WATERLOO, Ia. – The Waterloo Black Hawks (16-5-0) scored three straight goals in the second period and never looked back, defeating the Tri-City Storm (5-14-2) 4-1 in the teams’ third meeting of the season at Young Arena on Thursday night.

Joel L’Esperance scored a late power play goal for the Storm’s only tally of the night, while goaltender Jacob Johansson was stellar in between the pipes, making 37 saves.

Tri-City had the better of the play in the opening period but got nothing to show for it, unable to beat Waterloo netminder Mathias Israelsson on a couple good chances in the offensive end. The opening period ended with the teams still scoreless.

The Black Hawks took control of the game in the second, scoring two goals in just over a minute and adding a third later in the frame.

Waterloo forward Zach Sanford got the scoring started with a perfect deflection on a fluttering shot by defenseman Hayden Shaw to give the Black Hawks a 1-0 lead at 8:47 of the second.

Just 1:10 later, defenseman Mark Friedman took a long shot from the top of the zone that beat Johansson up high to make it 2-0.

The Black Hawks added a third goal from defenseman Brandon Montour in the final two minutes of the period and had a 3-0 lead after 40 minutes of play.

Neither team scored in the final period until L’Esperance got Tri-City on the board with less than five minutes to go in the game. The Storm’s leading scorer found a loose puck in the crease and pushed it into the net to breathe some life into the team late in the game.

But a late comeback attempt fell short when defenseman Kevin Kerr was called for holding with less than two minutes remaining and the Black Hawks got an empty net power play goal from Blake Winiecki.

The Storm are back in action Friday night in Des Moines against the Buccaneers before finishing off the road trip on Saturday night with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders. Both games will get underway at 7:05 p.m.

The Storm are back at home on Dec. 13 and 14 to face the Youngstown Phantoms in a two-game series.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Ryan McMurphy, Ross Olsson and Joey DiBenedetto, along with defenseman Sean Lang.…

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period
(no scoring)

2nd Period

Waterloo – Zach Sanford (Hayden Shaw, Tyler Sheehy) 8:47

Waterloo – Mark Friedman (Lawton Courtnall, Tyson McLellan) 9:55

Waterloo – Brandon Montour (Austin Vieth, John Wiitala) 18:15

3rd Period

Tri-City – Joel L’Esperance (power play) (Kevin Kerr) 15:50
Waterloo – Blake Winiecki (power play) (empty net) (Zach Sanford) 19:30

PENALTIES

1st Period
(no penalties)

2nd Period
Tri-City – Thomas Aldworth – (High Sticking), 2 min, 1:48
Tri-City – Kyle Eastman – (Fighting), 5 min, 4:52
Waterloo – Derek Pratt – (Fighting), 5 min, 4:52
Waterloo – Dane Cooper – (Cross Checking), 2 min, 5:32
Tri-City – Nick Hutchison – (Roughing), 2 min, 11:55

Tri-City – Nolan Gluchowski – (Holding), 2 min, 19:36

3rd Period

Waterloo – Patrick Russell – (Hooking), 2 min, 4:00
Waterloo – Patrick Russell – (Cross Checking), 2 min, 14:45
Tri-City – Kevin Kerr – (Holding), 2 min, 18:18

Power Play

Tri-City – 1/3

Waterloo – 1/4

Shots

Tri-City: 7, 7, 11 = Total: 25

Waterloo: 13, 19, 9 = Total: 41

Saves

Tri-City – Jacob Johansson – 37/40

Waterloo – Mathias Israelsson – 24/25

KEARNEY, Neb. – Three former Storm forwards had exceptional months during November and have been key contributors to their teams. For the month of December the Storm recognize Mario Lamoureux, Konrad Reeder and Torin Snydeman as their alumni of the month.

Playing for the Ontario Reign in the ECHL, Lamoureux has been one of the top scoring players on the team. He played well enough early in the season to warrant a call up to the AHL with the Oklahoma City Barons for three games. In 15 games, the Grand Forks, N.D. native has scored seven goals and six assists with a +9 rating.

