Week of Feb. 16, 2024
Games of Feb. 8-13, 2024
Summaries by Joshua Boyd / USPHLPremier.com
Florida Division
Forward: Livio Azevedo, Tampa Bay Juniors
Azevedo (‘03/Switzerland) put up three goals and two assists for the Juniors against the Florida Junior Blades. The Swiss import has racked up 41 points in 34 games this year and he’s closing in on 100 for his career.
Defense: Emil Grinsvall, Bold City Battalion
The Battalion just had a single game over the weekend, but Grinsvall was immense. From his offense (a 1-2-3 line) to his defense (a team-leading +3 and two blocked shots), he checked all the boxes for the Battalion. After the dust settled from that game, the first-year Battalion were first overall in the division.
Goaltender: Savva Serdiuk, Tampa Bay Juniors
Serdiuk (‘04/Kyiv, Ukraine) was outstanding for the Juniors in winning both of their games against the Florida Jr. Blades on Feb. 9-10, including a 25-save shutout on Feb. 9. All told, he had 59 saves on 62 shots on the weekend. After a later victory against the Florida Eels, Serdiuk is now on a six-game winning streak.
Southeast Division
Forward: Owen Cross, Charlotte Rush
Cross (‘04/Bangor, Maine) posted a three-goal, one-assist line against the Columbia Mavericks in two games, which helped to push him to a point per game average towards the end of the season here, with 38 points in 38 games. Cross joined the Rush this year as a first-year junior player out of a strong Esmark Stars program.
Defense: Peter Keese, Charlotte Rush
Keese (‘03/Minnetonka, Minn.) was on fire for the Rush against the Columbia Infantry, scoring one goal and adding five assists for six points. Keese, an Albertus Magnus College recruit, is already the league’s all-time games played leader and seems to get better with each contest. He led the Rush in both plus-minus (+5) and blocked shots (four) during the Columbia series.
Goaltender: Lukas Bjork, Hampton Roads Whalers
Bjork (‘03/Sundsvall, Sweden) was the division’s best goaltender even if his team was unable to take two points. He faced one of the most powerful offenses in the league in Potomac, and stopped 43 of 46 shots in 65 minutes of hockey. The Whalers went on to take a shootout loss, but Bjork stands with a winning record this year at 7-6-0-1 with a .916 save percentage.
