The Team USA 18-Under squad is not helping the Muskegon Lumberjacks’ effort to get back into the USHL Eastern Conference playoff picture.
Back on March 18, the 18’s handed the Lumberjacks a tough 10-0 loss one night after the Jacks upset them in Muskegon.
The Lumberjacks rebounded from that pounding, winning two games last weekend, but then had to visit the 18’s in Plymouth, Michigan again on Tuesday night.
It was more of the same, with the Jacks falling 10-1 to the Under-18 squad in an important late-season matchup.
Muskegon is now 24-26-3 on the season with 51 points in the Eastern Conference standings. The Jacks trail Cedar Rapids by seven points in the race for the sixth and final playoff spot in the conference with nine games remaining.
Teams get two points for a win and one for an overtime loss, so the Lumberjacks are basically 3 ½ games behind Cedar Rapids as they head into the home stretch of the regular season.
The Jacks will visit second-place Youngstown for two crucial games on Friday and Saturday.
Team USA led 4-1 after one period on Tuesday, with two goals from Cole Eiserman and one apiece from Beckett Hendrickson and Will Smith. Muskegon’s lone goal of the game came in the first period from Ethan Whitcomb, who tallied his 21st of the season.
Eiserman, Smith, Ryan Fine and Alex Weiermair scored for the home team in the second period, then Hendrickson and Danny Nelson finished things off with goals in the third.
Muskegon was outshot 52-30. The Jacks were 0-for-6 on the power play while Team USA was 4-for-8.
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