Fourth NAPHL event comes to a close with final day drama

The fourth NAPHL event of the season came to a close on Monday, with all teams playing in one game in the final day of competition.  Over 80 junior and collegiate scouts were on hand for the four-day mega event in which 59 teams were a part of.

Check out the updated standings and stats here: (18U, 16U, BTS).

There are two regular season events remaining.  The first will take place in Dallas, Texas, from December 27-30.  The second will be in Troy, Michigan, from January 18-21.

Here is a look at the final day summary by division:

18U Division: The guest Dallas Alliance team beat the California Titans 2-1 in the first game of the final day of the Showcase.  Michael McKenzie made 27 saves in the win as Dallas finished with a 3-2-0 record while the Titans went 2-3-0.  St. Louis, who hadn’t had a loss in regulation heading into the event in Blaine, lost their third game of the event on the final day as they fell 3-1 to the phoenix Firebirds.  Phoenix finished the event with a very good 4-0-1 record.  Igor Leonenko had four points including a hat-trick as San Jose beat Pursuit of Excellence, 7-3.  San Jose finished the event with a 1-4-0 record, while Pursuit of Excellence was 0-4-1.  Pikes Peak Miners goalie Dan Kowalski stopped all 29 shots as the Miners shutout the Utah Regulators on the final day, 2-0.  Pikes Peak finished with a 4-1-0 record, while Utah picked up their first win of the season, finishing with a 1-4-0 record at the event.  Anaheim beat Omaha 3-1 thanks to a goal and assist from Doc Gentzler as the Jr. Ducks finished Blaine with a 2-1-2 record.  Omaha finished the event with a 3-2-0 record.  The Pittsburgh Viper Stars finished with a very respectable 3-0-2 record in Blaine, but lost their final two games in a shootout including a 3-2 shootout loss on the final day to the Lansing Capitals.  Conor Durgan had the shootout winner for Lansing, who finished the Blaine event with a 4-1-0 record.  Joseph Licata had one of the best goaltending performances of the Showcase as he stopped all 48 shots in New Jersey’s 5-0 win over Texas.  Nikita Samoylov had a hat-trick for the Jr. Titans who finished the event with a 3-2-0 record, while the Tornado finished with a 2-3-0 record.  West Michigan’s Collin Finkhouse had a record night with seven points (4 goals, 3 assists) as the Hounds beat Atlanta 9-1 on the final day.  West Michigan finished the event as the only 18U team with a perfect 5-0-0 record, while Atlanta finished with a 1-4-0 record.  Indiana’s Eric Gentry scored at the buzzer as the Ice edged Detroit 2-1 in the final 18U game of the event.  Chase Munroe made 22 saves in the win for Indiana, who finished with a very good 4-0-1 record in Blaine, while the Falcons went 1-4-0.

16U Division:  The California Titans completed a perfect 5-0 run through the event with a 6-1 win over the Cleveland Jr. Lumberjacks as Jacob Hamacher had four points. The Wenatchee Wild also had a great Showcase finishing with a 4-1 record thanks to a 6-4 win on the final day over the Pikes Peak Miners.  Duncan Cochrane scored twice in the win as the Miners finished with a 1-4 record.  Tyson McLelland had four points as the San Jose Jr. Sharks beat Pursuit of Excellence, 10-1.  San Jose finished the event with a 3-2 record while Pursuit of Excellence went 1-4.  In one of the marquee games of the year thus far, Omaha kept its perfect record intact with a close 3-2 win over the Anaheim Jr. Ducks, who suffered their first regulation loss of the season.  Kyle Patava had a goal and assist for Omaha, while Anaheim’s Shane McMahan had 12 points during the event.  New Jersey beat Texas, 5-4 to finish the Showcase with a 3-0-2 record, while Texas finished 2-3-0.  New Jersey’s Anthony Cusanelli now ranks 2nd in the 16U Division with 15 goals.  The Phoenix Firebirds posted their first win of the event on the final day as they beat St. Louis on the final day, 3-2 in a shootout.  Reise Kieffer had the shootout-winner.  Phoenix finished the event with a 1-2-2 record while St. Louis finished 1-3-1.  The Lansing Capitals did something no one else has done yet this season, and that is beat the Pittsburgh Viper Stars 16U team, which they did on the final day, 2-1.  Austin Kuch scored both goals for Lansing, while Pittsburgh posted a 4-1-0 record at the event and Lansing finished 3-2-0.  The West Michigan Hounds posted their first win of the event with a 2-1 win on the final day against Atlanta.  Bailey Weber had the game-winning goal.  Atlanta, who had just one win heading into the event, won twice to post a 2-3-0 record in Blaine.  In the final 16U game, Indiana beat Detroit 3-2.  Shawn Moulis had the game-winning goal as the Ice finished Blaine with a 1-4-0 record, as did Detroit.