Stars of the Week

Central Star of the Week: Viktor Budik - Wisconsin Woodsmen

Central Division Star of the Week: Viktor Budik, Forward, Wisconsin Woodsmen

Viktor Budik and the Wisconsin Woodsmen swept the weekend with a pair of wins over the Wausau Cyclones and West Bend Power, now sitting first place overall in the Central Division. The Prachatice, CZE native tallied three points during his first weekend of the 2024-25 season. During his first game against the Cyclones, Budik tallied one assist and posted a plus-minus of +2. He followed up his night one performance with two goals, including the game winning goal against the West Bend Power. 

"Viktor has made an instant impact on our roster since his return. Budik is a playmaker, through and through, earning him enormous amounts of respect from his teammates. He is a player that should be on every recruiter's radar," said Woodsmen Head Coach Jon Vaillancourt.

2nd Star: Travis Visvadra, St. Louis Jr. Blues

3rd Star: Lucca Weinkauf, West Bend Power

East Star of the Week: Aidan Palmeter - New Hampshire Jr. Mountain Kings

East Division Star of the Week: Aidan Palmeter, Forward, New Hampshire Jr. Mountain Kings

Aidan Palmeter and the New Hampshire Jr. Mountain Kings split their weekend series with the Northeast Generals, Palmeter having great offensive success. The Manchester, NH native wracked up seven points, kicking things off with a hattrick and two assists during New Hampshire’s 9-1 victory, one of his goals being scored shorthanded. Despite coming up just short on Saturday, Palmeter still managed to tally two assists. 

“We wouldn’t have had the success we did In game 1 nor the ability to trade punches in game 2 versus the Generals this weekend without Aidan,” stated New Hampshire Head Coach Clint Cassavaugh. “ He's the type of leader that leads by example and a great guy for our team to look up to.”

2nd Star: Mason Payne, Norwich Sea Captains

3rd Sar: Brody Emond, Maine Nordiques

Frontier Star of the Week: Devin Bruns - Bozeman Icedogs

Frontier Division Star of the Week: Devin Bruns, Forward, Bozeman Icedogs

Devin Bruns and the Bozeman Icedogs picked up their first pair of wins on the season with a sweep over the Butte Irish. As the now leading scorer for Bozeman, the Chicago, IL native tallied a whopping nine points in two games. Bruns began his weekend scoring two goals and notching three assists and then followed up on night two with an additional goal and three assists, helping his team drastically offensively. 

“Devin has really adjusted to life here in Bozeman which has allowed him to perform well on the ice,” said Head Coach Mike Perkins. “The line Devin is currently on with Kaunas and Steckelberg continues to improve daily and produce for our organization.”

2nd Star: Finn Theriault, Helena Bighorns

3rd Star: Ty O’Bey, Great Falls Americans 

South Star of the Week: Carson Spear - Texas RoadRunners

South Division Star of the Week: Carson Spear, Forward, Texas RoadRuners

Carson Spears and the Texas RoadRunners went 2-1 on the weekend as they traveled to Georgia to take on the Atlanta Capitals. The Dallas, TX native is plating his second year with the RoadRunners and serves as a leader both on and off the ice.  Over the course of three games, Spears accumulated 11 points. After a quiet first night with one goal, Spears had an explosive next two games, scoring five goals and tallying five assists.

"Carson and I spoke after game one in Atlanta and he knew he had to get the guys on track by setting the tone over the rest of the weekend,” stated Head Coach Mike Beavis. “ He did just that and powered his team to two big wins."

2nd Star: Nikolai Meshkantsov, Texas Brahmas

3rd Star: Brendan Johnson, Louisana Drillers

West Star of the Week: Gabe Adams - Willmar WarHawks

West Division Star of the Week: Gabe Adams, Forward, Willmar WarHawks

Gabe Adams and the Willmar Hawks won their only game of the weekend with an 8-2 victory over the Minnesota Moose. A first-year junior player, the Bellevue, NE native scored three of the eight goals for Willmar, his first NA3HL career hat-trick. Adams’ first goal came in the second period, followed by two goals in the third period, one of which being scored shorthanded. 

“We are extremely happy for Gabe. He’s such a competitor. The kid never takes a shift off, plays a 200’ game and goes to the hard areas,” stated WarHawks Head Coach Payton Ruter. “It’s awesome to see him get rewarded with a Hat Trick and earn Star of the Week honors.”

2nd Star: Brayden Willis, Granite City Lumberjacks 

3rd Star: Nathaniel Jansen, Minnesota Wilderness

Central Star of the Week: Kyle Settles - St. Louis Jr. Blues

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, Wausau Cyclones

3rd Star: Hugh Deinema, Wisconsin Woodsmen

East Star of the Week: Jason DiMatteo - Binghamton Buzz

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 Star of the Week: John Simon - Sheridan Hawks

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 Star of the Week: Teis Larsen - Mason City Toros

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

East Star of the Week: Jason Dimatteo - Binghamton Buzz

East Division Star of the Week: Jason Dimatteo, Forward, Binghamton Buzz

Binghamton forward Jason Dimatteo recorded three points in two games during the Buzz’s weekend sweep over the Long Beach Sharks, their first two wins in franchise history. The Boca Raton, FL native began his NA3HL career scoring the game winning goal in addition to recording one assist during Saturday night’s New York state battle. Dimatteo followed up his first night’s performance by scoring one goal on the powerplay, the eventual game winner for the Buzz. 

2nd Star: Tyler Hamilin, Binghamton Buzz

Frontier Star of the Week: Andrew Browe - Butte Irish

Frontier Division Star of the Week: Andrew Browe, Forward, Butte Irish

Butte Irish forward Andrew Browe picked up right where he left off from last season, tallying a whopping nine points during opening weekend as the Irish swept the Gillette Wild. The Lake Forest, CA native began the 2024-25 season with a hat trick in addition to recording two assists, including one power play goal and one shorthanded goal. Browe continued to produce for the Irish on night two recording an assist on four of the seven goals for Butte.  

2nd Star: Vincent Leaf, Sheridan Hawks

3rd Star: Hunter Coulombe, Helena Bighorns