NA3HL announces Divisional Stars of the Week presented by Bauer Hockey
The North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL) today announced the Divisional Stars of the Week presented by Bauer Hockey for the week ending February 3, 2019. The divisional stars of the week are awards given each week of the regular season to the top-performing players in each of the six divisions of the NA3HL as nominated by their head coaches.
Central Division Star of the Week: Austin Keil, F, Peoria Mustangs
Keil and the Mustangs took the ice once last week, running riot in an 11-1 win over Wausau on Friday. The Bloomington, IL native was unstoppable in the contest, bagging a whopping five goals – including the game-winner – and one assist to stretch his point streak to three games (10 points in that span). The tilt marked Keil’s second five-goal effort of the season and fourth outing with three or more points this year.
2nd Star: Ivan Galaguzov, F, St. Louis Jr. Blues
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Bret Bauer, F, Peoria Mustangs – Chuck Bay, F, Milwaukee Power – Jake Berry, D, Milwaukee Power – Stepan Ruta, F, Wisconsin Whalers – Caleb Sauer, G, Wisconsin Whalers – Tom Yurisich, D, St. Louis Jr. Blues
Coastal Division Star of the Week: Valeri Rykov, F, L/A Nordiques
With points in each of his six games played since first taking the ice with the Nordiques on January 4, Rykov was already hot as he tallied seven points in a pair of wins over Maine and Northeast last week. The Russian forward scored twice in each contest – making it now three consecutive games and six out of eight tilts this season with two goals – and nabbed three assists to round out a 15-goal weekend for L/A. Rykov’s pair of goals on Saturday came with the man-advantage, sealing his first multi-PPG performance of the year.
2nd Star: None
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): None
Frontier Division Star of the Week: Austin Leadbetter, F, Missoula Jr. Bruins
Leadbetter entered last week with goals in back-to-back matchups, then doubled that streak in a pair of wins over Yellowstone. Friday saw him record a goal and a helper to stretch his point streak to four games. Leadbetter then finished strong on Saturday with the game-winning goal and three assists, bringing his four-game streak total to 4-6—10. In total, Leadbetter ranks eighth amoung Bruins skaters with 8-16—24 in 32 outings this season.
2nd Star: Gage Thompson, F, Gillette Wild
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Cody Dearing, F, Great Falls Americans – Ty Dittman, F, Missoula Jr. Bruins – Jack Harris, F, Yellowstone Quake – Jacob Kaminski, F, Gillette Wild – Payton McSharry, F, Great Falls Americans – Evan Snyder, D, Yellowstone Quake
Northeast Division Star of the Week: Zach Bell, F, Binghamton Jr. Senators
Binghamton took on Oswego in back-to-back matchups last week, with the Senators taking wins in both by a combined 14-1. Bell factored in on half of those goals with one goal and six assists, marking his second and third straight games with three or more points. On Friday, he set up three tallies in a 5-0 win before adding a goal and three more helpers during the Senators’ 9-1 romp. Binghamton’s fifth-ranked scorer now boasts 29-43—72 in just 31 games this year, good for 16th among NA3HL skaters.
2nd Star: Jake Cicalese, F, Skylands Kings
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Kavan Johnson, G, Skylands Kings
South Division Star of the Week: Stuart Pearson, F, Texas Brahmas
As Texas swept through a three-game set against Mid Cities last week, Pearson found his footing in a big way after three straight pointless games. The Wisconsin native found twine in all three contests and added two assists along the way to move into fifth in Brahmas scoring. Pearson netted the game-winner on Friday, a power-play marker on Saturday and closed out the weekend with a strong two-goal, two-assist effort on Sunday as Texas strengthened its hold on the South Division.
2nd Star: Bryce Runyan, G, Texas Brahmas
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): None
West Division Star of the Week: Michael Savelkoul, F, New Ulm Steel
The resurgent Steel nabbed two wins over Willmar and Rochester last week as they climbed to within three points of fourth-place Alexandria out west. Savelkoul was instrumental in both, scoring twice in Friday’s win over the Warhawks and posting the game-winning goal in overtime as New Ulm topped second-place Rochester. Savelkoul now boasts 5-2—7 on his current four-game point streak and ranks sixth on the Steel with 13-15—28 in 33 games this season.
2nd Star: David Mulligan, G, Granite City Lumberjacks
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Henry Baribeau, G, New Ulm Steel – Brandon Connett, F, Alexandria Blizzard – Ville Hyttinen, G, Alexandria Blizzard – Jimmy McDermott, F, North Iowa Bulls – Hank Nagel, D, North Iowa Bulls – Tom Nagle, D, Granite City Lumberjacks
