NA3HL announces Bauer Divisional Stars of the Week
The North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL) today announced the Divisional Stars of the Week presented by Bauer Hockey for the week ending February 11, 2018. The divisional stars of the week is an award given each week of the regular season to the top performing players in each of the eight divisions of the NA3HL as nominated by their head coaches.
Central Division Star of the Week: Thomas Magnavite, Forward, La Crosse Freeze
The La Crosse Freeze are one of the hottest teams in the NA3HL as they have won 10 in a row and sit just three points back of first place North Iowa. Thomas Magnavite was an offensive catalyst this past weekend as the Freeze swept division rival Wisconsin. Magnavite notched a hat trick in Friday’s series opener. All three goals came on the power play and included the game winning goal. On Saturday, Magnavite continued his offensive tear and potted two more goals giving him five for the weekend. The forward from Chicago is riding a six game point streak.
2nd Star: Sam Hanson, F, Wisconsin Whalers
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Colin Cain, G, North Iowa Bulls – Toon De Schepper, F, La Crosse Freeze – Cameron Fagerlee, F, North Iowa Bulls – John Vandervalk, F, Wisconsin Whalers
Coastal Division Star of the Week: Cole Archambeault, Forward, New England Stars
Archambeault, 18, had himself quite the weekend as he was able to find the back of the net twice on Saturday night in a 5-2 win over the Northeast Generals. He was able to mimic that performance on Sunday as he found the back of the net two more times in a 3-1 win against the Cape Cod Islanders. He had a power play goal and the game winner against Cape Cod. He finished with a plus-3 rating.
2nd Star: Leevi Kervinen, F, Cape Cod Islanders
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): None
East Division Star of the Week: Connor Inger, Forward, Metro Jets
The leading scorer for the Metro Jets continued to make his case for NA3HL MVP honors as the veteran forward had back-to-back big performances against the Toledo Cherokee. On Friday, Inger scored a pair of goals in a big win and followed that up with a three point effort, one goal and two assists. He was credited with the game winner in Saturday’s victory. For the season, Inger has 38 goals and 43 assists to give him 81 points, which ranks second in the NA3HL.
2nd Star: George Hanson, G, Metro Jets
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): None
Frontier Division Star of the Week: Cody Grogan, Goalie, Gillette Wild
With a playoff spot on the line, Cody Grogan stepped up. The goaltender for the Gillette Wild allowed just two goals in two games against the Missoula Jr. Bruins. Coming into the weekend, the Wild had just a one point lead over the Jr. Bruins for the final playoff spot in the Frontier Division. On Saturday, Groton made 34 saves as his team pulled out a 3-2 overtime win. The next day, Grogan pitched a 36 save shutout, his second shutout of the season, to increase Gillette’s lead in the standings to four points. For the series, Grogan had a 0.98 goals against average and a .972 save percentage.
2nd Star: Carver Thompson, G, Bozeman Icedogs
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): None
Midwest Division Star of the Week: Bud Winter, Forward, St. Louis Jr. Blues
Newly acquired Bud Winter made a statement in his season debut with the St. Louis Jr. Blues. The forward from Sunset Hills, MO had identical performances against the Point Mallard Ducks this past weekend as he scored two goals and had an assist on Saturday in a Jr. Blues victory. On Sunday, he put up the exact same numbers to finish the weekend with four goals and six points. Winter logged a plus-4 rating in his two games and also netted a power play goal.
2nd Star: Bret Bauer, F, Peoria Mustangs
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Will Baginski, F, St. Louis Jr. Blues
Northeast Division Star of the Week: Thomas Mandel, Forward, Binghamton Junior Senators
The offense was rolling for the Binghamton Junior Senators and Thomas Mandel was a huge reason for it’s success. The native of New Hartford, New York put together a six point performance on Saturday as he netted a hat trick and also handed out three helpers. The following day he fell a goal shy of back-to-back hat tricks but still wound up with five points on the day. In the two game series, Mandel picked up 11 points to go with a plus-9 rating. Mandel has 18 points in five games.
2nd Star: Steven Kozikoski, G, Oswego Stampede
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Tommy Kilway, F, Oswego Stampede – Andrew Logar, F, Niagara Falls PowerHawks – Matthew Minichiello, F, Niagara Falls PowerHawks – Tim O’Connor, D, Binghamton Junior Senators
South Division Star of the Week: Nick Sheridan, Forward, Mid Cities Jr. Stars
There was three games and three standout performances from Nick Sheridan this week as the Mid Cities Jr. Stars swept the College Station Spirit. On Friday night, Sheridan was lending a helping hand as he picked up two assists in a 5-2 win. The next night, Sheridan found the back of the net once and had another assist. Finally on Sunday, Sheridan exploded for three goals and an assist to finish the sweep. Sheridan picked up eight points over the three game span and overall has 10 points in his last four games. He finished the weekend with a plus-6.
2nd Star: Fletcher Chun, F, Point Mallard
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Kyle Cote, F, Texas Brahmas – Matt Greco, F, Mid Cities Jr. Stars – Michael Redman, F, Texas Brahmas – Jesse Stepp, F, Point Mallard Ducks
West Division Star of the Week: Logan Nelson, Forward, Alexandria Blizzard
Consistency was key for Alexandria Blizzard forward Logan Nelson. First against the division leading New Ulm Steel, Nelson was able to find the back of the net once and assist on two other goals as the Blizzard upset the Steel 4-1. Then on Saturday in a battle with division rival Willmar, he scored two more goals and added an assist in a 6-4 win. In the final game of the weekend on Sunday, against Granite City, Nelson provided all the offense as his team fell to the Lumberjacks in overtime 4-3 despite Nelson’s second hat trick of the season. Alexandria’s leading scorer finished the three game weekend with nine points and extended his points streak to seven.
2nd Star: Braden Shea, F, Willmar Warhawks
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Max Oelkers, F, Willmar Warhawks – Tom Reilly, F, New Ulm Steel – Sam Storlie, D, New Ulm Steel
