Waterloo Black Hawks Weekly Preview
October 18, 2022 – United States Hockey League (USHL) – Waterloo Black Hawks News Release
To Sioux Falls & Omaha
The Black Hawks visit the Sioux Falls Stampede at 7:05 p.m. on Friday and the Omaha Lancers at 6:05 p.m. Saturday. It’s the only weekend Waterloo will cross state lines to play a game until mid-December. The Stampede are one of four Western Conference opponents the Hawks have not yet faced in 2022/23. Under new coach Eric Rud, Sioux Falls has started the season 3-2-0. On September 23rd, the Stampede were involved in the most lopsided USHL game so far this season, blasting the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders 8-0. This Saturday when the Hawks visit Omaha, it will be the first time in 2022/23 that Waterloo will meet an opponent for a second time. The Lancers have been one of the USHL’s stingiest teams in 2022/23, limiting opponents to 16 goals in their first six games, while posting the league’s best team save percentage (.930) thus far.
Scoring Changes
A video review of last Saturday’s 4-2 Black Hawks loss in Cedar Rapids led to Gavyn Thoreson being awarded assists on both Waterloo goals. Those alterations give the Andover, Minnesota, native two goals and three assists this season for a team-leading five points. As a junior at Andover High School last season, Thoreson accumulated 29 goals and 45 assists in 31 games.
Law of Averages
The Black Hawks have a league-high 36.8 shots on goal per game. At the same time, Waterloo’s 8.1 percent shooting percentage is second-lowest in the USHL. If the Hawks’ current percentage was equal to last season’s team mark (10.1), that would be worth four to five additional goals during the team’s first six games. By comparison, the Lincoln Stars and Chicago Steel currently lead the league in shooting percentage (each at 16.9).
Five-on-Three
Gennadi Chaly’s goal at 16:18 of the third period Saturday was scored while the Hawks were on a five-on-three power play. It was Waterloo’s first two-man advantage of the season. In 2021/22, the Hawks converted just one of 12 five-on-three situations when Garrett Schifsky scored in Des Moines on January 14th.
Recent Games
The Black Hawks were dealt a pair of 4-2 losses last weekend. At home on Friday, Omaha pulled ahead 3-0 before Connor Brown broke Lancer goaltender Michael Hrabal’s spell in the latter part of the third period. Owen Baker added a six-on-five goal after Omaha had padded their lead with an empty-netter. Waterloo outshot the Lancers 41-25. The Hawks had a 35-29 shots advantage the next night in Cedar Rapids, but the RoughRiders scored first, and Waterloo never led. Defenseman Gennadi Chaly was responsible for both Hawks goals. The 17-year-old had made his USHL debut the night before.
For complete box scores from previous Black Hawks games, visit ushl.com.
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