USPHL Premier 2023-24 Midwest West Division Players Of The Month: November 2023
Summaries by By Joshua Boyd / USPHLPremier.com
Forward: Luke Steffen, Hudson Havoc
When Steffen (‘04/Blaine, Minn.) first arrived in Hudson, he started out with a five-point game in his debut on Nov. 1. That blossomed into a nine-game, 23-point run for the Havoc. This included 12 goals and 11 assists, good for 2.56 points per game. He became part of everything for his new team, tying for the team lead at +13. His 11 hits were also good for second on the team.
Forward: Bryce Laager, Hudson Havoc
Laager (‘04/Blaine, Minn.) saw his former Blaine High School teammate Steffen’s contributions, and matched point for point, but slightly different in its approach with 11 goals and 12 assists for 23 points. He put 48 shots on goal, for a 23 percent shooting percentage, and his seven blocked shots led forwards. His +13 rating tied for the team lead (with Steffen). Now, Laager – who joined one game prior to Steffen – stands with 26 points in 12 games.
Forward: Brody Ward, Steele County Blades
Ward (‘03/Buffalo, Minn.) took to the ice and just kept scoring. He posted seven goals and added nine assists for 16 points in just seven games, averaging 2.29 points per game. He stepped into the faceoff circle to win 119 draws for a 62 percent rate of success, while his +6 was tied for the team lead. The Blades went 3-2-2-0 for the month. His 16 points were part of a 10-game, 20-point scoring streak he has been able to carry into December.
Defense: Matthias Mader, Minnesota Moose
Mader (‘04/Maria Lanzebdorf, Austria) was a big reason for the Moose getting points in five of their eight games in November. As a blueliner, he led the team in scoring by putting up five goals and adding four assists for nine points, for 1.13 points per game. He also led in ice time (21:38 per game), plus-minus (+7), and shots on goal (38). He has posted 22 points in 24 games.
Defense: Gavin Jensen, Hudson Havoc
Jensen (‘05/Beloit, Wis.) enjoyed a big month of November, helping them put up an 8-2-0-0 record for 16 points in their 10 games. Jensen was in eight of those, putting in one goal and tacking on another eight assists for nine points. He was invaluable to the team on both the power play and special teams, ranking second in total time on both special teams categories. Jensen has put up 17 points in 18 games.
Goaltender: Ian Tumm, Wisconsin Rapids Riverkings
The Riverkings went 5-2-0-1 over the month of November and were able to enjoy having a trio of top-flight goaltenders, and out of the three, Tumm (‘04/Carmel, N.Y.) was just supernatural. He put up a 3-0 record with 81 saves on 85 shots, giving him a .953 save percentage. Tumm started his month with a 28-save shutout of the Minnesota Blue Ox. With a win in his first December game, he is on a four-game winning streak.
Selection Process: The league media office sends top candidates to divisional coaches for review and coaches either approve or challenge the nominations.
