The Rivermen gained four out of a possible six points last week with wins against Grand Rapids and Houston to begin their five-game road trip. Jaden Schwartz scored a goal in all three games, and now is tied for the team lead with eight.

Dec. 5 – 2-1 W at Grand Rapids
Peoria ended a three-game skid Wednesday night with a 2-1 win against the Grand Rapids Griffins (Detroit Red Wings). Adam Cracknell opened up the scoring early in the second period with an unassisted tally to give the Rivermen the lead. Riley Sheahan tied the contest midway through the second with a shorthanded marker. Just over a minute later, Jaden Schwartz scored his sixth goal of the 2012-2013 campaign to make it a 2-1 game. The third frame saw no scoring. Mike McKenna made 28 saves in the win. The Rivermen went 1-for-2 on the man advantage while killing off all four penalties against.

Dec. 8 – 4-1 L at Texas
Despite scoring the game’s first goal, the Rivermen lost to the Texas Stars (Dallas Stars) 4-1 Saturday night at the Cedar Park Center. Jaden Schwartz scored a shorthanded goal at 7:24 of the first period to give Peoria a 1-0 lead. Texas would go on to score four unanswered goals to earn the victory. Reilly Smith and Matt Fraser each had a pair of goals in the win. Jake Allen stopped 39 of the 43 shots he saw, while Cristopher Nilstorp only faced 23 shots. The Rivermen went 0-for-4 on the power play.

Dec. 9 – 3-2 W at Houston
Sunday night, the Rivermen won their second game of their current five-game road trip against the Houston Aeros (Minnesota Wild) by a score of 3-2. Andrew Murray, who had missed the last 13 games due to injury, scored a goal and tallied an assist in his first game back. Jaden Schwartz and Phil McRae also picked up a goal and an assist in the victory. Mike McKenna stopped 32 shots in his second straight win. Peoria went 1-for-1 on the power play and went 3-for-3 on the penalty kill.

Rivermen Notes

• In his last eight games, Jaden Schwartz has picked up 8 points (5 goals, 3 assists).
• After going pointless in his first 10 games played, Philip McRae has tallied 9 points (5 goals, 4 assists) in his last 12 contests.
• Mike McKenna has a 3-3-0 record, a 2.81 GAA, and a .917 SV% in 7 games played this year.
• Since their seven game losing streak that ended in early November, the Rivermen have a record of 6-4-0-1.
• Peoria now has an overall record of 8-11-2-2.

The Rivermen will play against the Oklahoma City Barons on Tuesday and will conclude their road trip on Friday night against Grand Rapids. Games can be heard on CD Country 107.9 FM. For game updates follow @rivsgameday on Twitter.