SIOUX FALLS, S.D.— The Sioux Falls Stampede was defeated by the Fargo Force on Ugly Sweater Night, 6-1. Gennadi Chaly found the Stampede's lone goal while Michael Chambre was tabbed with the loss, allowing five of Fargo's goals. The Herd is now 13-12-1-1 this season and holds third place in the USHL Western Conference standings.
Fargo kicked off the game with a pair of goals before the Herd was able to answer back with one of its own. Racing off a defensive-zone faceoff, Gennadi Chaly passed the puck up to Will McDonough who skated around a herd of Force players and was able to dish the puck back Chaly, allowing him to score on a one-timer in front of Castro's net. The Force scored on two of its three powerplay opportunities in the first period while the Herd couldn't capitalize on it's one chance. The Stampede was outshot 5-14 in the first 20 minutes of play.
With two goals for Fargo and none for the Stampede in the second period, the Herd was forced to battle with a four-goal deficit heading into the final period of play. Just over midway through the period, Michael Chambre was replaced in net by Stampede affiliate goaltender Jan Kasal. Being outshot again, this time by a closer margin of 8-12, the Herd held a two-period total of 13 shots on net versus Fargo's 26.
The Force found an additional goal with just 1:05 expired from the clock in the third period. Jan Kasal went on to stop 10 shots on his net during the period. He tallied 26:53 minutes in net with 14 total saves and a 2.23 goals-against average. Michael Chambre marked 15 saves and a .750 save percentage. Chambre is now 8-5-1-1 this season with a career record of 15-17-1-1.
The Herd now heads on a 12-day holiday break before heading to Sioux City, Iowa on Dec. 29 to take on the Musketeers. They'll then come back to the PREMIER Center on Dec. 30 and 31 to close out 2023 against the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders and Des Moines Buccaneers, respectively. Tickets for all Stampede home games are available now through the KELOLAND box office, Stampede office, or any Ticketmaster outlets.