A season ago, Lamoureux finished his first ECHL season as the top scoring rookie in the league with 25 goals and 40 assists. He was named to the All-ECHL Rookie Team and played in 10 postseason contests.

Lamoureux played four seasons with Tri-City from 2004-08 and is one of the franchise’s all-time leading scorers. He is the leader in games played, assists, points and penalty minutes, while ranking sixth in goals scored.

Reeder, a member of the first ever Tri-City Storm team in 2000 who is now playing for the Rapid City Rush, was recently named the third star of the month by the CHL. The veteran forward scored seven goals and 12 assists with a +10 rating in November.

A Vanderhoof, BC native, Reeder is tied for fourth in the league’s scoring race with 25 points on 11 goals and 14 assists.

Reeder was also an all-time great in Kearney, playing two seasons in the USHL and scoring 60 goals and 48 assists. His goal total has him tied atop the all-time list in Tri-City, and he is fourth all-time with 108 points.

Snydeman played 53 games for Tri-City during the 2008-09 season, scoring eight goals and 10 assists. After his junior career, he played for Sacred Heart University for two seasons before transferring to Northeastern University.

Although he had to sit out a year per NCAA transfer regulations, Snydeman has jumped into the mix at his new school in Boston, cementing himself in the lineup and contributing to the team’s early success.

In the month of November, Snydeman scored four goals, including a game-winner against Merrimack on Nov. 23. Most recently, he scored in a 3-2 come from behind victory over Notre Dame in the championship game of the Shillelagh Tournament.

The junior from Groton, Mass. has been in the lineup for all 15 games this season.

Tri-City heads to the state of Iowa for three games this week. The Storm battle Waterloo on Thursday night, before heading to Des Moines and Cedar Rapids on Friday and Saturday. All three games begin at 7:05 p.m. and can be heard live on The Breeze, 94.5 FM.

KEARNEY, Neb. – Tri-City Storm head coach and general manager Jim Hulton announced roster moveson Tuesday afternoon, which included the addition of forward Nolan Aibel to the active roster.

Aibel was selected by Tri-City in the third round in Phase I of the 2013 USHL Draft. He spent the beginning of his season with the New Jersey Rockets of the Eastern Hockey League (EHL) and is expected to join the Storm for the remainder of the 2013-14 season.

A native of Brookville, N.Y., Aibel is committed to play collegiately at Yale Unviersity, the defending NCAA National Champions.

With the Rockets in 2012-13, Aibel had seven goals and 20 assists. So far this season he has accounted for six goals and eight assists in the team’s first 15 games.

In a corresponding move, the Storm have also traded forward Steven Haydon to the New Jersey Hitmen of the United States Premier Hockey League (USPHL).

Haydon, who was drafted in the tenth round in Phase II of the 2013 USHL Draft, registered a goal and an assist in 11 games. Known for his physical play, Haydon had three fighting majors this season.

Tri-City heads to the state of Iowa for three games this week. The Storm battle Waterloo on Thursdaynight, before heading to Des Moines and Cedar Rapids on Friday and Saturday. All three games begin at7:05 p.m. and can be heard live on The Breeze, 94.5 FM.

KEARNEY, Neb. – A goal in the final minute by defenseman Connor Light sent the Omaha Lancers (17-3-2) home with a 2-1 win over the Tri-City Storm (5-13-2) on Saturday night at the Viaero Event Center.

Storm forward Garrett Gamez scored his first goal of the season, while goaltender Jacob Johansson made 35 saves and was on his game all night between the pipes for Tri-City.

The script remained unchanged from the previous night, as the Lancers made Tri-City pay with a final minute goal for the second consecutive game.

Gamez put Tri-City on top early on in the first, notching his first tally since last season on a great pass by center Joel L’Esperance.

After forward Kyle Eastman won a battle in the corner and poked the puck free to his center, L’Esperance put a pass right on the University of Denver commit’s stick. Gamez beat Lancers goaltender Cole Bruns and the Storm had a 1-0 lead just 4:15 into the game.

