Southeast Division
All games of September and October taken into statistical account.
Forward: Liam Hanna, Potomac Patriots
A sixth-year USPHL veteran of both the USPHL 16U Division and the USPHL Elite, Hanna has been with the Patriots for five of those six years. The ‘03 from Fredericksburg stands as the third-leading scorer in the seven-season history of the league in its current format, posting 135 points in 128 games. This year, he’s even above that historic pace, posting 17 goals and 15 assists in 32 points in 15 games, giving him a 2.13 points per game average. Hanna posted a 15-14-29 line in 12 straight games between Sept. 23-Oct. 16.
Forward: Dominykas Jurjevas, Potomac Patriots
Jurjevas (‘04/Elektrenai, Lithuania) has essentially been there every step of the way with teammate Hanna the last couple years, including nearly matching his points per game this year. Jurjevas has posted 11 goals and 18 assists for 29 points, for a 1.93 points per game average. Jurjevas also enjoyed one strong seven-game streak over which he registered 14 assists, tying for the most in an assist streak so far this season. He and Hanna have been big contributors to the Patriots’ 13-3-0-0 start.
Forward: Charles Norris, Charlotte Rush
Norris (‘06/Weddington, N.C.) has become a Mr. Everything for the Rush Elite this year, his second season with the squad. Norris is leading the team with 20 points in 13 games, from a 12-8-20 line. His 12 goals put him in the top 10 league-wide for that category. Outside of pure goals, assists and points, Norris is also key in so many areas – he is the Rush’s No. 1 faceoff guy, winning 158 faceoffs this year as part of a 64 percent success rate. He is also tied for the team lead in plus-minus (+17) and he is second in hits with 18.
Defense: Kirill Golubev, Potomac Patriots
Golubev (‘07/Kostroma, Russia) was a huge find for the Patriots as a first-year eligible junior player, coming over for his first North American season out of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl youth program. He has put up nine goals and 17 assists for 26 points and stands as the No. 1 scorer among all Elite defensemen so far this year. Golubev is also his team’s plus-minus leader at +17. Out of his 15 games so far this year, he’s posted multiple points in eight of those.
Defense: Colby Markham, Carolina Jr. Hurricanes
A key contributor to the 2023 National Championship Jr. Canes team, Markham is back and continuing to be a two-way leader for the squad. In just 12 games with the Elite team this season, he has posted five goals and 13 assists for 18 points, giving him a share of the team lead in points per game. He’s played a few less games than some of his teammates due to seeing three games at the Premier level already this season. While with the Elite team, he has been their leader in ice time, posting 23:37 per game, and his +13 sees him averaging just over a +1 for each game.
Goaltender: Antonio Vaccaro, Potomac Patriots
Vaccaro (‘05/Waldorf, Md.) has had a great run from the start, going 5-0 so far this season, and he’s also posted a 1.79 GAA and a .938 save percentage, the latter good for top 10 in that category. In his Elite debut, he stopped 33 of 35 shots against the Springfield Pics at the BJB Shootout, a couple weeks before posting a season-high 36 saves in a 7-4 win against the Richmond Generals. In between, he helped his team break a 3-3 tie against the Palm Beach Typhoon by shutting the Typhoon down in relief and allowing his team’s offense to put together a decisive victory in the end.
Top Performers of the Week (Oct. 24-31)
Forward: Yianni Tsatsoulis, Charlotte Rush – Tsatsoulis posted three goals (including a GWG and an insurance goal) in a weekend sweep of Richmond. He also added two assists for five points in two games.
Defense: Maxwell Sullivan, Carolina Jr. Hurricanes – The Jr. Canes had a big weekend sweep against Hampton Roads, giving them a 12-0 winning streak and sole possession of first place. He posted a goal and two assists in the victories.
Goaltender: Alfio Jason McGinley, Richmond Generals – McGinley, an ‘06, faced a cannonade of shots from the Charlotte Rush and did all he could to keep the damage to just three goals against the Charlotte Rush, stopping 59 of 62.
Method of selection: The USPHL Media Team shares a first set of nominees from among statistical leaders with division coaches and accepts alternate nominations from coaches, where applicable. From these, the USPHL Media Team selects the final “starting lineup.”
