Fargo, ND – The Dubuque Fighting Saints (37-17-4-0, 78 pts) visit the Fargo Force (35-18-3-2, 75 pts) to finish a series on Saturday night.
Here are five things to know ahead of the matchup:
1. Saints Start
The Fighting Saints scored twice in the opening period in Friday's 3-1 win over Fargo, continuing their strong play in the first period of games. Dubuque has outscored opponents by 32 goals in the opening period this season.
The Fighting Saints have a 29-6-2-0 record when scoring the first goal in a game this season and are 24-3-1-0 when taking a lead into the second period of games.
2. Great Goaltending
Goaltender Vojtech Hambálek made a career-high 38 saves in Friday's win over the Force, including 18 saves in the third period. Over his last 14 games, Hambálek has logged a .913 save percentage.
Over his last eight games, Hambálek has logged a .934 save percentage for Dubuque. The Saints' goaltender is fourth in the USHL with 27 wins and has won three-straight games.
3. Special Saints
The Fighting Saints scored a power-play goal for the sixth-straight game on Friday night in Fargo and continue to lead the USHL with a 27.7% power play.
On the penalty kill, Dubuque has killed 31 of 34 penalties over the last 10 games. Over that stretch, the Saints have a 91.2% penalty kill.
4. Rookie Rundown
On Friday, Dubuque's offense was led by two first-year players as Joseph Covelluzzi logged his second goal of the season and Xavier Lieb added a pair of assists.
Covelluzzi scored the first goal of the game in the opening frame, while Lieb added an assist on each of the Saints' last two goals.
5. Force Fix
The Force has lost four of its last five games entering play on Saturday, scoring just three goals in the last three contests.
Fargo's lone goal in Friday's game came late in the second period from Cullen McCrate, who scored his eight goal of the season.
Saturday's matchup is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. at Scheels Arena. The game can be found on Eagle 102.3 and FloHockey.
