assists and Wilcox one. Tyler Krieski fired the other Cheavers’ goal and Andrew Stando also picked up an assist.
Arnold stopped another 16 shots for his second win of the day.
Hadden fired a hat trick for the Patriots, the other goal scored by Dillon Reynolds.
Tigers 6 @ Cheavers 11
Uminski scored five and set up another pair while Krieski fired a hat trick, Wilcox adding two goals and a setup. Wagner had the other goal, Ethan Pope and Dietl adding assists.
Brooke Lakoske scored five for the Tigers, McKenzie Apicella adding the other.
RWD outshot its guest 34-25.
Period breakdowns were not available from the first match.
Tigers 6 @ Cheavers 10
The Tigers stayed with the Cheavers for two periods, even at 2-2 after 15 minutes and the Cheavers up 5-4 heading to the third. A 5-2 margin in the final period made it an easy win for the hosts.
Uminski wrapped up a 14-point day with three goals and four assists, Krieski notching his second hat trick of the day along with two assists and Wilcox also scored three. Teaghan Geffert notched the other Cheavers’ goal. Wagner and Backeberg picked up assists.
Lakoske fired another four Tigers’ goals with others added by Jordyn King and Andrew Gunderson.
The hot streak comes just in time for a tournament test as the peewees head to Spooner for three games beginning Friday. A win in the first game would be a fifth straight, matching the team’s longest winning streak from Nov. 13-28 2021.
The Sauk Prairie Bantam ‘B’ Flyers wrapped up a busy weekend with a trip to Reedsburg Area Community Arena where it picked up a 7-2-win Dec. 12 against the RWD Bantam Cheavers.
The Eagles grabbed control with three unanswered first period goals and three more in the middle period had the visitors up 6-1 heading to the final period where both teams added one more.
Kaleb Chetwood fired a hat trick and set up two others to pace the Flyers’ offense with other goals added by Jacob Wiegman, Tucker Acker, Slater Denu and Tyler Jorgenson.
Peewee Call up Landen Uminski and RJ Manley scored for the Cheavers with assists for Ethan Wilcox, also a peewee and Manley.
Jordan Kowalski stopped 28 shots in goal for the Cheavers and Ethan Goodman picked up the win with 19 stops for the Flyers.
The RWD Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers started a busy weekend taking a 10-0 knock from the Verona ‘A’ Peewees Saturday (Dec. 4) morning, but things improved the rest of the way.
On the way home, the Cheavers stopped at Hartmeyer Ice Arena in Madison Saturday afternoon and bested the Patriots 3-1.
On Sunday, the Cheavers played on home ice at RACA, collecting a 10-1 win against the Monroe Avalanche.
In the opener at Verona, goaltender Jesse Arnold was the busiest player in the game, facing 50 Verona Wildcats shots and turning away 40. The home team carried a 3-0 lead out of the opening period and widened it to 7-0 heading to the third.
At Hartmeyer, the Cheavers hit the scoreboard first, Ethan Wilcox hitting the mesh after taking a feed from Landen Uminski, but a last-minute goal had the host Patriots even by the end of the first period.
Tyler Krieski buried the game winner unassisted and Dayne Wagner added insurance with help from Wilcox later in the middle period.
Arnold made it stand up, stopping all but one of the 28 shots he faced and helping the Cheavers to the win despite being outshot 28-23.
The following day against the Avs, the local peewee squad picked up a big win against a regional opponent, carrying a 3-0 lead out of the opening period and building it to 8-1 in the second before wrapping up with two more unanswered in the final frame.
Krieski, Evelyn Gurney and Noah Backeberg scored twice each for RWD and Krieski also added a pair of assists. Andrew Stando, Wilcox and Teaghan Geffert each added a goal and assist, and Uminski set up a pair. Wagner fired the other RWD goal and Ethan Pope collected an assist. The Cheavers held a 35-9 edge in shots in the contest.
The loss on Saturday stopped a five-game Cheavers’ winning streak, but the team has now won seven of its last eight and heads into play this weekend sporting a 7-6-1 record.
On Saturday, the peewee Cheavers will play the Middleton ‘A’ Cardinals peewees at 5:15 p.m. at RACA, returning Sunday at 8:30 a.m. to play the Oregon ‘A’ Panthers peewees. Wrapping up the weekend, the locals will move to Lake Delton Ice Arena to play Waunakee Wildcats at 2 p.m.
Sauk Hockey 