ANN ARBOR, Michigan (January 17th) – It was a complete team effort tonight for the Muskegon Lumberjacks as they were able to hold off one of the USHL’s top offenses in the USNTDP Under-18 Team as the special teams rang supreme for the Lumberjacks with two power play goals along with a perfect penalty kill effort en route to a 3-2 victory tonight at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube. With the loss, the Under-18 squad receives their second USHL loss this season with both of them coming against the Lumberjacks.
In a tightly-fought first period of action, the lone goal of the period would be potted by the Lumberjacks (16-16-4, 36 points) at the 16:18 mark as Daniel Willett found a fortunate bounce in the slot as his centering feed from just outside the right faceoff circle hit an Under-18 player’s skate and slid through Edwin Minney’s (6-1-1) five-hole for his second goal of the season and first as a Lumberjack to give the visitors a 1-0 lead that was set up by Matt Mendelson and Mason Jobst.
Muskegon took their one goal lead into the first intermission with the Under-18’s claiming the shot battle through the first 20 minutes by an 8-6 margin.
Towards the middle portion of the second period, the Lumberjacks were able to double their lead to 2-0 at the 9:06 mark on the power play as newcomer Chase Hatcher found a centering feed between the faceoff circles and wristed a shot that deflected off a body in front and popped over the shoulder of Minney for his first career USHL goal that was helped by Willet and Joe Cecconi.
The score held into the second and final intermission with the shots holding in favor of the host Under-18 Team by a 16-14 margin.
The teams battled back-and-forth through the first half of the third period keeping each other off the scoreboard until the USNTDP Under-18 Team (16-15-1, 33 points) cut the deficit in half to 2-1 at the 13:56 mark as Ryan Hitchcock found a fortunate redirection of his own as his sharp-angle shot to the right of Eric Schierhorn (10-9-1) ended up hitting Willet’s backside while parked in front of the net and into the netting for his fourth USHL goal of the year that was aided by Anders Bjork and Dylan Larkin.
Just under a minute later at the 14:38 mark, the Lumberjacks took advantage of a penalty assessed to Larkin of the Under-18 Team for boarding and scored 15 seconds into the power play to make it a 3-1 game as Janik Moeser wristed a shot from the left faceoff circle under Minney’s right armpit into the net for his second of the season that was assisted by Christian Wolanin and Jobst.
Edwin Minney was pulled immediately after allowing his third goal of the evening for Blake Weyrick, who faced no shots during his 4:52 of relief work.
The game trickled into the waning moments of regulation when the Under-18 Team cut it to a 3-2 game with 35.5 seconds remaining as Larkin was able to poke a loose rebound through Schierhorn’s five-hole right before he was able to pounce on the puck to his left for his 10th USHL goal of the year that was helped by Jack Glover.
The Under-18’s would pull Weyrick for the extra attacker following the goal, but the Lumberjacks held the hosts off the scoreboard for the remaining duration as the shots ended up even at 22 apiece.
Eric Schierhorn took the win in net for the Lumberjacks stopping 20 of 22 shots on the night, while Edwin Minney took the loss for the hosts making 19 saves for the game. The Lumberjacks were led offensively by Daniel Willett (one goal and one assist) and Mason Jobst (two assists) with two points each, while the Under-18’s were spearheaded on the offensive end by Dylan Larkin with a goal and an assist. The Lumberjacks improve to 2-1-0 against the Under-18 Team with two regular season meetings left between the two teams.
The Lumberjacks will conclude their eight-game road swing tomorrow night with a trip back to the Covelli Centre to take on the Youngstown Phantoms at 7:05 pm.
The next pair of home games for the Lumberjacks will be next Friday and Saturday against the U.S. National Development Program at 7:15 pm, respectively. Friday’s game against the Under-17 Team will feature the second and final trading card giveaway of the season along with the return of our “Jacks Win You Win” promotion. If the Lumberjacks win on Friday, every fan in attendance will receive a $5 Sport Clips gift card.
Saturday’s game against the Under-18 Team will feature our annual “Jacks Fight Cancer” Game presented by Mercy Health Partners. Fans can contribute to the event in numerous ways in which proceeds will be donated to the Johnson Family Cancer Center, and more information can be found on the Lumberjacks’ Facebook page by searching “Muskegon Lumberjacks.” Additionally, our “Subway Saturday” promotion returns, where if the Lumberjacks win on Saturday, fans that attend the game can present their ticket stubs at any participating West Michigan Subway location for a buy one six-inch sub, get another six-inch sub of equal or lesser value for free.
Individual game tickets will be on sale for the next pair of home games all next week for the low price of $10 for adults and $6 for children ages 3-12 if they are purchased before the day of the game. Tickets can be purchased at the Lumberjacks’ Box Office or by calling (231) 724-5225.
The exclusive radio home for the Muskegon Lumberjacks all season long is 92.5 FM WLAW “The Outlaw” as Bryan Fongers delivers the call beginning ten minutes prior to puck drop.
The proud home of all Muskegon Lumberjacks home games is the L.C. Walker Arena in downtown Muskegon located just minutes from the beautiful Lake Michigan Shoreline. Muskegon Lumberjacks hockey, “Experience the Buzz!”
The Muskegon Lumberjacks are proud members of the United States Hockey League, the nation’s only Tier I junior hockey league and the leading producer of NCAA players and National Hockey League draft picks in the United States. The Lumberjacks’ organization prides itself on developing not just premier hockey talent, but also exceptional young men outside the arena of sports. For more information, visit www.muskegonlumberjacks.com.
