January 2021 USPHL Premier Players Of The Month: South Region

 

By USPHL Staff

 

Florida Division

Forwards

Brendan Dicker, Charleston Colonials

Dicker (‘01/Clarkston, Mich.) enjoyed a strong month for the Colonials. He played 10 games and collected four goals and 14 points and played a part in a big month for the Colonials. Among the highlights was a four-assist game against Carolina on Jan. 10 and a three-point game against the Florida Eels Jan. 25. He hit a month high on the dot Jan. 29 winning 76% (13 of 17)  of his faceoffs, his second best total of the season.

 

Taurin Haddon-Harris, Florida Eels 

Haddon-Harris (‘01/Boca Raton, Fla.) collected eight goals and 15 points with the Eels in 10 January contests, highlighted by a four-goal explosion against New York Aviators on Jan. 26. He had five shots in that game, adding an assist and wrapping up a +4 effort on the ice. He also collected four assists against the Connecticut Junior Rangers on Jan. 15, beginning a five-game scoring streak that totaled 14 points.

 

Hunter Campbell, Atlanta Mad Hatters 

Campbell (‘01/Everett, Wash.) played his first game with the Mad Hatters in Mid-December and was a great addition through the opening month of 2021 with six goals and 10 points in six games played. He fired hat tricks against Tampa on Jan. 16 and against Potomac on Jan. 31, one of the three standing up as the game-winner in both contests. Against the Juniors, he finished the game at +2 and collected six hits.

 

Defensemen

Laz Kaebel, Tampa Bay Juniors 

Kaebel (‘01/Prior Lake, Minn.) had a busy month, playing 14 games, collecting three goals and eight points. Kaebel turned in an awesome defensive effort through the month with 95 takeaways, a +10 rating and playing a part in limiting opponents to under 30 shots per game average.  He also blocked 24 shots in the month, including a season high-tying five against the Connecticut Jr. Rangers on Jan. 22.

 

Matthew Shaw, Florida Jr. Blades 

Shaw (‘02/Michigan) played in 11 games for the Blades collecting five goals and 16 points. A +1 rating through the month and 76 takeaways helped Shaw get the honor and helped the Blades through a stretch of five wins in six games through the middle part of the month. He collected two goals and four points against San Diego Sabers on Jan. 27 with eight shots, two shot blocks and a +4 showing.

 

Goaltender

Blake Mons, Charleston Colonials 

Mons (‘02/Charleston, S.C.) Made four appearances in the blue paint for the Colonials, winning three and stopping all but 10 of the 167 shots he faced for a .940 Save Percentage and a 2.50 Goals Against Average. On Jan. 9 against the Carolina Junior Hurricanes, he kicked out 43 of 44 in a 3-1 win.

 

Southeast Division

Forwards

Charles Merkley, Charlotte Rush 

Merkley (‘01/Fairport, N.Y.) exploded in January for 24 goals and 34 points in a dozen January contests. Merkley put at least a point up in 10 of the 12 contests and notched three or more goals five times, including all three games of a Jan. 1-3 homestand against  the river Hampton Roads Whalers. He averaged more than five shots per game and hit double digits twice in the month and he finished an overall +19 in that stretch.

 

Matt Wood, Richmond Generals 

Wood (‘00/Garnet Valley, Pa.) picked up four goals and 12 points through 11 games in January with the Gens. In a 5-2 loss to the Potomac Patriots on Jan. 23, Wood did all he could to turn the tide, firing six shots on goal, blocking a pair and playing 22 shifts for a total of more than 25 minutes, eight minutes above his average time on ice.

 

C.J. Zezima, Charlotte Rush 

Zezima (‘02/New Canaan, Conn.) scored eight goals and collected 18 points for the Rush in January and three of his goals were game-winners for a team that put a stranglehold on the top spot with a 13-1 record through the month. Against the Jr. Canes on Jan. 24, Zezima fired six shots, blocked three and played 21:38, his highest total of the month and nearly four minutes more than his season average.

 

Defensemen

Jakub Viedemann, Carolina Jr. Hurricanes

Viedemann (‘00/Litvinov, Czech Republic) collected five goals and 11 points in 11 games for the Canes, limiting some quality opponents to an average of 31 shots per game and grabbing 87 takeaways over the stretch. On one tough night, Jan. 9 against Charleston the defender did all he could, firing seven shots at the Colonials’ goal and crossing the 30-minute mark of ice time for the sixth time this season. He also had a hit and a couple shot blocks in a 3-1 loss.

 

Jackson Oleson, Charlotte Rush 

Oleson (‘00/Stateline, Nev.) notched three goals and 13 points in 11 games with the Rush in January. He was a +13 for the month, with 76 takeaways and played a part in limiting opponents to just over 30 shots per game. He spread his offense out well, collecting at least a point in all but two games and he made his presence felt in his own end with at least one block among the 20 total for the month.

 

Goaltender

David Battisti, Charlotte Rush

Battisti (‘01/Victor, N.Y.) was busy and consistent for the Rush through the first month of 2021. He appeared in 12 games, winning 10 allowing 20 goals on 359 shots for a Goals Against Average of 1.82 and a .944 Save Percentage. For the season Battisti has 23 wins in 29 starts for over 1600 minutes. He posted three of his season total eight shutouts this month and his season stats are a dazzling 1.70 Goals Against and a .944 Save Percentage.