The Dells Ducks carried momentum into the second game of a two-game set in Isanti, MN Saturday (Nov. 13) but a rough middle period was the difference in a 6-2 loss.
The team, coming off its first win in two months the previous night was clearly riding high at the beginning of the rematch and built a 2-0 lead through the first 14 minutes.
Both Ducks’s goals came from Jacob Cartland, the ‘02 from Mukwonago who was among the state’s leading varsity scorers last season. Caden Glamkowski set up both for yet another multipoint game. He has now collected 30 points in 20 games, ranking him among the top 20 in the 64-team USPHL Premier League.
Jayden Tkaczuk also picked up an assist for his 20th point, one more than he collected last season when he led the team in scoring. Defenseman Jack Kopstein had the other set up, his third of the weekend.
Cartland’s second goal gave the Ducks its first two-goal lead of the season but it didn’t last long. Jared Petty got the Mallards on the board just 11 seconds later.
The Ducks carried the 2-1 cushion into the middle period after staying even on the shot clock with 11 apiece. The Mallards dominated the second period though, scoring four unanswered goals and dominating the Ducks to the tune of 20-6 on the shot clock.
The weekend series saw the Ducks hit the 20-game mark on the season and they will cross the halfway mark this weekend when they travel to Merrimack College in Andover, MA for the Islanders Hockey Club Showcase, playing four times against teams from other USPHL Premier Divisions, the final games before the team’s Thanksgiving Break.
When team snaps a losing streak, it is often said they have shaken a monkey off its back.
The beast perched on the shoulders of the Dells Ducks was evicted as the Ducks earned a 5-4 overtime win against the Rum River Mallards at Isanti Ice Arena against the Rum River Mallards Friday (Nov. 12) night having been there for 15 games.
After climbing off the team’s collective shoulders, he returned to his regular job, swatting at jets and helicopters from the top of the Empire State Building.
A still short-staffed Ducks team hit the road for two games in Isanti in what might seem like an easy weekend after playing three of more games in each of the previous three weekends. They will begin another four-game weekend Thursday.
The team collected its second win of the regular season, shrugging off its lack of numbers and taking the game to the same team that defeated the Ducks 13-4 at the Lake Delton Ice Arena in the opening game of the season in September.
Routinely doubled, tripled or worse on the score sheet, the Ducks battled hard Friday night and held the edge in shots for the first time in 19 games this season, holding a 35-34 margin.
The win in goal was recorded by Drew Moseley who patrolled the crease for the Mallards last season. It was his first win as a Duck and couldn’t have come on a better time.
The shots edge came when Caden Glamkowski buried his team leading 14th goal of the season with the only shot of the overtime period, helped by Jack Kopfstein and Jayden Tkaczuk.
Both Glamkowski and Tkaczuk wrapped up the game with a goal and three helpers, Kopfstein setting up a pair. The other goals were all the first as a Duck, by Kai Neumaier (‘03/St. Charles, IL) along with Anthony Tuccitto (‘02/Inner Grove Heights, MN). Tuccito has been with the Ducks a short time and played for the Mallards last season. Defender Gage Senio (‘04/Red Deer, AB) scored the other in his first game on the Ducks blueline after starting the 2021-22 season with the Florida Eels.
Bryce Jacobsen and Thomas Howell both collected assists as well for the Ducks.
The Ducks were scheduled to stay in Isanti for a second game Saturday night and attempt to start its first winning streak of the campaign.
The Dells Ducks renewed acquaintances with the Rum River Mallards for the first time in over a month at the Fogerty Ice House Thursday evening, but dropped a tough 8-1 decision against a squad that clearly still has its number.
The Ducks enjoyed one of its best starts of the season. Frequently finding itself chasing within the game’s opening minutes, the Mallards tough through most of the opening period until Cooper Brodzinski found a way past former Mallards’ goaltender Drew Mosely in the second half of the opening period.
