By Joshua Boyd / USPHLPremier.com
One week after we last checked in with teams, two things remain very familiar – the Metro Jets and Vernal Oilers entered November completely undefeated, still the last two teams with that honor. Elsewhere from the Great Lakes on west, some teams have been growing their winning streaks, including Toledo and Seattle (six games apiece), while the Fresno Monsters are carrying a 4-0 run over the past week into two more games this weekend against a strong Ontario Jr. Reign squad. The Northwest Express continue to ride a wave coming out of the USPHL Wisconsin Midwest Showcase, standing with a 5-0 streak, and the Chicago Cougars enjoyed a midweek sweep to assert themselves in the Midwest Division.
As always, we’ll take a closer look at the teams that finished with at least a point per game over the past week (games of Oct. 25-31).
Pacific Division
Fresno Monsters Go 4-0 Over Week To Jump Over .500
The Monsters entered their first of three games against the Bakersfield Roughnecks on Oct. 25, with a 3-3 record. Put that right out the window, as they swept the Roughnecks, 5-2; 11-2; and 2-1. On Halloween night, they defeated the Ontario Jr. Reign, giving the Monsters the most points in the week that ended October, league-wide.
- The Monsters have long enjoyed success against Bakersfield, as they are 13-1-1-0 all-time since the Roughnecks joined the league in 2022-23.
- Jesse Nuuttinen (‘06/Finland) registered five assists over the first two games against Bakersfield, giving him 14 helpers on the season and 15 points overall. His 14 assists placed him into the top five league-wide among defensemen.
San Diego Sabers Tied For Second In Pacific After Two Wins
The Sabers played a pair of games over the Oct. 25-26 weekend and won the first 7-1 against the Ventura Vikings on the road, and then were home the next day to defeat the Long Beach Bombers, 5-1. They improved to 9-6-0-0 thus far.
- Liam Krupcyznski (‘04/San Marcos, Calif.) registered four assists in those two games to improve to 23 on the season, good for second overall Premier-wide, and his 32 points also put him into a tie for second league-wide on the points leaderboard as well.
- Carlsbad local Aidan Cosgrove (‘04) registered his fourth power play goal of the season to rank second in that category among defensemen, and his eight power play points rank him in a tie for fourth among blueliners.
Lake Tahoe Lakers Close Six-Game Trip With Win
The Lakers ended their run of six games in eight days in Southern California a week ago with a 3-1 victory against the Long Beach Bombers. They’ll host the Bakersfield Roughnecks at home for three games starting tonight, and they’ll do so holding a share of first place in points league-wide.
Henderson Force, Ontario Jr. Reign Each Earn Two More Points
The Henderson Force crossed both state and divisional lines to face the Iron County Yeti for the first time on Oct. 25, and enjoyed a big 10-3 victory for their single-game road trip to southern Utah. In turn, the Ontario Jr. Reign defeated the Force on Oct. 26 by a 5-1 score. The Reign were later defeated on Halloween night in the first night of a three-game home stand against Fresno, 7-5.
Midwest Division
Fort Wayne Spacemen Win Three More, Extend Winning Streak To Seven
The Spacemen went right to work against the Decatur Blaze on Oct. 25 and walked away from the three-game series with a set of 7-1, 7-0 and 5-2 scores. They extended their division lead to six points over the second place Chicago Crush and are 8-1-0-0 overall.
- As a team, the Spacemen rank second in team goals against at 1.44 per game, second only to the Metro Jets’ 1.11. It is a full team effort, as the Spacemen allow the fewest shots on goal per game at 21.44.
- Goaltender Jordan Nicolucci (‘04/Montreal, Que.) moved into No. 1 overall in goals against average with a straight 1.00 average through his first five games, all of which he has won. He earned the wins on Oct. 25 and 27 for the Spacemen.
Chicago Cougars Earn Six Points Over Busy Five-Game Week
The Cougars started with their run of five games in seven days on Oct. 25 with a visit to the Toledo Cherokee. They took their only two losses of that stretch, falling 5-0 and 4-2, to the Great Lakes’ leading team. From there, they traveled north to Detroit and won all three of their midweek games against the Motor City Gamblers – 7-0, 2-1 and 3-1. The three-game winning streak helped put them at .500 so far at 5-5.
- Not only did second-year Cougar Alexander Muskyakevych (‘05/Wilmette, Ill.) score his first hat trick, but he also added one more for a four-goal effort on Oct. 29. He currently has 10 goals and 15 points in 15 games to lead the Cougars, offensively.
- Premier veteran Nick Gingold (‘05/Flagstaff, Ariz.) made all 35 saves for his first career shutout on Oct. 29.
North Division
Dells Ducks Win Two To Remain In Third Place
The Ducks enjoyed a pair of bounceback wins against the Chicago Crush on Oct. 29 and 30, after a tough go at the USPHL Wisconsin Midwest Showcase the prior week. They defeated the Crush by a 3-2 score in overtime and then 6-3 against the Crush on Oct. 30. This improved their overall record to 9-4-0-0 overall and stand third in the North with 18 points.
- The Ducks continue to enjoy their best season to this point (13 games), improving by four points over their previous best at the same measuring point of 7-6-0-0 in 2018-19.
