General 1/16/2026 11:00:00 PM Calvin Bush

Steel Grind Out 3-2 Win Over RoughRiders

Assadourian scores first USHL goal as Steel record point in third consecutive game

GENEVA, IL — The Chicago Steel (14-14-4-2, 34 pts.) scored the game's first three goals, jumping out to a lead that they did not surrender in a 3-2 win over the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders (17-10-2-4, 40 pts.) Friday night at Fox Valley Ice Arena.

Benson Grande scored his second goal of the season, and Alex Assadourian scored his first USHL goal later in the first. Ashton Schultz potted his ninth goal of the season for the game-winning goal.

Goaltender Veeti Louhivaara stopped 24 of 26 shots to record his second straight win.

It was just the second regulation win for the Steel since November 8, and the Steel have now recorded a standings point in three straight games.

Friday's game provided action right away, as RoughRiders forward Jason Musa was robbed by the glove of Louhivaara 24 seconds into the contest.

Shortly after, Schultz weaved past a defender with a slick move and threw a centering feed to Ryland Rooney, who attempted to tuck a shot five-hole, but was stopped by RoughRiders goaltender Ryan Cameron.

Chicago stayed hot on the trail when Brady Kudrick lasered a shot from the left circle that was nicely snared by Cameron.

Cedar Rapids came close to getting on the board when Connor Davis fired a backdoor feed to Grant Young that just missed the mark.

At 7:02 of the opening frame, Jackson Crowder displayed great patience to wait out a defender down the right wing before dishing a pass to Grande on the doorstep, who tapped past Cameron to put the Steel ahead 1-0.

The RoughRiders went to the power play shortly after, and Young received a pass in front of the crease and tried to quickly lift a shot around Louhivaara, but it was snatched for a great glove save.

Mason Minor released a heavy point shot through traffic with under a minute left on the advantage that ricocheted off the left post.

With under four minutes remaining, Assadourian was strong on the forecheck and muscled the puck away from a RoughRider near the right circle. Aidan Dyer collected the puck and gave to Assadourian, who sniped it through Cameron to make it 2-0.

The RoughRiders were penalized with ten seconds left in the period, giving Chicago nearly a full two minutes of power play time to start the second period.

Shots were close after the first frame, with Cedar Rapids holding a narrow 13-12 shots lead.

Chicago maintained the offensive zone for most of the 1:50 of power play time to start the second period but couldn't find the back of the net.

Less than five minutes into the period, Rooney tallied his first point with the Steel after connecting with Schultz on a play in the slot area. After turning and locating a loose puck, Schultz picked the top corner for a wicked snipe to give the Steel a 3-0 lead.

The Steel went shorthanded just after the halfway point, and the RoughRiders took 41 seconds to break the shutout bid when Grant Young pounced on a puck that bounced through the crease and to his stick to make it a 3-1 game.

Late in the period, Cedar Rapids went to its second man advantage of the night and nearly got within one when Nick Romeo fed Braiden Scuderi, but he was stymied by Louhivaara.

Chicago killed the first 1:28 of RoughRiders power play time.

After the penalty, Henry Lechner had a two-on-one with Justin Graf, but Cole Tuminaro stretched out to take away the pass and forced Lechner to stop and eventually lose possession.

Cedar Rapids continued to work when Young had a break down the left wing and snapped a shot on goal that was sealed by Louhivaara.

At 10:21 of the third, a point shot from Sullivan Miller took a lively bounce off the end wall. Graf collected the puck and shoveled it towards the net where it leaked through the five-hole of Louhivaara to make it 3-2.

The Steel went to the advantage shortly after the goal and had several chances to retake the two-goal lead, including a heavy shot from Tuminaro that bounced off the right post.

Cedar Rapids kept the Steel off the board to keep it a one-goal deficit.

Late in the period, Lechner hammered a one-timer in the slot that was blocked away by Louhivaara for a sensational stop.

The RoughRiders emptied their net with under three minutes to go for an extra attacker, but
Chicago held strong and staved off the RoughRiders push to hang on to the 3-2 win.

The Steel will begin a stretch of four consecutive games against Madison starting with a pair of road games to wrap up this weekend on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 7:05 pm and Sunday, Jan. 18 at 5:05 pm.

The Steel will return home on Saturday, Jan. 24 for Star Wars Night. For just $40, fans can receive two white zone tickets to Star Wars Night on Saturday, Jan 24, plus one Steel light saber that lights up and makes sound.

For more information, call 855-51-STEEL or visit ChicagoSteelHockeyTeam.com.

Chicago Steel Upcoming Schedule presented by Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush:
Saturday, January 17 at Madison Capitols (7:05 pm CT)
Sunday, January 18 at Madison Capitols (5:05 pm CT)
Friday, January 23 at Madison Capitols (7:05 pm CT)

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