ALLEN, Texas (February 23, 2014) - The Allen Americans' Jamie Schaafsma and Tyler Ludwig both scored twice and Quad City Mallards coach Terry Ruskowski was ejected in the second period as the host Americans defeated the Mallards 6-2 Sunday.  The loss leaves the Mallards (25-15-8, 58 points) in sixth place in the Central Hockey League while the win lifts the Americans (28-18-4, 60 points) into fourth place.

The Mallards' afternoon took an early turn south when Jamie Schaafsma pounced on a loose puck beside the Quad City net to open the scoring at 5:06 of the first period.  Officiating first drew the ire of Ruskowski and his troops with 41 seconds left in the first when, with the Americans on the power play, Jonathan Zion scored from the slot and his goal was allowed to stand even though the Americans' Jonathan Lessard had knocked over Mallard goaltender Thomas Heemskerk just before Zion fired the puck home.

After Matt Boyd briefly sparked Quad City comeback hopes with a point-blank power play goal at 3:43 of the second period, the Americans took control by scoring three straight goals over the course of a middle frame that saw Ruskowski assessed a game misconduct.  Brian McMillan's tip-in stretched the Alllen lead to 3-1 just 22 seconds after Boyd got the Mallards on the scoreboard.  Both teams were down a man when Ludwig snapped the puck in under the cross bar from the right wing circle at 7:46 of the second to widen the gap to 4-1 and bring about the replacement of Mallard goaltender Thomas Heemskerk by Ty Rimmer.  The Americans were on the power play when Ludwig made it 5-1 with a drive from the high slot at 12:14.  It was after this goal that Ruskowski was given his marching orders.

Schaafscma scored his second goal and the Americans' sixth on a breakaway just past the midway point of the third period.  Gergo Nagy provided a belated Mallard response from the doorstep at 14:06 of the third.

The Mallards next play at home Wednesday night at 7:05 p.m. against the Mavericks.  That game is another Winning Wednesday presented by T.G.I. Friday's.  If the Mallards win next Wednesday, each fan in attendance will receive a free ticket to the Mallards' following Wednesday home game courtesy of T.G.I. Friday's.  After the game fans can join the Mallards at T.G.I. Friday's in Moline for a postgame party.

Tickets for next Wednesday night's game and all Mallards regular season home games can be purchased at the iWireless Center ticket office, Ticketmaster outlets, through ticketmaster.com or through Ticketmaster charge-by-phone toll free at 1-800-745-3000.  The ticket office is open weekdays from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and on game days from 10:00 a.m. until the start of the second period.

By Jason Alderman

Calculating income taxes is a royal pain, even when your situation is uncomplicated enough that you can file a 1040EZ Form. And if you're self-employed, be prepared for extra layers of complexity. Not only must you file an annual return with numerous additional forms and schedules, you're also responsible for paying quarterly estimated taxes, which can mean having to write a pretty hefty check while waiting for your clients to pay their overdue bills.

Add in that you're also responsible for funding your own health insurance and retirement and you may start to miss having an employer manage a portion of your financial affairs. (Although many people go into business for themselves precisely to call their own shots.)

Here are a few things to remember when calculating your 2013 taxes:

First, some potentially good news for taxpayers who claim a home office deduction: You now may choose between the traditional method of calculating the business use of your home (which involves numerous calculations, filling out the onerous IRS Form 8829 and maintaining back-up records for years) and a new simplified option.

Under the new, so-called "safe harbor" method, you can simply claim a standard deduction of $5 per square foot for the portion of your home used regularly and exclusively for business, up to a maximum of 300 square feet - a $1,500 limit.

Contrast that with the traditional method where you must calculate actual expenses of your home office expressed as a percentage of the square footage your home office consumes. For example, if your office takes up 12 percent of your house, you can deduct 12 percent of your electricity bill.

A few additional details:

• You can choose either method from year to year; however, once you've elected a method for a given tax year it's irrevocable.
• Under the safe-harbor method you cannot depreciate the portion of your home used for business in that particular year.
• With the new method you can still claim allowable mortgage interest, real estate taxes and insurance losses as itemized deductions on Schedule A. These deductions don't have to be allocated between personal and business use, as under the traditional method.

You'll need to weigh whether the recordkeeping hours you save justify the potentially smaller deduction - especially if you have a large home office or considerable deductions. Suggestion: Look at last year's deduction and compare what it would have been using the $5 per square foot calculation, factoring in time spent doing the math.

A few other self-employment tax-filing considerations:

• In addition to the home office deduction, you generally can deduct many other business-related expenses, including: legal and accounting fees; professional dues and subscriptions; business insurance and licenses; professional training and education; professional equipment and software; maintenance/repairs; and business-related mileage, travel and entertainment.
• You can also deduct the full cost of medical, dental, vision and long-term care insurance premiums for you, your spouse and dependents, even if you don't itemize deductions.
• For more details on business expenses and deductions, see IRS Publication 535 (www.irs.gov). Also visit the IRS' Self-Employed Individuals Tax Center.

Bottom line: Income taxes are often more complicated for self-employed people and good recordkeeping is essential. Unless you're an accounting whiz, consider hiring a tax professional or financial planner who specializes in self-employment issues. The penalties and fees they can help you avoid - and hidden deductions they can uncover - will probably more than pay for their fees.

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Jason Alderman directs Visa's financial education programs. To participate in a free, online Financial Literacy and Education Summit on April 2, 2014, go to www.practicalmoneyskills.com/summit2014.

MADISON - Several thousand students received degrees during the University of Wisconsin-Madison's winter commencement ceremonies, Dec. 22, 2013.

Professor Donald Downs delivered the charge to graduates at the ceremony held at the Kohl Center including Evan William Russell Price of Moline with a Bachelor of Science-Biological Systems Engineering degree in Biological Systems Engineering and Brian James Leech of Rock Island who received his Doctor of Philosophy - History

For more information about UW-Madison, visit http://www.wisc.edu. Here are the degree recipients from your area:

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Friday, February 21, 2014

Senator Chuck Grassley issued the following comment about cuts to the Medicare Advantage program announced this afternoon.  Senator Grassley is a senior member and former chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, which is responsible for Medicare policy and oversight.

"The announcement made today by the Administration emphasizes the reality that the Affordable Care Act built in cuts to Medicare Advantage.  In Iowa, we fought hard to have access to Medicare Advantage so that seniors would have more choices and the range of valuable services available to seniors in other parts of the country.  With the payment cut specified today as part of Obamacare, more Iowans will find they can't keep the health care coverage they have."