SUDBURY – The Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League announced Monday that goaltender A.J. Smith and forward Connor Scott of the Elliot Lake Wildcats along with forward Jake Staples of the Powassan Voodoos have been named the Eastlink TV 3 Stars of the week for the period ending March 22.
A.J. SMITH, (G) ELLIOT LAKE WILDCATS – All but unbeatable in net for Elliot Lake last week was Wildcats goaltender A.J. Smith.
The 20-year-old Southlake, Texas product posted three shutouts and stopped 143 of the 146 shots fired his way to help backstop Elliot Lake to a playoff series win against the Sudbury Nickel Barons.
In all he was 4-0 during the week with a 0.75 goals-against average and an equally stellar .979 save percentage.
Currently riding a goalless streak of 127 minutes and 36 seconds, Smith has a 1.83 average and .950 save mark heading into the Wildcats’ West Division final match-up vs. the No. 1 seeded Soo Thunderbirds.
CONNOR SCOTT, (F) ELLIOT LAKE WILDCATS – After being held off the score sheet in the first two games in the Sudbury series, Scott rebounded in a big way last week racking up a dozen points to aid Elliot Lake’s offensive output vs. the Nickel Barons.
In all the 19-year-old from Parry Sound, Ont., tallied four times and assisted on eight others picking up multiple points in each of the four contests he skated in.
He also had a game-winning goal and helped set-up two others.
Scott is just one point off the league lead in playoff scoring.
JAKE STAPLES, (F) POWASSAN VOODOOS – Aiding in Powassan’s offensive efforts in their upset of the defending NOJHL champion Kirkland Lake Gold Miners was the Voodoos’ Staples.
He scored twice in each of the last three games of the series, which included a game-winner, and also picked up a pair of assists.
The 19-year-old native of Callander, Ont., enters the East Division final vs. the Cochrane Crunch tied for the league playoff scoring lead with 13 points in total.
Staples’ nine goals to date in the postseason is presently the second most among all NOJHL skaters.
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Eastlink TV 3 Stars
PLAYOFFS
Week 1
Dustin Cordeiro, (F) Cochrane Crunch
Jessie Morin, (G) Sudbury Nickel Barons
Jimmy Roy, (F) Sudbury Nickel Barons
Week 2
A.J. Smith, (G) Elliot Lake Wildcats
Connor Scott, (F) Elliot Lake Wildcats
Jake Staples, (F) Powassan Voodoos