While the game was still within reach after the first 17-minute period, the Mallards blew it open with five unanswered middle period markers and added another in the third before Ducks’ leading scorer, Caden Glamkowski finally managed to shatter the shutout bid of Gage Guay in the Mallards’ goal late in the final period.
The goal was the 10th of the young season for Glamkowski and Jacob Cartland collected the lone assist.
The win was just the third of the season for the Mallards and snapped a nine-game losing streak. The Mallards, now sit at 3-8-1 on the season with all three wins coming against the Ducks.
The Ducks enter the final game of the Midwest-West Showcase Saturday with a 5:40 p.m. contest against the Minnesota Blue Ox who have already racked up a pair of wins at the weekend event.
The trend of falling behind early proved costly for the Ducks once again in its first of two games on Friday (Oct. 29) at the USPHL Premier Midwest-West Division Showcase event at Fogerty Ice House in Blaine, MN.
The Ducks found itself trailing the Steele County Blades 1-0 in the game’s sixth minute and 2-0 a short while later, utlimately falling by a 5-1 score.
Dells Ducks
Jack Kopfstein, the team’s ‘05 defenseman from Vista, CA hammered a shot home from the blue line for his third goal of the season the second of the weekend for the Ducks, but that was as close as this one would get as the Blades piled on another three before the final buzzer.
Assists on Kopfstein’s goal went to Caden Glamkowski and Jacob Cartland.
The first two Blades goals were both scored by veteran forward, Seva Bannikov, an ‘01 forward from Minsk, Belarus.
Other scoring details for the Blades were unavailable at the time this was written.
The Blades and Ducks met on the previous weekend, the Blades capturing an 8-2 victory against a tired, under the weather and understaffed Ducks team 8-2 at the tail end of a three games in three days weekend.
The Ducks were scheduled to hit the ice at Fogerty again later Friday against the Rum River Mallards before wrapping up Saturday afternoon against the Minnesota Blue Ox Saturday afternoon.
With a promising trio of games behind them this past weekend, a positive group of Dells Ducks entered a short week of practice.
The first quarter of the season has wrapped up and with a 1-10-0-0 record nobody is popping champagne corks, but it’s not hard to find positives as the team simply looks better every time it hits the ice.
This was supposed to be an easier season without the hassles and trials of a season plagued by pandemic issues from start to finish. But this team has faced adversity on and off the ice. What is left at this point is a understaffed, but focused and determined squad ready to face its challenges and confident it can improve.
Adding the veteran presence of Jason Heard, a fearless and gritty ‘01 who leaves nothing on the ice and expects the same of everyone else on his team, will bring out the best on a team that includes some talented individuals.
The Ducks face a tough challenge ahead as Heard will be unable to join them in the next challenge, four games in three days weekend at the Midwest-West Division Showcase, beginning early Thursday.
In a span of just over 50 hours, the Ducks will hit the ice four times at the Fogerty Ice House in Blaine, MN. The first three games will see the Ducks facing getting rematches against the Minnesota Mullets and Rum River Mallards, the two teams closest to them in the standings and the Steele County Blades, off to an awesome start, but a team the Ducks hung tough with until the final 20 minutes on Sunday.
The last game will be a tough one, against the Minnesota Blue Ox.
The Ducks are a combined 0-7 against these four teams so far, but the team is confident with an improvement on previous efforts and solid goaltending they will contend for victories.
There will be little reprieve for the Ducks in November as the team follows up the Showcase with nine games in the first three weeks of November including a three-game homestand and a second Showcase event at Merrimack College in Massachusetts before the Thanksgiving Break.
First game of the weekend will faceoff at 12:30 p.m. Thursday against the Mullets. All Showcase games will be on HockeyTV.
The ninth and final period of a busy weekend was where the understaffed and not entirely well Dells Ducks team hit a wall on Sunday afternoon.
With a pair of decent, but ultimately unsuccessful efforts in the Twin Cities against the Minnesota Mullets already under its belt, the Ducks stopped at the Four Seasons Center in Owatonna on the way home Sunday afternoon to take on the host Steele County Blades.
