NA3HL announces Divisional Stars of the Week
The North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL) today announced the Divisional Stars of the Week presented by Easton for the week ending December 22, 2013. 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 four divisions of the NA3HL as nominated by their head coaches.
Central Division Star of the Week: Zane O’Bryan, forward, St. Louis Jr. Blues
16-year-old forward Zane O’Bryan had his biggest NA3HL weekend to date as he helped the Jr. Blues to a weekend home sweep of the Battle Creek Revolution. On Saturday night, the native of St. Louis, Missouri, had a goal and three assists for a four-point game in a 9-0 shutout win. On Sunday, O’Bryan (5’9/160) had two goals in a 7-2 win. For the week, O’Bryan totaled three goals and three assists for six points and he was also a +7 in the two games. O’Bryan is 3rd on the Jr. Blues roster in scoring with 27 points in 27 games. His 13 goals is tied for the team lead. “Zane had a solid weekend and played really good two-way hockey,” said Jr. Blues head coach Chris Flaugher. “He is very good for a younger player and has a bright future ahead of him.”
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Cooper Cothran, goaltender, St. Louis Jr. Blues – Easton Halbert, forward, Wisconsin Whalers
East Division Star of the Week: Tom Diffendal, forward, Pittsburgh Vengeance
Veteran Pittsburgh forward Tom Diffendal, 18, was the offensive leader this weekend for the Vengeance as they battled hard in three home games against two of the powers in the East Division. On Friday night, the Coraopolis, Pennsylvania had a goal and an assist in a 5-3 loss against the Cleveland Jr. Lumberjacks. On Saturday, Diffendal (6’3/200) and the entire Vengeance team stepped their game up as they defeated 1st place Flint by a score of 4-3. Diffendal had two goals in the win. On Sunday, Diffendal scored the game-winning goal late in the 3rd period as the Vengeance beat Flint again by a score of 2-1. For the season, Diffendal leads the Vengeance in scoring with 33 points in 30 games played. "Tom really stepped his game up this past weekend and it was against some really good opponents and competition," said Vengeance head coach Dave Dorsey. "For our team to be successful, we need Tom to perform at that level all the time."
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Nick Balavich, forward, Cleveland Jr. Lumberjacks – Luke Dmytro, forward, Flint Junior Generals – Jason Kumpfmiller, goaltender, Pittsburgh Vengeance – Shawn Mott, defenseman, Michigan Mountain Cats – Joe Moza, goaltender, Cleveland Jr. Lumberjacks – Mathieu Ouellette, forward, Michigan Mountain Cats
South Division Star of the Week: None
West Division Star of the Week: Jace Childs, forward, Twin City Steel
It was a record-breaking weekend for 20-year-old Twin City forward Jace Childs as the native of Burnsville, Minnesota racked up 12 points in two games as the Steel picked up three of a possible four points in a pair of games. On Friday night, Childs (5’7/145) had a pair of goals, including a short-handed marker, in a 8-7 overtime home loss to the Alexandria Blizzard. On Saturday night, Childs had a game for the ages as he recorded a hat-trick, including another shorthanded goals, and picked up an eye-popping seven assists for a 10 point game as Twin City defeated Breezy Point, 11-5. The 10 points and seven assists marked an NA3HL single-game high this season. Child’s 60 points is tied for the NA3HL scoring lead and his 28 goals leads the NA3HL. “Jace continues to demonstrate that he can be a dominant player at this level and that has earned him a lot of interest from college programs,” said Steel head coach Aaron Koosmann. “More importantly, he is a great kid and has a great future ahead of him. We are excited to see him succeed at this pace.”
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Chris Amsden, goaltender, North Iowa Bulls – Joe Anderson, forward, Alexandria Blizzard
