In their 15th season in the USHL, the Muskegon Lumberjacks will need firepower offensively after losing seven top scorers from last season.
By Dave Hart
LocalSportsJournal.com
It is hard to believe, but the Muskegon Lumberjacks are in their 15th season as a member of the United States Hockey League.
The Jacks are coming off a pretty successful season, which ended in a disappointing three-game sweep in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Dubuque Fighting Saints.
Muskegon finished the regular season last year in second place in the Eastern Conference with a 38-22-2 record.
After a first-round bye, the Lumberjacks played a tight five-game second round series against the Green Bay Gamblers and advanced to the conference finals. The Fighting Saints were just too much for Muskegon as they never allowed the Lumberjacks to even take a lead in a contest.
The Lumberjacks started this season with nine straight road games, which included the two games at a neutral site in the USHL Fall Classic, due to the renovating of Trinity Health Arena. Muskegon played its first home game on October 25 against the Chicago Steel.
“We are grateful for the renovations and we have to be a little bit patient in waiting to play in front of our home crowd,” said Muskegon Lumberjacks coach Parker Burgess. “We always have a stretch of road games through any given season, and I think having one early can be positive towards having the team bond early in this long season.”
The offensive production was a huge part of the Lumberjacks success last season as they totaled 254 goals, which was good for the third best in the USHL.
The Lumberjacks are going to need to find some firepower offensively as they lost their top seven goal scorers from last season as Matvei Gridin, Sacha Boisvert, Joe Connor, Justin Solovey, Cody Croal, Ethan Whitcomb, and Ty Hendricks have all moved on.
“This year we are going to have a collection of players take care of the scoring and not just a couple of guys carrying the load,” Burgess said. “We also have defensemen that can help and we are confident in the group of guys we have on the roster.”
David Klee, who had 15 goals and 25 assists for 40 points last season, returns to the team and may be a candidate to carry some of the offensive load. Another forward returning to Muskegon is Jack Galanek. He had 11 goals and 11 assists last year in 57 games played for the Jacks. Other notable returning forwards Teddy Spitznagel, Jake Merens, Cooper Pierson, and Vaclav Nestrasil.
The Lumberjacks have a couple of new faces that the Muskegon fans will learn to get to know and love this season. Matthew Van Blaricom is one of the newcomers who is expected to make an impact this season. Van Blaricom spent the last two seasons with the Humboldt Broncos of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League where he scored 40 goals and picked up 53 assists for 93 points in 80 games.
He has already made an impact in the first two Muskegon games with two goals and an assist.
“He has some experience at the junior level,” Burgess said. “Van Blaricom is a competitive player who likes to hit and provide energy.”
Another new player to watch is forward Tynan Lawrence, who has a goal and an assist in the first two Lumberjacks games this season.
“Lawrence has good vision, and he has already been making major impacts early on,” Burgess said.
The Lumberjacks will have five defensemen who have played at least a game for Muskegon last season. Xavier Veilleux returns to Muskegon after playing 62 games for the Lumberjacks last season, recording three goals and 29 assists for 32 points. Veilleux had his name called last June in the NHL Entry Draft as he was taken in the sixth round (179th overall) by the New York Islanders.
Another NHL draft pick returning to Muskegon is defenseman Bauer Berry, who was a seventh-round pick by the defending Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers. Berry recorded a goal and 13 assists for 14 points in 59 games for the Jacks last season. Cameron Aucoin, Jake Toll, and Danny Klaers also return to the Lumberjacks.
Aucoin played in 47 games last year for Muskegon, recording a goal and eight assists for nine points, while Toll played in 22 games and recorded seven assists. Klaers just played in 11 games and recorded a single point on an assist last year.
The Lumberjacks biggest strength this season may be their goaltending. Shikhabutdin Gadzhiev, a fan favorite, will return to the Lumberjacks after playing in 30 games for Muskegon last season. Gadzhiev posted an 18-10 record with 3.18 goals against average and one shutout earned. He was one of seven goaltenders used last season as it was a revolving door at that position for the Lumberjacks.
“It is huge to be stabilized early on at goaltending,” Burgess said. “Shik (Gadzhiev) was great for us last season and he is looking to take another step forward in his development.”
The Lumberjacks will also have Stephen Peck returning to Muskegon between the pipes. Peck played in only one game for the Lumberjacks and earned a win allowing three goals on 27 shots faced.
The Lumberjack organization believes they have a skilled group of players who can compete for a spot in the Clark Cup playoffs. Last season’s team set the standards of playing year in and year out for a Clark Cup championship.
Muskegon will have a young roster and the team will need to learn consistency to reach the levels of success the organization is hoping to achieve.
“We want to keep getting better everyday and that starts at practice,” Burgess said. “We are going to take it a day at a time but overall, we want to be in the mix for a Clark Cup Championship when it is said and done.”