The Ducks entered the weekend with a depleted roster with several team members either battling or just finished with a cold. Even at 2-2 early and down 4-2 with a period to go, the Ducks ultimately succumbed 8-2.
The Ducks were facing a Blades team that opened the season with five wins in its first eight games but coming off an 11-5 win on home ice against the Minnesota Blue Ox who beat them soundly for a second time already this season.
The Ducks tried to take advantage in the opening periods, staying with the Blades for the most part, but trailing 3-2 after 20 minutes. The Blades added one more in the second and the game was still up for grabs entering the final 20. But the Ducks were running on empty and got beat four more times although the shot clock showed a somewhat closer margin, 15-11 for the host Blades.
Overall, the Blades outshot the Ducks 53-28, a margin that while still wide, is staring to be narrowed at both ends. Ducks enjoyed its best weekend in terms of shots on goal so far this season.
Down 2-0 before the game’s three-minute mark, the Ducks fought back with goals from Bryce Jacobsen and Jayden Tkaczuk 18 seconds apart to even the score at the 7:16 mark. Thomas Howell and Jacob Cartland also collected points with an assist apiece.
Tanner Stendel paced the Blades’ attack firing three goals and adding three assists for his first six points of the season.
Anthony Falzone started for the Ducks, stopping 38 shots before Drew Moseley mopped up in the third with another seven stops.
It would be nice to be able to say the Ducks will get a chance to catch its breath, but instead the team is rolling through its shortest off-week of the season, heading back to Blaine, MN for a four-game weekend at the Midwest-West Showcase.
Ducks will begin play at 12:30 p.m. Thursday with a rematch against the Mullets, then gets a rematch against the Blades on Friday at 9 a.m. The Ducks will play a second game Friday at 5:40 p.m. against the Rum River Mallards, the first meeting since the opening weekend of the season with this rival. Wrapping up play on Saturday, the Ducks will face off against the Minnesota Blue Ox at 5:40 p.m.
The Ducks enter the Showcase with a 1-10-0-0 record, in eighth place in the division, three points behind the Mallards and a Hudson Havoc team that has played just four games so far.
The Dells Ducks moved closer to its second weekend homestand of the season with Coach Anthony Rohde paying his weekly visit to the Dells.
Dells Ducks
Personal and work commitments are keeping the skating and stickhandling expert in the Chicago area permanently this season, but he makes the most of weekly visits to the Dells area. His practices are known to be the toughest and most specific in terms of areas that need improvement and the players love his ability to get the most out of them.
Before hitting the ice on Tuesday, Rohde said in an interview (see below) he discussed the areas of concern with the coaches and not only found the drills for a pair of Tuesday practices, but also mapped out the rest of the week with Head Coach Shaun Falzone and Coach Mario Lachica.
The Ducks continue to work back to front, working hard to lower enemy shots on goal and devise a plan for a quick transition from defense to offense in their own zone.
The Cougars are generally known as a high-octane offensive machine and the perennial Midwest-East will prove a formidable opponent this weekend.
Game time Friday and Saturday at the Lake Delton Ice Arena is 7:30 p.m.
Happy Birthday Seth
The Ducks are happy to have reaquainted with Seth Stoutenburg this season. A young team member in the 2019-20 season, the Roseville, MN native is back with the team this season and has made his presence felt on the ‘Blue’ line as a winger.
Held off the board on the opening weekend it’s just a matter of time before Stoutenburg hits the scoresheet. He plays a regular role on special teams as well as at regular strength and will be a big addition to the Ducks’ offense this season.
On Tuesday (September 21), Stoutenberg celebrated his 18th Birthday with teammates. Happy Birthday Seth!
Seth Stoutenburg
Crosser back in town
Old School throwback hockey player Colin Cross was a fan favorite for his on-ice effort and sometimes pugilism when he starred with the Dells Ducks in 2013-14 and 2014-15, both ending with a return trip to Simsbury, CT which just happened to be the site of the USA Hockey National Championship tournament.