- Angelo Massaro (‘04/Palatine, Ill.) leads the team with 18 points in 13 games, and he’ll enter November on a five-game 5-4-9 point streak. Lorenzo Medeiros (‘08/St-Hyacinthe, Que.) leads the team in net with four wins and a .925 save percentage.
Wisconsin Rapids Riverkings Move To Fourth In North With Sweep
The Riverkings enjoyed a strong pair of games against their Wisconsin rivals the Hudson Havoc, defeating them 3-0 and 12-0. They are now 8-3-1-0 overall and their 19 points puts them fourth in the North.
- The Riverkings are enjoying a six-game winning streak dating back to all of last season against the Havoc.
- Felix Ahlstrand (‘05/Viken, Norway) scored the first goal in each of the two wins against Hudson, putting his game-winning goals count at five. With that, he pulled into a tie for game-winners with the Montreal Black Vees’ Olivier Sirois. .
Minnesota Squatch, Northwest Express Get Single Wins
The Minnesota Squatch and Northwest Express each took care of business, earning two points in their single games of the past week. The Squatch defeated the Isanti Outlaws, 7-1, on Oct. 26 and moved into a tie for fifth with the Minnesota Blue Ox – their Friday night Nov. 1 opponent.
The Express, who came off a 4-0 run at the USPHL Wisconsin Midwest Showcase, defeated the other 4-0 showcase team, the Minnesota Mullets, on Halloween night. That 5-2 win tied the two teams at the top – and they’re facing each other again on Friday night!
Great Lakes Division
Metro Jets Win Twice, Extend ‘W’ Streak Out Of The Gate To Nine Games
The Jets played a home-and-home series against the Columbus Mavericks on Oct. 25-26 and took their eighth and ninth straight wins without having suffered a loss yet on the season. They won 4-1 and 9-3.
- This is the second time in their seven-year history that the Jets have started a USPHL season at 9-0, the other being the 2021-22 season. That year, they went a 20-0 out of the gate, a record that still stands in a tie with the Islanders Hockey Club for best start to a season.
- Leading the Jets early on through nine games is Luka Pivec (‘06/Maribor, Slovenia), who has put up a 6-10-16 line in nine games, scoring points in all but two games. In the goal, returning Jet Rostislav Efremov (‘04/Vladivostok, Russia), who is second in GAA with a 1.25 and in save percentage at .950.
Toledo Cherokee’s Latest Two Wins Keep Them Atop Great Lakes Points Race
The Cherokee registered a 5-0 victory and a 4-2 win, both against the Chicago Cougars on Oct. 25-26. With the undefeated Metro Jets moving up the points leaderboard while already leading in winning percentage, the Cherokee know that it’s important to keep pace with their historic rivals. They will meet again in one week (Nov. 8).
- Veteran goaltender Austin Nowak (‘04/Sylvania, Ohio) jumped to the top of the league’s save percentage leaderboard after not being in the top five a week ago. And although his 1.40 GAA didn’t change on the week, he moved from eighth on that leaderboard to fifth.
- Three-year Premier veteran Cameron Krause (‘05/Channahon, Ill.) improved to 20 points in 10 games this season and earlier this year crossed the career 100-point mark. He currently stands with 113 in 96 regular season games dating back to 2022-23.
Northwest Division
Seattle Totems Take Two W’s To Push Winning Streak To Six
The Totems continue to get hot, with their only losses this season coming against the 11-0 Vernal Oilers. The Totems recently defeated the Bellingham Blazers, 5-0, and then the Rogue Valley Royals, 8-4, giving themselves now six wins in a row.
- Seattle is hungry for offense, and their shots on goal per game improved to 52.31. Cracking an average of 50 per game put them into the top four league-wide.
- Defenseman Felix Palla (‘06/Gyor, Hungary) scored three points this past weekend to improve from fourth to second on the blueliner points leaderboard from 18 points on Oct. 25 to 21 points today.
Bellingham Blazers Take Four Points Over Three Games
The Blazers pushed above .500 and are 7-6-0-0 overall following wins against the Bremerton Sockeyes (5-3 on Oct. 26) and Rogue Valley Royals (4-3 on Oct. 27). Prior to those games, they suffered a 5-0 loss to Seattle on Oct. 25.
- Leading the Blazers on the offensive side have been local product Owen Cross (‘05/Bellingham, Mass.) and Ethan Fischer (‘05/Marlboro, Mass.), each of whom have put up 19 points in 11 games.
- Creedon Dyck (‘04/St. Albert, Alb.) registered his fourth win overall to lead the Blazers in that category.
Vernal Oilers Stay Undefeated After Third Single-Game Weekend
The Oilers won their 11th game in a row and third straight over three weekends against the Iron County Yeti. The final score of Oct. 26 was 11-2. The team will have their first two-game weekend Friday and Saturday since Oct. 5-6. They’ll play a home-and-home against the Colorado Fighting Elk. Vernal goes into those games leading the league in goals scored (8.73) and shots on goal (59.73) per game.
Note: There will be no “USPHL Premier This Week” article next week, as we will be running the divisional Players Of The Month throughout next week. Look for the next USPHL Premier This Week to be published on or before Nov. 15. Follow the USPHL’s X (@USPHL) and Instagram (@usphlhockey) accounts for game-by-game highlights.
