USPHL Premier Players Of The Week: West Region

Northwest Division

(Submitted by Jonathan West)

Forward: Raine Hodge, Seattle Totems

In his very first game with the Totes on Saturday night, the ’04 USPHL Premier veteran had a five-point night (goal, four assists) in the Emerald City. The Guelph, Ont., native had a hand in every Green and White goal on Saturday minus one.

 

Defense: Roberto Matias, Rogue Valley Royals

The ’03 league rookie had an assist on Saturday in Seattle, and two on Sunday in Bellingham. Royals Head Coach Bobby Ruddle adds this about the Nunavut native: “He’s typically a forward, but we had to bump him back to defense this weekend and he was phenomenal.”

 

Goaltender: Kai Rivas, Bellingham Blazers

After an impressive win in Seattle on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, the ’05 netminder made it two in a row on Friday against the Royals with a 39-save shutout. The Vancouver, B.C., area native posted a .926 save percentage over his two-game weekend.

 

Honorable Mention

Forward: Hugo Stålnacke, Vernal Oilers

A key winger up front for the Oil during their current 19 game win-streak, the Luleå, Sweden native had a 1-2-3 goal week plus an assist over three games. The ’02 league rookie finished off Saturday with a hat-trick in Wyoming.

 

Pacific Division

(Submitted by Grace Mello)

Forward: Noak Persson, Fresno Monsters

With a whopping 3.17 PPG, Noak Persson (‘03/Sollefteå, Sweden) has been a dominant force for Fresno. Joining the Monsters in late November, Persson has played only six games and has picked up 19 points with 10 goals and nine assists. He earned 13 of those points in Fresno’s three-game-series over Ontario. He had a 2-2-4 line including the GWG in Game 1; a hat trick in Game 2; and a 2-4-6 line in Game 3. 

 

Defense: Jacob Gagnon, Fresno Monsters

As captain of the Monsters, Jacob Gagnon (‘02/Fresno, Calif.) has been a powerhouse on and off the ice. During Fresno’s three-game-sweep over Ontario this weekend, Gagnon was a +4 with nine blocked shots. He also earned five points (one goal, four assists) which brings him to a season total of 34 points (nine goals, 25 assists) and is currently No. 2 on the Monsters for points.

 

Goaltender: Herman Renden, San Diego Sabers

The Sabers had a 3-game-sweep over Bakersfield this weekend and Herman Renden (‘03/Norway) picked up two of those three wins from the net. He had 68 saves on 72 shots for a save percentage of .944 on the weekend. Renden has played six games for the Sabers and has won four of them with an overall save percentage of 0.926.

 

Mountain Division 

(Submitted by Brendan Price)

Forward: Nikolas Schwab, Utah Outliers

Schwab (’02/Lake Villa, Ill.) celebrated his 100th game as an Outlier with a goal versus the Spud Kings on Friday. He proceeded to erupt for a career-high five points, including the GWG in the third period, to help Utah notch a 7-4 win over their arch rival the Ogden Mustangs. Schwab finished the weekend with six points in total (3-3-6), pushing him across the 30-point threshold for the season. The third year Outlier is fourth on the team in scoring with 31 points (10-21-31).

 

Defense: Teddie Hember, Ogden Mustangs

The ‘Stang rookie added to his Mountain Division defenseman scoring lead over the past weekend, grabbing five points (0-5-5) in three games and upping his season total to 29 points (4-25-29) in just 25 games. It’s not just about offense; Hember grabbed four hits, two shot blocks, and steered clear of the sin bin. The ’03 Stockholm, Sweden, native has now committed just one penalty in over 560 minutes of ice time as a rookie.

 

Goaltender: Alex Timmons, Pueblo Bulls

Timmons (’02/Stillwater, Minn.) won both of his starts, going 2-0-0 with a 2.00 GAA and led the Bulls to the weekend sweep over their in-state rival, the Northern Colorado Eagles. He notched a .922 save percentage and stopped 47 of 51 shots to continue his mastery over the Eagles. Timmons has now won four straight starts and is 4-0-0 with a 2.08 GAA and a .929 save percentage in his previous five appearances against NoCo.