Omaha came back to tie it in the second period with a power play strike by the USHL’s leading goal scorer, Tyler Vesel. The game was deadlocked at 1-1 heading into the third period, despite Tri-City being outshot 23-13 through the first two frames.

Neither team found the back of the net in the third until the closing seconds, when Light put a shot past Johansson with just 28 seconds left.

The Storm came away empty handed on a weekend in which they were tied with the Lancers in the final minute of both games.

On Saturday night Omaha outshot the Storm 37-22.

Tri-City hits the road next week for three games away from home. Thursday night the Storm are in Waterloo to face the Black Hawks, before traveling to Des Moines and Cedar Rapids on Friday andSaturday. All three games will start at 7:05 p.m.

The Storm are back at home on Dec. 13 and 14 to face the Youngstown Phantoms in a two-game series.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Steven Haydon, Chris Wilkie and Thomas Aldworth, along with defenseman Sean Lang.…

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period
Tri-City – Garrett Gamez (Joel L’Esperance, Kyle Eastman) 4:15

2nd Period

Omaha – Tyler Vesel (power play) (Steven Johnson) 12:58

3rd Period

Omaha – Connor Light (unassisted) 19:32

PENALTIES

1st Period
Tri-City – Ross Olsson – (Tripping), 2 min, 6:10
Omaha – Niklas Folin – (Tripping), 2 min, 9:41
Omaha – Tyler Hynes – (Interference), 2 min, 13:52
Omaha – Brian Williams – (Delay of Game), 2 min, 17:03
Tri-City – Garrett Cecere – (Delay of Game), 2 min, 17:03

2nd Period
Tri-City – Drew Mayer – (Checking From Behind), 2 min, 8:11
Tri-City – Bench Minor (Too Many Men), 2 min, 12:35

3rd Period

Tri-City – Kyle Eastman – (Boarding), 2 min, 14:22

Power Play

Omaha – 1/4

Tri-City – 0/2

Shots

Omaha: 12, 11, 14 = Total: 37

Tri-City: 5, 8, 9 = Total: 22

Saves

Omaha – Cole Bruns – 21/22

Tri-City – Jacob Johansson – 35/37

KEARNEY, Neb. – For the second straight game the Storm fell short after scoring a tying goal in the final period. Friday night’s game with the visiting Omaha Lancers (16-3-2) had late drama but the Tri-City Storm (5-12-2) came out on the losing end of a tight game, falling 5-3 at the Viaero Event Center after Omaha’s Tyler Vesel scored the game winner with 30 seconds remaining.

Storm forwards Nick Hutchison, Christian Horn and Drew Mayer all had goals in the loss, keeping their team in the game until the final minute.

In a battle of backup goaltenders named Hayden, both Hawkey and Lavigne made timely saves for their respective teams. Omaha’s Hawkey made 26 saves and came away with his sixth victory, while the Tri-City’s Lavigne stopped 33 shots in the loss.

The Storm opened up a lead when they scored the first goal of the night 6:36 into the first period. It was the first tally of the season for Hutchison, who beat Hawkey on a shot from in between the circles after taking a pass from linemate Chase Berger. Storm forward Kyle Eastman was credited with the second assist on the goal, his third helper of the season.

But the Lancers evened the game back up with a power play goal from Steven Johnson and took a 2-1 lead late in the first frame on Jake Henderson’s second goal of the season.

Tri-City tied things back up on an early power play goal four and a half minutes into the middle period. Horn sniped a shot into the net on a power play for his fourth goal of the season. Assists on the tally went to defensemen Nolan Gluchowski and Garrett Cecere.

Omaha took the lead on a goal by Brian Williams with under three minutes remaining in the second and had a 3-2 edge heading to the third period.

In the final frame Tri-City battled back and went toe-to-toe with the USHL’s best. Neither team registered a goal until there were under five minutes remaining in regulation.

It was Mayer who found the equalizer on a broken play in front of the Lancers net with 4:52 left on the clock. It was the Troy, Mich. native’s second tally of the season and assists were given to both Ross Olsson and Ryan McMuprhy on the play.

Under two minutes later, Mayer had a chance to give his team the lead when he was awarded a penalty shot. He made a move and had room in the left side of the net but Hawkey held his ground with his right pad and kept the puck out.

