Week of March 13, 2024
Games of March 1-10, 2024
Summaries by Joshua Boyd / NCDCHockey.com
Forward: Daniil Chuparnov, Utah Outliers
Chuparnov (‘04/St. Petersburg, Russia) put up four goals and three assists for seven points in four games. They remain in the hunt for the Mountain Division title, just two points behind Ogden going into the final two weekends. Chuparnov, playing in his first North American season, has posted 27 goals and 43 points in 40 games.
Defense: Jackson Lucia, Provo Predators
In the postseason, Lucia (‘03/Hermantown, Minn.) will be a veteran player on whom the Predators lean heavily, as he brings two full seasons of NCDC experience plus one prior Tier II season to the Provo cause. Recently, Lucia showed his leadership by posting a goal and three assists for four points. The Predators have clinched a playoff berth, and they’ll want to see more efforts like when he led the way for all the games of March in ice time (23:23) and shared in the plus-minus lead (+4). Lucia has scored 31 points in 46 games this season, and he has 40 points in 86 career games.
Goaltender: Michael Polston, Provo Predators
Polston (‘04/Cedarburg, Wis.) has started March with a 2-1 record so far, stopping 89 of 93 shots. He has a 1.33 goals against average and a .957 save percentage since March 1. He started the month on March 1 with a 41-save shutout against the Idaho Falls Spud Kings. For the entire 2023-24 season (so far), he has an 18-7-1-2 record with a .927 save percentage.
Rookie*: Ryan Cooper, Utah Outliers
Cooper (‘04/Ilderton, Ont.) joined the Outliers from the Lake Cowichan Kraken in late January, and he’s been a fantastic addition, registering at least one point in all but two of his nine games. With that, he has 11 points in nine games, including a 1-6-7 in the last four contests, culminating in a four-assist game on March 2.
* = ’04 or younger with 10 or fewer prior season Tier II games
