LINCOLN, Neb. – Key third period goals from Daniel Shlaine and Jack Pechar handed the Lincoln Stars a 4-2 victory over the Tri-City Storm on Friday night at the Ice Box.

Tri-City will be the sixth seed in the Western Conference playoffs and face third-seeded Waterloo in a best-of-three first round series beginning Monday at Young Arena. Game times will be announced in the coming days. 

• Game One: Monday, April 14 at Waterloo (Time TBA)

• Game Two: Tuesday, April 15 at Waterloo (Time TBA)

• Game Three (if necessary): Wednesday, April 16 at Waterloo (Time TBA)

Fargo clinched the Western Conference's five seed after beating Sioux Falls on Friday.  

Neither team scored in a fast-paced opening period, where the Stars (44-15-2, 90 pts) outshot the Storm (28-29-4, 60 pts) 11-9. Lincoln, who entered the night with the number one power play in the USHL, had three opening frame opportunities, including a lengthy 5-on-3. 

Tri-City was first to strike and did so 3:53 into the second. The Storm's Cooper Simpson grabbed a deflected puck at center ice and immediately skated on a breakaway toward Lincoln netminder Yan Shostak. The North Dakota commit shoved a backhand shot over Shostak's left pad for his sixth goal in eight games with the Storm this season. The Shakopee, Minnesota native extended his point streak to a career-high seven contests.  

The Stars tied it 25 seconds later. Dashel Oliver jammed a loose puck under Tri-City goaltender Adam Dybal's left leg after the Czechia native allowed a crease rebound from a previous Lincoln shot. It was Oliver's third goal in two games. 

The Stars jumped ahead 5:56 into the second. As Lincoln rushed it's offensive zone, Alex Pelletier fed an open Darian Anderson in the right faceoff circle. Anderson fired a rapid snapshot over Dybal for his fifth of the campaign. 

Tri-City fought to even the contest on a Lincoln Hjelm tally just past the halfway mark of the frame. Off a Storm offensive zone faceoff, Colton Whitfield spun a left point shot that deflected off Hjelm near the Stars' net, bouncing past Shostak. The Omaha commit collected his fourth goal of the season and first since February 7 at Muskegon. 

The game was tied at two after the second period. 

Lincoln regained the lead and scored the eventual game-winner just 26 seconds into the third. A loose puck hopped to center ice out of Lincoln's zone, where the Stars began a 2-on-0 rush toward Tri-City's net. Shlaine completed the play with a back-door one-timer on a Bruno Idzan feed. The Minnesota-Duluth commit also produced a team-high four shots on the night. 

The Stars doubled their advantage just under eight minutes later. Pechar one-timed a Shlaine cross-ice feed from the left faceoff dot while Tri-City's Ashton Dahms served a minor penalty for hooking. Pechar and Shlaine, each with a goal and an assist, were the only Stars with multiple points on Friday. 

Down 4-2 with slightly under three minutes left, the Storm pulled Dybal for an extra attacker. Tri-City generated a handful of credible opportunities, but did not capitalize. 

Dybal stopped 27 of 31 shots in his first appearance since February 22. Shostak halted 18 of 20 Storm attempts to grab his fourth consecutive victory. 

Up next: Saturday, the home-and-home series between Tri-City and Lincoln shifts to Viaero Center for 25th Anniversary and Fan Appreciation Night. Puckdrop is scheduled for 6:05 pm CT. During the contest, Storm players and Stormy will wear special 25th Anniversary-themed uniforms to celebrate the 25th season of Tri-City Storm Hockey. Each uniform will be auctioned off live on the ice after the game.

In addition, each fan who purchases a ticket to Saturday's matchup will be automatically entered to win a variety of prizes from local businesses. 

Saturday is also a Nebraska Lottery Rivalry Pack night. Get four tickets, four hot dogs, four cans of soda, and ten Nebraska Lottery Scratch off tickets for only $44. Availability is limited. 

To purchase tickets or the Nebraska Lottery Rivalry Pack for Saturday's matchup, visit stormhockey.com, call the Storm at 308-338-8144, or stop by the Viaero Center box office in-person.