Black Hawks Continue Hot Hand, Put Down RoughRiders
The Waterloo Black Hawks continue to be one of the hottest teams in the United States Hockey League.
The Black Hawks picked up their fifth win during February by topping the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders 4-1 at Young Arena on Saturday.
The Black Hawks fired 21 shots at Jiri Patera in the first 20 minutes, but only one got by. At 10:20, Matt Koopman’s attempt from the left point was stopped but came directly to Jackson Cates, who scored into an open side. The lead lasted just over two minutes. At 12:26, Jordan Timmons’ chance from the slot was partially stopped by Matej Tomek, but the puck found its way across the goal line for the equalizer.
Although the Hawks’ shot count was much lower in the second, the results were better. Waterloo scored on two of six chances, beginning at 7:31 during a power play. A shot-pass by Ben Finkelstein was redirected into an open side by Jack Drury. Less than two minutes later, the Hawks struck again. Ethan Johnson was sprung into the offensive zone on a breakaway. He moved from the left circle, across the slot, and flipped a backhander under the crossbar at 9:16.
Drury scored his second goal of the night into an empty net from in front of the Cedar Rapids bench with just over a minute remaining.
Waterloo outshot the RoughRiders 36-21, with Tomek making 20 saves for the victory.
The farthest trip away from the Cedar Valley awaits the Hawks next weekend. Friday and Saturday, the team travels to eastern Ohio to face the Youngstown Phantoms.