Cedar Rapids, IA – The Dubuque Fighting Saints visit the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders on Friday night to open the final weekend of preseason play.
Here are five things to know ahead of the matchup:
1. Last Looks
The Fighting Saints open their final preseason series against the RoughRiders on Friday after splitting their first two preseason matchups a weekend ago against the Chicago Steel.
In Friday's home win against the Steel, Max Lind scored twice while Olle Därth and Melvin Ekman each recorded multiple points.
2. Saints Stoppers
Brandon Wright made 23 saves in the win for Dubuque against Chicago last weekend, while Luke Carrithers has yet to see game action in the preseason.
Carrithers, entering his third season in the USHL, logged an .899 save percentage in 11 games for the USA NTDP Under-18 squad last season.
3. Busy Bunch
Following this weekend's preseason series against Cedar Rapids, the Saints will head to Chicago to open the regular season on Thursday against the Lincoln Stars.
To follow up, Dubuque will play a noon puck-drop against Tri-City on Friday Sept. 18 in their Fall Classic finale.
4. Affiliate Anticipation
Fighting Saints affiliate player Porter Matchett will suit up for Dubuque against Cedar Rapids this weekend after being selected last spring by the Saints.
The New York, New York native stands at 6-4, 209 and scored 49 points in 65 games for Woodbridge last season at the 15U AAA level.
5. Stable Stories
Cedar Rapids won 36 games a season ago, finishing in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. Still, with 81 points, the Riders were just three behind Dubuque for the second spot in the Conference.
The RoughRiders fell in Game 3 on home ice to Muskegon to finish the season, but return multiple pieces including goaltender Joe Skidmore.
Friday's puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at ImOn Ice in Cedar Rapids. The game can be found on Eagle 102.3 and FloHockey.