Both a fan favorite and popular with his teammates, everyone was aware of ‘Crosser’s’ love of Country-Western Music. In recent years, Crosser went all in on his passion and he has become a regular on the Nashville Music Scene where he now makes his home. In the midst of a tour that has taken him back to New England already, Cross will make making several stops in the Dairy State, including Bobbers Island Grill on Thursday night.
Please join us in welcoming Crosser back to town. Check out the set a Bobber’s, support a former Duck and a Ducks’ sponsor. You won’t be disappointed.
After a pair of tough weekend losses against the Rum River Mallards, the Dells Ducks showed up Monday at the Lake Delton Ice Arena ready to move on and prepare for its next challenge – the Chicago Cougars.
Dells Ducks
Outscored 21-5 in two weekend contests (13-4 and 8-1), the Ducks players technically had a day off Sunday, but Head Coach Shaun Falzone said he gathered the players to study film and get a jump on the preparations in front of them.
Of course, nobody is pleased after back-to-back lopsided losses, but the improvement from Friday to Saturday and some diamonds in the rough gave an indication the team is on the right track to shaking off the bad habits that have followed the players into a new season.
It’s an uphill battle because everyone else is improving every day as well, but a young Ducks team and the coaches have identified the specific areas that need to be improved and once again, it starts in the team’s own end.
A marked improvement was evident on Saturday night, but there were also stretches where the Mallards set up what seemed a near permanent camp inside the Ducks’ blueline. The Mallards collected two goals on six powerplays, but the Ducks also killed off a major thanks in part to the stellar work between the pipes of ’02 goaltender Drew Moseley on Saturday night. Anthony Falzone also had some bright moments Friday and both goaltenders came on in relief of the other in the weekend contests.
Bright points also included the first goals of the junior careers of Jake Cartland (‘02/East Troy, WI); Caden Glamkowski (‘04/St. Charles, IL) and Jack Kopfstein (‘05/Newport Beach, CA) while veterans Bryce Jacobsen (‘02/DeForest, WI) — on a penalty shot – and Logan Dineen (‘01/Great Falls, MT) also notched their first goals of the season.
Ejections and suspensions to some key players made life a bit more difficult, but some players took advantage of the opportunity with increased ice time and special teams play, turning in a solid effort. The Mallards did score twice on six powerplays Saturday, but the Ducks looked impressive despite that, including killing off a major penalty at a crucial time.
The Ducks will be back on the ice to face the Cougars, a rival from the Midwest-East Division both Friday and Saturday nights at the Lake Delton Ice Arena. Both games faceoff at 7:30 p.m.
Captains named
Among the formalities early this week was the appointment of four captains for the Ducks. All four are returners as Jacobsen, Colin March (’03/McHenry, IL); Jayden Tkaczuk (’02/Channahon, IL) and Thomas Howell (’04/Gilmer, TX). As of their appointment, all four will share the leadership responsibility with no ‘C’s or ‘A’s being presented at this time.
Pictured are Dells Ducks 2021-22 Captains including from left: Thomas Howell, Jayden Tkaczuk, Colin March and Bryce Jacobsen.
Recent Birthdays
Ian Wood joined a Dells Ducks team eager to take the next step after reaching the MNJHL Minnesota Division championship game the previous season when he joined the team in the fall of 2013.
The following season the Pittsburgh, PA native wore the ‘C’ on his chest and helped the team claim the Bush Cup as MNJHL Champions. Both seasons ended with Wood and the Ducks playing at USA Hockey Nationals in the Hartford, CT area.
Ian Wood
Also on the team in that second season with Tyler Forest, from Simi Valley, CA.
Wood went on to play four more seasons of hockey at Morrisville State College in the NCAA Division 3 SUNY Conference, once again wearing the Captain’s ‘C’ for his final two seasons there.
