NA3HL Announces Stars of the Week
The North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL) is pleased to announce the Divisional Stars of the Week for the week ending September 15th. 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 five divisions of the NA3HL as nominated by their head coaches.
Central Division Star of the Week: Kyle Settles, Defenseman, St. Louis Jr. Blues
St. Louis Jr. Blues defenseman Kyle Settles had a point-producing weekend as the Jr. Blues split their weekend series with the Wisconsin Woodsmen. Despite coming up just short in overtime during game one, the ‘06 blueliner was still able to score one goal and tally two assists on opening night. Settles would follow up his night one performance scoring another goal and notching one assist during the team’s shootout victory for a total of five points on the weekend.
Jr. Blues Head Coach Matt Ocello was thrilled with Settles performance stating, “Kyle had an excellent opening weekend for the Jr. Blues. He is a very versatile player and can play in all situations during the game .His contributions during both games this weekend were outstanding both defensively and offensively. We are looking for great things from Kyle this season.”
2nd Star: Micah Saxon, Forward, Wausau Cyclones
3rd Star: Hugh Deinema, Forward, Wisconsin Woodsmen
East Division Star of the Week: Jason DiMatteo, Forward, Binghamton Buzz
Binghamton Buzz forward Jason DiMatteo delivered yet another standout performance, earning himself back-to-back weekly honors in the East Division. The Boca Raton, FL native continued to showcase his offensive ability by tallying an impressive five goals and adding six assists on the weekend, including his first NA3HL career hattrick during Saturday’s contest.
Binghamton Buzz Head Coach Gaetano Moirano praised DiMatteo’s leadership and work ethic stating, "Jason is a quiet leader that leads by example. His unequivocal work ethic and dedication to improving himself make him a tremendous asset. With performances like this, he is solidifying himself as one of the top players in the NA3HL and we look forward to seeing all he accomplishes this season."
2nd Star: Chase Ebeyer, Binghamton Buzz
3rd Sar: Nicholas Brophy, Northeast Generals
Frontier Division Star of the Week: John Simon, Goaltender, Sheridan Hawks
Sheridan Hawks netminder John Simon picked up his first shutout of the season after a 3-0 victory against the Gillette Wild on Friday night. A second year player for the Hawks, the Fargo, ND native was faced with a whopping 41 shots, an unstoppable performance for a perfect 1.00% save percentage on the evening. With this shutout, Simon’s record improves to 2-0-0-0 on the year and his numbers for the 2024-25 season include a .961 save percentage and goals against average of 1.5.
After joining the Hawks late last season, Sheridan Head Coach JJ Santagata was pleased to re-sign Simon, especially after posting a huge shutout stating, “John stood tall between the pipes all night, he did a great job controlling his rebounds and remaining confident and calm under pressure. He’s an extremely even keeled goaltender and the guys rally around him well.”
2nd Star: Kade Pareja, Helena Bighorns
3rd Star: Ty O’Bey, Great Falls Americans
West Division Star of the Week: Teis Larsen, Forward, Mason City Toros
Mason City Toros forward Teis Larsen made crucial offensive contributions as the Toros split their weekend series with the Minnesota Wilderness. Despite falling to Minnesota in a shootout on opening night, the Winona, MN native was still able to score one goal and tally one assist, picking up one point towards the West Division standings. During the team’s 5-2 victory on Saturday, Teis scored another goal, tallying three points during opening weekend.
With Larsen set to play his first full season of junior hockey in Mason City, Toros Head Coach Mark Hicks stated, “Teis had a great 1st weekend of junior hockey. He works hard and puts himself in great positions to produce offensively. We look forward to seeing him develop and scoring more big goals for us this season.”
2nd Star: Dylan Posch, Minnesota Moose
3rd Star: Kaden Postal, Minnesota Wilderness