LocalSportsJournal.com
It is hard to believe, but the Muskegon Lumberjacks are in their 15th season as a member of the United States Hockey League.
The Jacks are coming off a pretty successful season, which ended in a disappointing three-game sweep in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Dubuque Fighting Saints.
Muskegon finished the regular season last year in second place in the Eastern Conference with a 38-22-2 record.
After a first-round bye, the Lumberjacks played a tight five-game second round series against the Green Bay Gamblers and advanced to the conference finals. The Fighting Saints were just too much for Muskegon as they never allowed the Lumberjacks to even take a lead in a contest.
The Lumberjacks started this season with nine straight road games, which included the two games at a neutral site in the USHL Fall Classic, due to the renovating of Trinity Health Arena. Muskegon played its first home game on October 25 against the Chicago Steel.
“We are grateful for the renovations and we have to be a little bit patient in waiting to play in front of our home crowd,” said Muskegon Lumberjacks coach Parker Burgess. “We always have a stretch of road games through any given season, and I think having one early can be positive towards having the team bond early in this long season.”
The offensive production was a huge part of the Lumberjacks success last season as they totaled 254 goals, which was good for the third best in the USHL.
The Lumberjacks are going to need to find some firepower offensively as they lost their top seven goal scorers from last season as Matvei Gridin, Sacha Boisvert, Joe Connor, Justin Solovey, Cody Croal, Ethan Whitcomb, and Ty Hendricks have all moved on.
“This year we are going to have a collection of players take care of the scoring and not just a couple of guys carrying the load,” Burgess said. “We also have defensemen that can help and we are confident in the group of guys we have on the roster.”
David Klee, who had 15 goals and 25 assists for 40 points last season, returns to the team and may be a candidate to carry some of the offensive load. Another forward returning to Muskegon is Jack Galanek. He had 11 goals and 11 assists last year in 57 games played for the Jacks. Other notable returning forwards Teddy Spitznagel, Jake Merens, Cooper Pierson, and Vaclav Nestrasil.
The Lumberjacks have a couple of new faces that the Muskegon fans will learn to get to know and love this season. Matthew Van Blaricom is one of the newcomers who is expected to make an impact this season. Van Blaricom spent the last two seasons with the Humboldt Broncos of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League where he scored 40 goals and picked up 53 assists for 93 points in 80 games.
He has already made an impact in the first two Muskegon games with two goals and an assist.
“He has some experience at the junior level,” Burgess said. “Van Blaricom is a competitive player who likes to hit and provide energy.”
Another new player to watch is forward Tynan Lawrence, who has a goal and an assist in the first two Lumberjacks games this season.
“Lawrence has good vision, and he has already been making major impacts early on,” Burgess said.
The Lumberjacks will have five defensemen who have played at least a game for Muskegon last season. Xavier Veilleux returns to Muskegon after playing 62 games for the Lumberjacks last season, recording three goals and 29 assists for 32 points. Veilleux had his name called last June in the NHL Entry Draft as he was taken in the sixth round (179th overall) by the New York Islanders.
Another NHL draft pick returning to Muskegon is defenseman Bauer Berry, who was a seventh-round pick by the defending Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers. Berry recorded a goal and 13 assists for 14 points in 59 games for the Jacks last season. Cameron Aucoin, Jake Toll, and Danny Klaers also return to the Lumberjacks.
Aucoin played in 47 games last year for Muskegon, recording a goal and eight assists for nine points, while Toll played in 22 games and recorded seven assists. Klaers just played in 11 games and recorded a single point on an assist last year.
The Lumberjacks biggest strength this season may be their goaltending. Shikhabutdin Gadzhiev, a fan favorite, will return to the Lumberjacks after playing in 30 games for Muskegon last season. Gadzhiev posted an 18-10 record with 3.18 goals against average and one shutout earned. He was one of seven goaltenders used last season as it was a revolving door at that position for the Lumberjacks.
“It is huge to be stabilized early on at goaltending,” Burgess said. “Shik (Gadzhiev) was great for us last season and he is looking to take another step forward in his development.”
The Lumberjacks will also have Stephen Peck returning to Muskegon between the pipes. Peck played in only one game for the Lumberjacks and earned a win allowing three goals on 27 shots faced.
The Lumberjack organization believes they have a skilled group of players who can compete for a spot in the Clark Cup playoffs. Last season’s team set the standards of playing year in and year out for a Clark Cup championship.
Muskegon will have a young roster and the team will need to learn consistency to reach the levels of success the organization is hoping to achieve.
“We want to keep getting better everyday and that starts at practice,” Burgess said. “We are going to take it a day at a time but overall, we want to be in the mix for a Clark Cup Championship when it is said and done.”
