PEORIA — The Peoria Rivermen took care of business on their home ice, then took care of the fans who made unprecedented domination at Carver Arena possible as the 2023-24 SPHL regular-season finale unfolded.
The Rivermen set an SPHL record with their 24th victory of the season on home ice, and with it a record for best home-ice win percentage (.911) in their 42-year franchise history, a 2-1 decision over Quad City in front of 5,183.
The Rivermen won at home for the 13th consecutive game and closed with an 18-1-1 run on Carver Arena ice. That big crowd saw Peoria-born captain Alec Hagaman skate out and wave in salute on a night he scored the game-winning goal in the final regular-season home game of his long pro career.
Hagaman started the night with a pre-game ceremonial faceoff in which his daughter, 6-year-old Adley, dropped the puck for him. He finished the night by leading the team through the grandstand and into the arena concourse to meet and greet fans for autographs and pictures.
“For me, I had the big sendoff here at the end of last season, and it was very emotional,” Hagaman said. “Circumstances changed and I ended up back on the ice this season. I’m glad it worked out that way. When the season gets late, it feels like everything speeds up, you can feel time running out, and for me, it was running out on my career.”
Hagaman and his family will move to Wisconsin this summer, and he won’t play again. Between Saturday and moving day, he’ll have one final postseason run with Peoria.
“This was a great crowd tonight, we felt them,” Hagaman said. “Playing here, with crowds giving us that energy, it feeds us, helps us build the record we have here. They are a part of it.
“Playing in Carver Arena just feels special for us. For me even more. I grew in Peoria watching this team play on this ice. When I step on that ice I cherish it. It’s been 10 years, and I still feel that way when I play in here.”
Box score: Rivermen 2, Quad City 1
The numbers behind the record
The Rivermen completed an incredible season Saturday when they closed their home schedule with just one regulation loss all season. It’s unknown if any pro team has ever gone undefeated at home over an entire season. But Peoria came close.
The only Rivermen regulation loss at Carver Arena was a 3-2 decision to Huntsville on Jan. 14. The other three losses were after regulation in their 24-1-3 final record. Those included a 4-3 overtime loss to Quad City on Nov. 3, a 5-4 shootout loss to Evansville on…
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