300 Main Street, Suite 200, Dubuque, IA 52001
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DUBUQUE, Iowa — Down to the wire, again. The Dubuque Fighting Saints closed out another win, this time the seventh in a row, with a late goal in regulation. Stephen Halliday broke the Fighting Saints’ all- time scoring record with a two-point night, and Tristan Lemyre scored a goal with just over two minutes remaining in regulation to cement the 3-2 win over the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders on Saturday night at the Mystique Community Ice Center.
A failed clear by the RoughRiders fell into the hands of defenseman Max Burkholder. Off the cycle, Kenny Connors peeled off the wall and centered the puck to Lemyre who slipped the puck five hole on Bruno Bruveris to put Dubuque ahead for good. The Riders pulled Bruveris for the extra attacker nearly immediately, and could not dent Paxton Geisel the rest of the way.
Geisel made 20 saves to punctuate what was a strong weekend for the Fighting Saints in goal. Dubuque netminders stopped 61 of 64 shots fired their way, good for a .953 save percentage. The win was Geisel’s 21st of the season.
Always pesky and never out of it, the RoughRiders erased a 2-0 lead. Late in the second period, Grant Ahcan scored to pull the visitors within one. Travis Shoudy unleashed a wrist shot that was tipped by Ahcan past Geisel to break the goose egg. Adam Flammang continued his hot streak against the Fighting Saints with a goal of his own. It was his sixth against the Saints this season.
The first period ended scoreless, and chock full of defensive hockey. However, the second period started off with a bang.
Stephen Halliday opened the scoring with his 28th goal of the season. Ryan Beck sent him on his way driving down the left wing and his short side shot hit paydirt. The marker tied him with Steve MacSwain at the top of the table in the organization’s history in scoring. Breaking the record did not take much longer.
Two minutes and 28 seconds later is when the fateful moment occurred. With antagonist Joe Fleming in the box for holding, the power play struck. Halliday’s pass connected with Nikita Borodayenko in the slot area and the redirection was good to put the Saints up 2-0.
It marked point number 158, which put him at the top. The Ohio State commit remains in contention for the Fighting Saints Tier I records for the following: points in a single season, assists in a single season, career goals and career assists. He is also in the running for the USHL’s Tier I career scoring record and career assists record.
Dubuque’s seventh consecutive win marked a new season-high in that regard. They remain in the top spot in the Eastern Conference, and moved to the top of the Dupaco Cowbell Cup standings. The win was also the team’s 31st, which was the ninth time in the team’s Tier I history to finish with more than 30 wins in a season.
The Saints head back to the road to take on the Muskegon Lumberjacks on Friday, March 18, and Saturday, March 19, both at 6:10 central. Catch the action on FSBN, or on HockeyTV.