Forest also moved on to play in College, spending a season with the ACHA team at Williston State College before moving on to play Division 3 at Becker College in Worcester, MA.
Forest turned 27 on Sept. 13 and Wood also turned 27 on Monday (Sept. 20). Belated as it is, Saukhockey.info and the Dells Ducks hope both of these key players from our championship season enjoyed a Happy Birthday.
The highly anticipated season opener for the Dells Ducks saw a thriller slip away with a rough second and third period seeing the goals pile up in what was ultimately a 13-4 win for the visiting Rum River Mallards at Lake Delton Ice Arena.
Dells Ducks
After falling behind 2-0 in the first period, the Ducks struck back with two goals in 29 seconds to pull even. The Mallards added a later first period goal to carry a 3-2 edge into the second session but the Mallards took the game over with five straight goals before the Ducks hit for one 15 seconds from the end of the period.
Jacob Cortland (‘02/Mukwonago) notched the first goal of the season for the Ducks with help from Jayden Tkaczuk (‘02/Channahon, IL) and Caden Glamkowski (‘04/St. Charles, IL).
The other first period Ducks goal came from defenseman Jack Kopfstein (‘05/Newport Beach, CA) with assists for Glamkowski and Tkaczuk.
Glamkowski wrapped up a three-point night with the second period goal, helped by Cartland and Colin March.
The Mallards matched their 5-1 run in the final period, the lone Ducks’ goal in the frame coming early as Bryce Jacobson scored on a penalty shot after being hauled down on a breakaway.
The Ducks were outshot 50-17 in the contest although the play was more even in the final two frames after the hosts surrendered a 19-5 margin through the opening 20 minutes.
Ducks hope to regroup in the next 24 hours and will get another shot at breaking into the win column with a rematch against the Mallards at the Lake Delton Ice Arena Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.
Dells Ducks rookies (from left) Jack Kopfstein, Jake Cartland and Caden Glamkowski were a bright spot on a tough night at the office — all three scoring the first goals of their junior career at the Lake Delton Ice Arena Friday (Sept. 17). The Ducks will look to avenge its opening night defeat with a rematch against the Rum River Mallards at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday night.
Dells Ducks vs. Rum River Mallards – Weekend Preview
2020-21 Records
Rum River Mallards 9-33-2 – 20 points – 7th Place
Dells Ducks 3-28-2 – 8 points – 9th Place
The Dells Ducks will open its 2021-22 USPHL regular season this weekend with two home games against the Rum River Mallards. That will be one more game than the teams played against each other all last season.
Dells Ducks
The Mallards and Dells Ducks endured similar seasons last year, both enjoying a nice run at the annual Chicago Showcase just before the Christmas Break and hoping for it to be a turning point on the campaign.
The lone game between the two was played at Lake Delton Ice Arena on Jan. 10, the first game back after the Christmas Break, won 3-1 by the host Ducks. That gave the Ducks the upper hand on the eighth and final playoff spot in the Midwest-West Division, but the Mallards got hot down the stretch and took the spot away.
Since the Mallards entered the league in 2018, the Ducks and Mallards have squared off seven times and the Mallards have won six – last year’s win by the Ducks the first against this opponent. Adam Brown came alive with two goals in the win last season, the other scored by Jayden Tkaczuk.
The Mallards may have the edge in returning players, but the Ducks return both its leading scorer (Tkaczuk) from last year and Bryce Jacobsen who was one of the team’s hottest players in the second half.
In goal, the Ducks will likely lean heavily on ’02 returners Anthony Falzone and Drew Moseley on the opening weekend but rookie goaltenders William Carney (’03) and Jadon Mammen (’04) will both be available, and game-tested from the exhibition contests played near Detroit this past weekend.
It will be interesting for Moseley who played for the Mallards last season. All four Ducks’ goaltenders have looked solid between the pipes in practices and the exhibition contests.
Please note, a time change this season. All evening home games will begin at 7:30 p.m.
Sauk Hockey 