The score stayed deadlocked until the final minute when Vesel scored with 30 seconds remaining on a puck that squeaked under Lavigne’s right pad and into the net. Vesel added an empty netter seconds later to close out the scoring and secure a 5-3 victory for the Lancers.

The two teams will battle again on Saturday night in Kearney. The puck drops at 7:05 p.m.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Steven Haydon, Joey DiBenedetto and Garrett Gamez, along with defenseman Sean Lang.…

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period
Tri-City – Nick Hutchison (Chase Berger) 6:36
Omaha – Steven Johnson (power play) (Tucker Poolman) 13:50
Omaha – Jake Henderson (Tyler Hynes) 15:05

2nd Period

Tri-City – Christian Horn (power play) (Garrett Cecere, Nolan Gluchowski) 4:30
Omaha – Brian Williams (Louie Rowe, Nash Worden) 17:54

3rd Period

Tri-City – Drew Mayer (Ross Olsson, Ryan McMurphy) 15:08
Omaha – Tyler Vesel (Matt Nelson, Gage Hough) 19:30
Omaha – Tyler Vesel (empty net) (Gage Hough) 19:54

PENALTIES

1st Period
Tri-City – Ross Olsson – (Head Contact), 2 min, 13:02
Omaha – Niklas Folin – (Interference), 2 min, 18:10

2nd Period

Omaha – Jake Randolph – (Slashing), 2 min, 4:10
Omaha – Niklas Folin – (Tripping), 2 min, 5:12

3rd Period

Tri-City – Joel L’Esperance – (Boarding), 2 min, 3:11
Tri-City – Cutler Martin – (Roughing), 2 min, 3:11
Omaha – Jake Randolph – (High Sticking), 2 min, 9:59

Power Play

Omaha – 1/3

Tri-City – 1/4

Shots

Omaha: 14, 12, 12 = Total: 38

Tri-City: 12, 6, 11 = Total: 29

Saves

Omaha – Hayden Hawkey – 26/29

Tri-City – Hayden Lavigne – 33/37

KEARNEY, Neb. – The Tri-City Storm raised $1,743 in their Jerseys For A Cause campaign during the month of October. All of those funds will be donated to the Kearney Tackles Cancer fund, the organization’s October beneficiary.

KTC is a local organization in Kearney that raises money to help those that are struggling financially while fighting cancer.

Tri-City hosted six games in October, and during each contest raffled off one special edition pink jersey that the Storm wore against Sioux City on Oct. 4 for Pink In The Rink night

The Storm will continue to hold raffles for the special jerseys at each of their home games for the rest of the 2013-14 season.

At the two remaining November home games the Storm will donate all funds from  Jerseys For A Cause to Relay For Life in Central Nebraska.

Those two games take place this weekend when Tri-City hosts the Omaha Lancers on Friday Nov. 29 and Saturday Nov. 30. Tickets for both games are still available and can be purchased by calling the Viaero Event Center Box Office at 308.338.8011 or logging on to stormhockey.com.

Friday night’s game starts at 7:30 p.m., while Saturday night’s puck drops at 7:05. Friday night Is Free Kids Friday, with kids ages 12-and-under receiving a free admission with the purchase of an adult ticket and Saturday night is the return of the popular Ugly Sweater Night.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – A tying third period tally wasn’t enough for the Tri-City Storm (5-11-2) as Team USA (14-6-0) got the final goal from Jeremy Bracco and won 3-2 at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube on Sundayafternoon.

The Storm got goals from forwards Joel L’Esperance and Chris Wilkie and goaltender Jacob Johansson made 31 saves in the loss.

Tri-City opened up a 1-0 lead on an outstanding passing play executed by Wilkie, who got the puck to L’Esperance in front with an open net. The Brighton, Mich. native didn’t miss and picked up his third goal in his last two games. Forward Garrett Gamez got the second assist on the play, recording his first point of the season.

After 20 minutes the Storm led 1-0, despite being outshot 17-7 by Team USA.

