General 3/28/2026 9:51:00 PM Calvin Bush

Wang Stops 46 Shots for First USHL Win in Steel Debut

Chicago’s offense comes to life in final road game of season

LINCOLN, NE — Chicago's offense came to life, and goaltender Alex Wang, making his USHL debut, stopped 46 of 50 shots to backstop the Steel (26-26-6-2, 60 pts.) to a 6-4 win over the Lincoln Stars (28-26-4-1, 61 pts.) at the Ice Box Saturday night.

Wang stopped all 17 shots in the third period, and Timo Kazda recorded three assists as six different Steel skaters scored goals to give the Steel the win in their final road matchup of the season. Chicago finished the season with a 14-13-1-2 record on the road.

Luke Goukler tallied his 12^th goal of the season early in the first period, followed by Cole Bumgarner's second goal and Dallas Vieau potting his 18^th tally of the season. James Scantlebury scored a shorthanded goal for his 15^th goal of the season and Cole Tuminaro recorded his fifth. Benson Grande scored his fourth goal.

Just 39 seconds into Saturday's matchup, Camillo Milani flipped the puck into the neutral zone and Goukler sped past a defender to get a breakaway and score blocker-side on Lincoln goalie William Prowse to put Chicago ahead 1-0.

The Stars responded under one minute later when a shot from Drew Nelson deflected off a body and past Wang to tie the game at 1-1.

Lincoln was penalized shortly after its goal, giving the Steel the first man advantage. Just over 30 seconds into the power play, Adyn Merrick wristed a centering feed to Bumgarner, who deflected the pass through Prowse to put the Steel up 2-1.

The Stars again replied with haste as Samuel Murin dragged past Wang and scored to tie the game again, 2-2.

Chicago pressured Lincoln with a flurry of chances late in the opening period, and the hard work paid off when Kazda sauced a cross-ice feed to Vieau, who shot past Prowse, making it 3-2 Steel.

With under one minute left in the first period, Tuminaro was given a four-minute penalty after a post-whistle scrum, giving Lincoln a lengthy advantage.

Lincoln led in shots 15-12 after the opening frame.

With time still left in the first carryover infraction, Murin skated down the left lane and fired a snapshot from the left circle for a power play goal and his second of the night to make it 3-3.

Still shorthanded, the Steel cleared the zone, and Kazda won a foot race to the loose puck to create a two-on-one. Kazda skated in and threw a backdoor pass to Scantlebury, who shot past Prowse for a shorthanded goal that put the Steel ahead 4-3.

Charles Menard came in to relieve Prowse following the goal.

At 4:30 of the frame, Brady Kudrick skated below the net and found Tuminaro above the right circle for a quick shot through bodies that leaked past Menard, making it 5-3.

In an attempt to rally his team, Kaiden Donia dropped the gloves with Trevor Shorter, which ended with Shorter taking down Donia at center ice.

Chicago was penalized shortly after the fight, and the Stars converted when Alex Pelletier had his shot blocked, but it bounced fortuitously to Cole Braunshausen who fired from the slot past Wang to bring Lincoln back within a goal, 5-4.

Lincoln tripled the Steel's shot output in the second period, 18-6, to take a 33-18 shots lead to the third.

A Stars penalty early in the third disrupted a steady offensive push by the home team. Pelletier interrupted the Steel power play with a shorthanded breakaway and fired a shot off the right post that nearly bounced in off Wang's right pad.

The intensity ramped up with 13 minutes left in the third period after Jonas Kemps applied a big hit at the red line and Jayden Kurtz was tripped on the same sequence, sending Chicago to another power play.

Lincoln again held the Steel in check to stay within a goal.

After denying a Lincoln zone entry, Alex Assadourian shoveled the puck ahead to spring Grande on a breakaway where he fired five-hole on Menard to make it 6-4 Steel.

Later in the period, Chicago was penalized twice in 18 seconds to create a five-on-three advantage for Lincoln with under four minutes left. The Stars peppered Wang with shots from all angles, with each answered by the Steel goaltender.

Lincoln pulled Menard with 1:30 left to make it six-on-three play, but couldn't capitalize on the two-man advantage.

The Steel will return home next weekend and will close their season by hosting their final two games at Fox Valley Ice Arena.

It begins with a Fox Valley Farewell Tour stop, Steel-a-palooza, on Friday, April 3 against the USA Hockey NTDP U18 with a special Rusty Bobblehead Giveaway presented by Circle K.

Chicago will play its final game at Fox Valley Ice Arena on Saturday, April 4 against the U17 team on Fan Appreciation Night with a Team Photo Giveaway presented by Minuteman Press. Fans are encouraged to stick around after the April 4 game for a brief ceremony to celebrate the team's time in the Fox Valley.

Tickets for the final two Steel home games are on sale now starting at just $10.

Season ticket memberships for the Chicago Steel's 2026-2027 inaugural season at USG Arena at Blackhawks Ice Center are on sale now. Memberships start as low as just $15 per game.

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

Chicago Steel Upcoming Schedule presented by Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush:
Friday, April 3 vs. USA Hockey NTDP U18 Team (7:05 pm CT) | Steel-a-palooza | Rusty Bobblehead Giveaway (first 500 fans) presented by Circle K
Saturday, April 4 vs. USA Hockey NTDP U17 Team (6:05 pm CT) | Final Game at Fox Valley Ice Arena | Fan Appreciation Night | Team Photo Giveaway (first 500 fans) presented by Minuteman Press | Post-Game Skate and Special Ceremony

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