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 March 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: Shane Bernhardson, Defense, North Iowa Bulls
North Iowa Bulls captain Shane Bernhardson is playing his best hockey at the right time. The Apple Valley, Minnesota native netted a pair of goals in a Saturday night win against the New Ulm Steel. On Sunday, Bernhardson was setting up his teammates as he racked up four assists on the day and even added his third goal of the weekend. The North Iowa defenseman is riding a three game point streak as his team prepares for a Fraser Cup run. “Shane has really made an impact on our team this year. As our captain, he leads by example in all areas. He plays with an incredible amount of discipline and with the poise that a veteran should,” said North Iowa Head Coach Todd Sanden.
2nd Star: Aaron Swanson, F, North Iowa Bulls
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Brady Lindauer, F, La Crosse Freeze – Devin Naidow, B, La Crosse Freeze
Coastal Division Star of the Week: Dino Mukovoz, Forward, Long Beach Sharks
NA3HL top prospect Dino Mukovoz was an offensive force in the final weekend of the regular season. He started the three game weekend with a pair of assists in a loss to the Skylands Kings. The following day, he was able to add three more assists to his stat line. Then on Sunday, not only did he dish off three assists but he also scored his seventh goal of the season in a 5-4 Long Beach win. He finished the weekend with nine points and a +7 rating.
2nd Star: Ryan Cortez, G, Long Beach Sharks
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): None
East Division Star of the Week: Ryan Pascarella, Goalie, Southern Tier Xpress
The Southern Tier Xpress needed three wins on the weekend to clinch the final playoff spot in the East Division. Thanks to Ryan Pascarella, the team will be participating in the postseason. The goaltender from Lakewood, New York gave his team two huge performances in must-win games over the weekend. On Friday night in Toledo, Pascarella faced 41 shots and he was able to stop 37 of them. He was even better the following night as he turned aside 29 of 30 shots in yet another Southern Tier victory. He finished the weekend with a 2.50 goals against average and a .930 save percentage.
2nd Star: Marks Mesargs, F, Southern Tier Xpress
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Tristan Snyder, F, Toledo Cherokee
Frontier Division Star of the Week: Kaden Lindberg, Forward, Helena Bighorns
The Helena Bighorns closed out their regular season with a pair of victories over the Missoula Jr. Bruins. In Friday night’s contest, Lindberg handed out two assists in a 7-0 win. The next night, Lindberg was all over the ice as he scored his 19th goal of the season and dished out four helpers. The Helena native finishes the season with 19 goals and 32 assists to give him 51 points in 41 games played. Lindberg was named to the Top Prospects Tournament as well this season, his second in the NA3HL.
2nd Star: Dane Rieger, F, Helena Bighorns
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): None
Midwest Division Star of the Week: Jack Radley, Forward, Peoria Mustangs
The leading scorer for the Peoria Mustangs broke a lot of hearts over the weekend as he single handedly eliminated the Wooster Oilers from the Fraser Cup playoffs. The Oilers needed just a single point over the two game series to reach the postseason but Radley would not let that happen. On Saturday he scored a shorthanded game tying goal in a 3-2 Peoria win. Then on Sunday, Radley scored all three goals for the Mustangs as they won 3-0 over Wooster and decimated their postseason chances. From San Diego, California, Radley finished the season with 35 goals and 58 points.
2nd Star: Jake Cox, F, St. Louis Jr. Blues
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Dante Jones, F, St. Louis Jr. Blues
Northeast Division Star of the Week: Eric Vanderhoff, Forward, Skylands Kings
There may not be a hotter player in the league than Eric Vanderhoff of the Skylands Kings. The forward from Vernon, NJ is riding a 12 game point streak and has scored in his last 10 games. Over that 12 game span, Vanderhoff has registered 36 points. Over this past weekend, Vanderhoff picked up four points on Friday night in a 5-3 win over Long Beach. On Saturday, Vanderhoff picked up a hat trick in another Skylands win and ended his regular season with another goal on Sunday. For the year, Vanderhoff finished second overall in points in the NA3HL as he had 106. He finished tied for the NA3HL goals lead with 53. He was one of two players to finish the season with over 100 points.
2nd Star: Mathias Yttereng, G, Skylands Kings
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): None
South Division Star of the Week: Mitch Dolese, Defense, Louisiana Drillers
The Louisiana defenseman finished his season with a fantastic weekend in College Station. On Friday night, he notched his first hat trick of the season and also added an assist in a 5-1 victory. Saturday, Dolese four. The back of the net again, this time it was the game winning goal. He also added an assist. Finally on Sunday, Dolese finished his season with an assist in his final game. The Mandeville, Louisiana native finished the season with 14 goals and 29 assists to give him 43 points.
2nd Star: Jason Kelly, F, Point Mallard Ducks
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): Joey Bernardini, G, Point Mallard – Luke Bombardir, D, Texas Brahmas – Ian Clifford, G, Louisiana Drillers – Tyler Myers, G, Texas Brahmas
West Division Star of the Week: Matt Moran, Forward, Granite City Lumberjacks
The defending champion Granite City Lumberjacks clinched the West Division regular season title on the final day of the season. Forward Matt Moran played a huge role in accomplishing that goal. On Friday night in Willmar, Moran scored a hat trick and added an assist as well in a victory over the Willmar Warhawks. Then on Saturday in the division clinching win, Moran was setting up his teammates as he picked up three assists in front of the Granite City faithful. He finished the weekend with a plus-8 rating and finished the regular season with 16 goals and 22 assists.
2nd Star: Jordan Olson, D, Granite City Lumberjacks
Honorable Mention (alphabetical): None