In the second period the Under-17 Team came back and beat Johansson twice to take a 2-1 lead. Forwards Michael Floodstrand and Jordan Greenway each found the back of the net in under two minutes and Team USA had taken control of the game.

The Storm tied the game at the 7:15 mark of the final frame when Wilkie found a rebound in front and put it past USA goaltender Luke Opilka to make it 2-2. Assists on the goal were credited to both Gamez and Christian Horn.

In a back-and-forth third period with both teams generating chances, Team USA got the final score of the game from Bracco with 6:57 remaining on the clock.

Tri-City fought hard and had opportunities in the final minutes, but fell short.

The Storm will return home on Nov. 29-30 for a weekend series with the Omaha Lancers at the Viaero Event Center. Friday’s game gets underway at 7:30 p.m., while Saturday’s contest starts at 7:05.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Joey DiBenedetto and Dan Labosky, along with defensemen Sean Lang.…

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period
Tri-City – Joel L’Esperance (Chris Wilkie, Garrett Gamez) 8:05

2nd Period

Team USA – Luke Kunin (Luke Kirwan) 12:14

Team USA – Jordan Greenway (Jeremy Bracco) 13:36

3rd Period

Tri-City – Chris Wilkie (Garrett Gamez, Christian Horn) 7:15

Team USA – Jeremy Bracco (Colin White, Jordan Greenway) 13:03

PENALTIES

1st Period

Tri-City – Steven Haydon – (Elbowing), 2 min, 4:29

Tri-City – Cutler Martin – (Boarding), 2 min, 10:58

Team USA – Nick Boka – (Roughing), 2 min, 14:52

Tri-City – Joel L’Esperance – (Slashing), 2 min, 14:52

2nd Period
Team USA – Colin White – (Hooking), 2 min, 4:08

Tri-City – Thomas Aldworth – (Hooking), 2 min, 19:00

3rd Period

Team USA – Noah Hanifin – (Holding), 2 min, 0:51

Tri-City – Tory Dello – (Holding), 2 min, 8:01

Team USA – Nick Boka – (High Sticking), 2 min, 19:11

Power Play

Tri-City – 0/3

Team USA – 0/4

Shots

Tri-City: 7, 5, 13 = Total: 25

Team USA: 17, 13, 4 = Total: 34

Saves

Tri-City – Jacob Johansson – 31/34

Team USA – Luke Opilka – 23/25

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Hayden Lavigne made 36 saves and Joel L’Esperance scored twice as the Tri-City Storm (5-10-2) earned their first win under new head coach Jim Hulton, defeating Team USA (13-6-0) by a final score of 5-2 at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube on Saturday night.

Storm forwards Christian Horn and Thomas Aldworth also scored goals for Tri-City in the win, and Chris Wilkie added an empty netter against his former team to seal the victory in the closing minutes.

Team USA got out to an early lead in the opening period, scoring the first goal of the night just 56 seconds in. Christian Fischer took a pass from Luke Kunin and beat Lavigne to make it 1-0 in the first minute of the game.

The NTDP outshot the Storm 14-8 in the first frame and had the lead until L’Esperance scored his first tally of the night. The goal tied the game up at 1-1 at 17:54 of the period and was his sixth of the season.

Tri-City took control of the game in the middle frame, getting goals from both L’Esperance and Horn to take a 3-1 lead. Defensemen Kevin Kerr and Garrett Cecere and forward Kyle Eastman all picked up assists in the second.

In the final period, the Storm extended their lead to 4-1 on Thomas Aldworth’s third goal of the season.

USA got a late tally from defenseman Charles McAvoy to cut the lead to 4-2 in the last five minutes, but Wilkie’s empty net goal solidified the 5-2 win.

The teams won’t have much time to rest as they will meet once more tomorrow for a 3:30 p.m. ESTpuck drop.

