Season Two, Week Nineteen- Seven Things to Know

Read Number 7

BOYLE-ING OVER IN JANUARY

Not to say that Florida Eels Elite forward Zac Boyle has been quiet all season, but January saw the Kansas native kick his season into high gear, posting twelve goals and seven assists (19 total points) in nine games. He registered a point in every game he played, including five multi-point contests. Boyle recorded two hat tricks and two four-point games in the month and tallied seven points in each of the last two weeks. His total take on the season is 32 goals and 29 assists (61 points) in 37 games played.

02/01/2017, 8:15pm EST
By Mike Klein
This week in “Kleiner’s Seven Things to Know”, Mike Klein takes a look at the Heritage Classic, some tense battles for divisional titles, and highlights a few tremendous performances from the previous week. Check back each week for what you need to know about the USPHL.

HERITAGE CLASSIC SET FOR MONDAY

This Monday, the Chicago Cougars and Wisconsin Rapids Riverkings will take things outside for the 2017 USPHL Heritage Classic. The Heritage Classic will include a tailgate party, mites vs. mascots competitions, fan giveaways, and much more. The Illinois Media School will perform the broadcast duties, and the amazing and ubiquitous duo Dan Kmiechick and Lucas Jones will be on camera conducting a pregame show and interviews throughout the game. The Heritage Classic takes place at Frozemont Park in Rosemont, IL. Puck drops at 5:00 PM Central Time and the game will be shown on HockeyTV.com.

ICYMI: NCDC FUTURES DRAFT HELD TUESDAY

The National Collegiate Development Conference held its first annual Futures Draft on Tuesday in Boston. Each of the NCDC’s eleven teams selected six players born in 2001 and 2002 in the draft, which is the second phase of player acquisition for NCDC teams, as tendering has already begun. The Inaugural NCDC season will begin in September and the all-new division will serve as the top level in the USPHL developmental ladder.

18U BATTLE IN CLIFTON PARK

This weekend, the Junior Bruins will travel to Clifton Park, NY, for a set with the CP Dynamo in their final series of the regular season. Currently, the CP Dynamo lead the 18U Northern Division by one point, though the Bruins won the previous meeting between the two teams back in October. Although the CP Dynamo have a final game against the Jersey Shore Whalers on February 11, this series looks like it will determine the division winner.

16U SOUTH DOWN TO THE WIRE

The 16U Southern Division race has become one of the tightest ever in the USPHL, with three teams fighting for the crown. The PAL Jr. Islanders and Skipjacks Hockey Club are tied with two and one game remaining, respectively. As if that battle weren’t enough, the Jersey Hitmen lurk just three points out of first with two games to play. If there’s any regular season race that goes down to tiebreakers, this one looks to be it.

CAPTAIN CLUTCH

To say that Islanders Hockey Club Premier forward Justin Pearson was on fire as of late would be a drastic understatement. In the Islanders’ three games last weekend, Pearson scored five goals, including a hat trick against the Springfield Pics back on January 21. More impressively, the Nashua, NH, native bagged the eventual game-winner in each of those games, including one in the January 29 contest against the South Shore Kings with a mere five seconds on the clock.

TWIN KILLERS

The Springfield Pics duo of twin brothers Brett and Derek Mecrones may not cast the largest shadows at 5’7” and 165 pounds, but they loomed large as they each put up a weekend for the ages in the Pics’ sweep of the PAL Jr. Islanders. Derek lit the lamp three times and added five helpers while Brett picked up ten assists. Naturally, Brett assisted on all of Brett’s goals and both twins shared assists on four other tallies.

BOYLE-ING OVER IN JANUARY

Not to say that Florida Eels Elite forward Zac Boyle has been quiet all season, but January saw the Kansas native kick his season into high gear, posting twelve goals and seven assists (19 total points) in nine games. He registered a point in every game he played, including five multi-point contests. Boyle recorded two hat tricks and two four-point games in the month and tallied seven points in each of the last two weeks. His total take on the season is 32 goals and 29 assists (61 points) in 37 games played.