Men's Ice Hockey 11/4/2026 9:11:00 AM Calvin Bush

Turtle Races Come to USG Arena This Saturday

Chicago hosts Des Moines starting Friday; 7th Annual Turtle Races Saturday

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS — The Chicago Steel return to USG Arena this weekend, welcoming the Des Moines Buccaneers for a two-game series Friday, Nov. 6 at 7:00 pm CT and Saturday, Nov. 7 at 6:00 pm CT.

Saturday features the slowest two minutes in sports with the Steel's 7th Annual Turtle Races courtesy of Big Joe's 2 & 6 Pub, bringing one of the team's most popular annual promotions to USG Arena for the first time. Turtles Chucks, Doozy, Swisher, Lucky Dan, and Jolanda will each race on a table at center ice. The preliminary race will be during first intermission, and the top turtle will be crowned in the final race during second intermission. Lucky Dan, a five-year-old Cumberland Slider turtle, enters the race as the favorite with 74 wins under his shell.

Turtles start in the middle of the table and crawl to try to become the first to cross the finish line on the outer portion of the track. Before the race, fans can sign up to win prizes and a Turtle Party at Big Joe's 2 & 6 Pub.

Chicago previously hosted Turtle Races for six seasons at Fox Valley Ice Arena where it became an instant fan-favorite annual promotion. Big Joe's 2 & 6 Pub hosts turtle races every Friday night at its location on Chicago's north side and celebrated its 30^th season of turtle races in February.

The Steel will begin the weekend against Des Moines at home on Friday at 7:00 pm.

Chicago (5-4-1-1, 12 pts.) returns home after dropping its two-game road series against the Tri-City Storm on Oct. 30 and 31. The Steel fell 4-2 Friday before suffering a 4-1 setback Saturday as the Storm completed the weekend sweep.

Chicago erased an early two-goal deficit Friday with a pair of second-period goals before Tri-City scored twice in the final frame to secure the victory.

Arseni Savin provided a highlight with his first career USHL goal in the game. The goal came just 44 seconds after Tri-City had taken a 2-0 advantage and sparked Chicago's response. Dallas Vieau also found the scoresheet Friday, tying the game at 2-2 with his third score of the year.

The Steel opened Saturday's contest with a strong first period, taking a 1-0 lead into the intermission after Cole Bumgarner scored his fifth goal of the season on the power play. Chicago outshot Tri-City 13-5 in the opening period, but the team took six penalties in the last two periods, allowing the Storm to respond with four unanswered goals to earn the 4-1 victory.

Bumgarner continues to be one of Chicago's most consistent offensive contributors, reaching the five-goal mark through the first full month of the season. The forward has made his presence felt on the power play with a team-leading five power play points (2G-3A). He has recorded a point in six of eight games played this season (5G-5A).

Goaltender Chase Pastor made his first career USHL start Saturday, turning aside 18 of 21 shots. The rookie kept Chicago within striking distance through two periods before Tri-City broke the tie with three third-period goals. Pastor appeared in relief on Oct. 17 for his first USHL appearance, stopping all four shots in his 14 minutes of action.

Saturday marked the first time MJ Campbell went consecutive games without recording a point. Before Friday's loss, the rookie forward had scored in four consecutive games (4G-1A) and seven of nine outings. He enters the weekend with a three-game home goal streak (4G) which dates back to Oct. 10. It's the second-longest active home goal streak in the league.

The Steel have earned a standings point in all five home games (3-0-1-1) and all games played at USG Arena (5-0-1-1) this season. Their five-game home point streak is the longest in the USHL this season.

Des Moines (7-6-0-1, 15 pts.) arrives in Chicago after splitting a two-game home series against the Youngstown Phantoms on Oct. 30 and 31. The Buccaneers opened the weekend with an impressive 6-2 victory Friday before dropping Saturday's contest 3-1.

Friday's victory saw an offensive explosion in the second period with Des Moines scoring four times to turn a 1-1 game into a commanding 5-1 advantage. The Buccaneers finished with six goals on 38 shots, receiving point contributions from 11 different players. Riley Zupfer led the way with one goal and three assists. Bradley Whang paced the scoring attack with three points, recording two goals and an assist in the victory.

Saturday's rematch was a much tighter contest, with Des Moines opening the scoring before Youngstown responded late in the first period to even the game. Neither team found the back of the net in the second period before the Phantoms scored twice in the final frame to secure a 3-1 victory. Mason Jenson provided the Buccaneers' lone goal Saturday.

Zupfer paces the Buccaneers in scoring this season, entering the weekend with 18 points (7G-11A) through 14 games. The Notre Dame commit opened the season with a seven-game point streak (3G-8A) and has recorded six points (3G-3A) in the last three games. He ranks tied for third among USHL skaters in points and is the only player with multiple shorthanded assists (3).

Joey Argentina was one of the top league skaters in the first five games of the season with 11 points (6G-5A). The Des Moines captain has cooled off with three points over his last three games (1G-2A) but still ranks second on the team in scoring with 15 points (7G-8A). He leads the squad in power play assists (4) and leads the USHL in shorthanded goals (4).

Whang has pointed in three consecutive games (2G-4A) with two multi-point performances and ranks fifth among USHL rookies in scoring (9P-4G-5A).

The Steel are 47-26-2-4 all-time against Des Moines and 24-11-0-3 at home. This weekend marks the first two of four scheduled meetings between the Steel and Buccaneers this season. Chicago and Des Moines will meet again for a two-game series in Iowa on Nov. 27 and 28. The Steel swept the lone weekend series against Des Moines last season with a pair of shootout victories, winning 4-3 on Oct. 3 and 5-4 on Oct. 4. Steel captain Jason Millett scored the winner in the shootout in the 5-4 win and Easton Pace recorded a goal and an assist over two games.

Following the weekend homestand, the Steel will hit the road for a Wednesday night matchup against the Green Bay Gamblers on Nov. 11 at 7:05 pm CT before traveling to Michigan for a pair of games against the USA Hockey NTD U18 team on Nov. 13 and 14.

College students can get a great deal on Chicago Steel tickets all season long with the Steel Student Pass. Visit ChicagoSteelHockeyTeam.com to learn more or sign up.

Single-game, group, and premium seating tickets for the 2026-2027 season are on sale now.

Group experiences and tickets are also on sale and start at just $13.50 per ticket.

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

Chicago Steel Upcoming Schedule:
Friday, November 6 vs. Des Moines Buccaneers (7:00 pm CT) | Friday Faceoff
Saturday, November 7 vs. Des Moines Buccaneers (6:00 pm CT | 7^th Annual Turtle Races courtesy of Big Joe's 2 & 6 Pub
Wednesday, November 11 at Green Bay Gamblers (7:05 pm CT)

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