The Storm will return home on Nov. 29-30 for a weekend series with the Omaha Lancers at the Viaero Event Center.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Ross Olsson and Ryan McMurphy, along with defensemen Sean Lang.…

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period

Team USA – Christian Fischer (Nick Boka) 0:56
Tri-City – Joel L’Esperance (Nolan Gluchowski) 17:54

2nd Period

Tri-City – Joel L’Esperance (Kevin Kerr, Garrett Cecere) 9:23

Tri-City – Christian Horn (Kyle Eastman) 17:31

3rd Period

Tri-City – Thomas Aldworth (Chase Berger) 4:49
Team USA – Charles McAvoy (Zach Werenski) 15:05
Tri-City – Chris Wilkie (empty net) (Daniel Labosky) 19:12

PENALTIES

1st Period

Tri-City – Jalen Schulz – (Cross Checking), 2 min, 19:10

2nd Period

Team USA – Luke Kunin – (High Sticking), 2 min, 1:14
Tri-City – Daniel Labosky – (Tripping), 2 min, 6:52
Team USA – Jeremy Bracco – (Hooking), 2 min, 7:35
Tri-City – Drew Mayer – (Elbowing) 9:45
Tri-City – Cutler Martin – (Cross Checking), 2 min, 13:52

3rd Period

Tri-City – Jalen Schulz – (Tripping), 2 min, 11:55

Power Play

Tri-City – 1/2

Team USA – 0/5

Shots

Tri-City: 8, 6, 8 = Total: 22

Team USA: 14, 10, 14 = Total: 38

Saves

Tri-City – Hayden Lavigne – 36/38

Team USA – Michael Lackey – 17/21

BENSENVILLE, Ill. – Chicago Steel (6-12-0) goaltender Cale Morris held the Tri-City Storm (4-10-2) at bay on Friday night at The Edge, shutting them out in a 2-0 win for the Steel.

Storm goaltender Jacob Johansson also put on a show at the other end of the ice in the loss, making 35 saves on 36 shots.

The shutout spoiled the debut of new Storm head coach Jim Hulton, who was introduced on Tuesday.

A defensive battle that didn’t see either team score in the first 40 minutes, the Storm only managed 21 shots on Morris, who posted his first USHL shutout.

The Steel finally broke through at 3:10 of the third, when forward Artem Artemov took a pass from linemate CJ Smith and beat Johansson with a shot over the left shoulder.

Smith added an empty net goal in the final minute for Chicago to seal the win with 25 seconds to play.

Earlier in the contest, Johansson stopped Chicago forward John Ernsting on a penalty shot at 7:11 of the second period.

Tri-City will head on to Ann Arbor, Mich. for two battles with the USA 17-and-under squad on Saturday at 6:05 p.m. CST and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. CST.

The Storm will return home on Nov. 29-30 for a weekend series with the Omaha Lancers at the Viaero Event Center.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Joey DiBenedetto, Nick Hutchison, Steven Haydon and defensemen Sean Lang.… 

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period

(no scoring)

2nd Period

(no scoring)

3rd Period

Chicago – Artem Artemov (CJ Smith) 3:10
Chicago – CJ Smith (empty net) (Robbie Payne, Robby Jackson) 19:35

PENALTIES

1st Period
Tri-City – Drew Mayer – (Holding), 2 min, 6:34

2nd Period

Tri-City – Drew Mayer – (Hooking), 2 min, 3:22
Chicago – Nathan Kwiecinski – (Interference), 2 min, 6:41
Chicago – Victor Bjorkung – (Hooking), 2 min, 9:35
Tri-City – Kevin Kerr – (Holding), 2 min, 9:50
Tri-City – Cutler Martin – (Slashing), 2 min, 13:41
Chicago – Brady Jones – (Too Many Men) (Bench Minor), 2 min, 16:27

3rd Period

Chicago – Danny Fetzer – (Head Contact), 2 min, 4:50
Tri-City – Daniel Labosky – (High Sticking), 2 min, 17:26
Chicago – Connor McDonald – (Holding), 2 min, 19:52

Power Play

Tri-City – 0/5

Chicago – 0/5

Shots

Tri-City: 9, 5, 7 = Total: 21

Chicago: 6, 15, 16 = Total: 37

Saves

Tri-City – Jacob Johansson – 35/36

Chicago – Cale Morris – 21/21