Selection Process: The league media office sends top statistical candidates to divisional coaches for review and coaches either approve or challenge the nominations.
Summaries by Joshua Boyd / USPHLElite.com
Forward: Yianni Tsatsoulis, Charlotte Rush
Tsatsoulis (‘04/San Clemente, Calif.) had a massive January when he registered five goals and added 11 assists for 16 points in six games, over which the Rush went 4-1-1-0. That 2.33 points per game average was among the best in all of the USPHL Elite. The second-year Rush veteran has again eclipsed the 40-point mark and now has 41 points in 22 games for the season. His +9 rating for January led all Rush forwards.
Forward: Spencer Barrow, Charlotte Rush
Barrow (‘04/Massapequa, N.Y.) was just behind Tsatsoulis in points per game, averaging 2.33 by putting up six goals and eight assists for 14 points. The Rush are rich in experience, with second-year players like Barrow continuing to produce at a high clip. Like Tsatsoulis, Barrow hit the 40-point mark for a second straight season and now has 88 points in 61 Elite games. Also, like Tsatsoulis, Barrow tied for the team lead among forwards in plus-minus with a +9.
Forward: Charles Norris, Charlotte Rush
Norris (‘06/Weddington, N.C.) continues to be a rising force among the younger set of Rush players, as he put up six goals and six assists for 12 points during the Rush’s six games of January, becoming the third forward on the team to register at least two points per game. The former Rush youth hockey player put up seven hits, so he certainly wasn’t shy either. In addition to putting up 38 points in 23 games, and he also had one assist in his 11 games of USPHL Premier play this year.
Defense: Kirill Golubev, Potomac Patriots
The ‘07 Russian had himself a huge month, with one goal in particular standing out. Golubev was selected to play in the NCDC’s Young Guns game and actually opened the scoring in that contest on the NCAA Division I ice of Boston University on Jan. 15. Around that big event, Golubev also put up two goals and added six assists for eight points in six games (1.33 points per game average). He was also +6 to lead the Patriots.
Defense: Ryan Bonfrancesco, Charlotte Rush
Bonfrancesco (‘05/Hellertown, Pa.) put up a goal and five assists for six points in six games, and he also was the highest ice time earner for the Rush, skating for an average of 22:00 per game. Bonfrancesco is a first-year Elite player out of the Valley Forge Minutemen AAA program who has racked up 17 points in 25 games. He’s also earned four games up with the USPHL Premier team.
Goaltender: Ryan Kalina, Carolina Jr. Hurricanes
Kalina (‘05/Raleigh, N.C.) is a product of the Carolina Jr. Hurricanes youth program similar to how Norris came out of the Rush youth program. He skated into the Jr. Canes net four times and four times skated out with a victory, going 4-0 with 111 saves on 117 shots for .949 save percentage. He has a goals against average of 1.49 GAA. For the season, he has a 12-1-0-0 record and a .932 save percentage as a junior rookie.
