3HL announces Combat Hockey 3 stars of the week
The North American 3 Hockey League (3HL) today announced the Three Stars of the Week presented by Combat Hockey for the week ending December 18, 2011. The Three Stars of the Week is a weekly feature during the 2011-12 regular season that honors the top performing players each week of the regular season as nominated by their respective teams.
1st Star: Luke McCarthy, forward, Quad City Jr. Flames
McCarthy, 20, was instrumental in the Jr. Flames sweep of their rival Peoria Mustangs this past weekend. On Saturday, the Scottsville, Michigan native had a hand in all three Quad City goals as they beat the Mustangs, 3-1. McCarthy (6’0/190) scored twice, including the game-winning goal and added an assist in the win. The next day, McCarthy scored the game-winning goal again, this time late in the 2nd period on the power play as Quad City swept the Mustangs thanks to a 2-1 win. The big weekend by McCarthy helped him become Quad City’s scoring leader with 27 points. He is also tied for the team lead in goals with 14. He has already eclipsed last year’s point totals. “Luke he has played very the well the last couple of weeks,” said Jr. Flames head coach Tom McDermott. “He does the little things to be successful. His recent success is a result of good hockey awareness and being in good position.”
2nd Star: Kyle Fink, forward, Cleveland Jr. Lumberjacks
This is the third time this season that Fink, 19, has been honored as of the 3HL’s 3 stars of the week. This past week, Fink helped the 1st place Lumberjacks to a weekend road sweep of the Pittsburgh Jr. Penguins. The New Berlin, Wisconsin native recorded seven points (3 goals, 4 assists) in the two wins. On Saturday, Fink had a goal and three assists which included an assist on the game-winning goal as Cleveland beat Pittsburgh, 6-4. The next day, Fink (5’11/175) added two goals and an assist in a 7-5 win. Despite being 3rd on the team in scoring with 39 points in 30 games played, Fink is in the top 10 in 3HL scoring. “Kyle had a huge weekend and with our top scorer out of the line-up, had a significant impact in both games,” said Cleveland head coach Bob Jacobson. “Kyle is playing the game the right way and not trying to do too much. He is making excellent decisions and getting in good position to score.”
3rd Star: Mike Meadows, goaltender, Quad City Jr. Flames
Meadows, 18, backstopped the Quad City Jr. Flames to a weekend sweep of the Peoria Mustangs. The Bettendorf, Iowa native won both games for Quad City, giving up just a goal in each and stopping a combined 58 of 60 shots for a 96.7% save percentage. On Saturday, Meadows (5’10/180) allowed just a single goal and stopped 25 of 26 Mustangs shots as Quad City beat Peoria, 3-1. On Sunday, Meadows was even better, allowing just a single 2nd period goal on 34 Peoria shots as the Jr. Flames earned the sweep with a close 2-1 win. Even though Meadows has a goals against average of over 3.00, he ranks 6th in the 3HL with a 91.5% save percentage. “Mike has been solid as a rock for us,” said Quad City head coach Tom McDermott. “He had previously struggled against Peoria, so it was good to see him pick up a few wins. He controlled rebounds and put pucks in places that weren’t a threat.”
Other players nominated were (alphabetical order): Eric Behrend, forward, North Iowa Bulls – Cody Damon, forward, Flint Jr. Generals – Jesse Grossman, defenseman, Pittsburgh Jr. Penguins – Steve Klisz, forward, Metro Jets – James Koonce, forward, Michigan Mountain Cats – Stephen Langford, forward, Minnesota Flying Aces – Andrew Lay, forward, Flint Jr. Generals – Mike MacKinnon, forward, Metro Jets – Davis Madren, forward, Twin City Steel – Dylan Martin, goaltender, Michigan Mountain Cats – Kerry McGlynn, forward, St. Louis Jr. Blues – Paul O’Connor, defenseman, St. Louis Jr. Blues – Nick Randazzo, forward, Pittsburgh Jr. Penguins – Joe Skrzynski, forward, Toledo Cherokee – Paul Sorensen, defenseman, Minnesota Flying Aces – Jimmy Steele, forward, Toledo Cherokee – Tyler Stepke, goaltender, North Iowa Bulls – Kegan Storjohann, forward, Twin City Steel.
NOTE: Because there are no 3HL regular season games this week due to the holidays, there will be no 3 stars award on December 27th. The next 3 stars award will be announced on Tuesday, January 3rd.
