MARQUETTE – The second season is proving more fruitful for the Marquette Royales Junior A hockey team.

After a 16-32-0 regular season that included a 5-17 start, the Royales pulled off an upset in their first playoff series and look to pull off another on the road this weekend.

The Royales, made up of players ages 16 to 20, swept both games on the road in a series at the Kalkaska Rhinos last weekend. It was the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs in the U.S. Premier Hockey League’s Midwest Division and was the Marquette team’s first playoff series win since the 2013-14 season when it won the Minnesota Junior Hockey League title.

Now they head further south in the Lower Peninsula to take on the Eastern Conference’s No. 1 team, the Tri City Icehawks based in Bay City. Games will be played at 7:30 p.m. Friday, 8 p.m. Saturday, and if necessary, at 11:30 a.m. Sunday at the Bay County Ice Arena.

Last weekend, the Royales picked up a forfeit win to open their series on Friday against Kalkaska after the Rhinos used a suspended player, then followed it up with a 5-0 whitewash of their hosts on Saturday.

The team’s leading scorer in the regular season, defenseman Jayson Dahlquist, showed it wasn’t a fluke as he registered five points against Kalkaska – a goal in their 2-1 opening-game loss that was ultimately forfeited, then a goal and a three-assist playmaker on Saturday that both counted and clinched the series.

That gives him 55 points (17 goals, 38 assists) in 50 games, while forward Erich Walter of Houghton is second on the Royales with 43 points, including two last weekend.

In addition, Marquette goalie Josef Dusenka made 37 saves in the 5-0 victory for his ninth win this season.

While Kalkaska was a modest 20-28 in the regular season, the Icehawks were a sterling 40-8. However, one of those losses came in Bay City to the Royales, 3-2 in overtime on Oct. 24.

But first-year coach Jim Stanaway knows his team has its work cut out for it as Marquette was outscored 21-7 in its other five games against Tri City.

The winner of that series, along with one from another Eastern Division series between the Traverse City Hounds and Detroit Fighting Irish, will head to Boston for a USPHL playoff tournament.

Stanaway was also proud to note his players received recognition from the Marquette Township board at a Tuesday night meeting for its community service efforts, which include helping build the new community ice rink, volunteering at the Noquemanon Ski Marathon and several other activities such as packing groceries at a local store.

Steve Brownlee can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 252.