NAHL Announces Bauer Hockey Stars of the Week
The North American Hockey League (NAHL) announced today the Bauer Hockey Divisional Stars of the Week for the week ending October 26, 2025. Only players that are nominated by their respective teams are considered for the Divisional Player of the Week awards.
Central Division Star of the Week: Alex Sandhu, Forward, St. Cloud Norsemen
`The 6-foot-2 skater from Delta, British Columbia, Canada, Alex Sandhu featured a six-point weekend for the Norsemen. Starting things off on Friday night, the second-year veteran played a role in every goal scored by St. Cloud. Sandhu tallied his first goal of the night at the 12:39 minute mark in the first frame. He then went on to be the primary assist on Sam Crane’s goal in the second period. His offensive work continued into the third period, where he tallied his second goal, this time on the man advantage. Less than four minutes later, he provides the set-up on William Esterbrook’s game-tying power-play goal. The Norsemen would eventually fall to the North Iowa Bulls in overtime; however, his offensive prowess kept St. Cloud fighting in the contest. Heading into Saturday night, the ‘05 forward tallied his second power-play goal of the season during the second period of the matchup. Sandhu would continue to show up on the scoresheet with an assist on Tanner Hunt’s goal at the 5:49 mark in the middle frame. The Norsemen would secure a 4-3 victory over North Iowa on home ice.
Sandhu featured a career-high four-point game on Friday night. He tallied three goals while making three assists during the weekend series. The second-year veteran currently ranks first on his roster with 19 points and 13 assists. Additionally, the 6-foot-2 skater has shown up on the scoresheet for the Norsemen in 12 out of 13 games this season.
Head coach of the Norsemen, Joe Exter, explains the impact of Sandhu on their team’s weekend performance.
“Alex played strongly all weekend and demonstrated how he is one of the top players in the league. Each shift, he was determined to drive the team. He did this all weekend, helping our team earn three points.”
2nd Star: Matthew Martin, F, Aberdeen Wings
3rd Star: Brody Dietz, D, North Iowa Bulls
East Division Star of the Week: Tanner Duncan, Forward, Maryland Black Bears
Showing up big on the scoresheet for the Black Bears, Tanner Duncan played an integral role in Maryland’s success last week. On Tuesday afternoon, the Alternate Captain was the primary assist on Brady Anes’ goal in the first period. Maryland secured a 2-0 shutout victory against the Philadelphia Rebels. Moving into Friday night, the 5-foot-11 lefty played a role in every goal except one in the Black Bears’ 4-1 victory over Johnstown. Duncan first found the back of the net in the first period at the 14:06 minute mark. He then continued to show up offensively for the team by producing an assist on Dominik Boltnar’s goal in the second frame before he found the back of the net again in the last minute of the middle period. Moving into Saturday night, the ‘05 second-year veteran produced another three-point contest for his team. He first tallied a goal at the 6:37 minute mark in the first period to help extend Maryland’s lead over Johnstown. He then provided the primary assist on Jaden Sikura’s and Ryan Franks’ goals in the second and third periods. Maryland secured a 5-2 victory and extended their win streak to 10 straight games.
Duncan found the back of the net three times last week, while producing four assists for the Black Bears. He features a +7 rating from the three-game performance and is currently tied in first on his roster with eight goals on the season.
Head coach of the Black Bears, Clint Mylymok, shares more on Duncan’s dedication to development.
“Tanner has been an absolute horse for us this season. He is extremely talented and has the desire and drive to be a high-end player in this league. Every game, we can put him anywhere, in any role, and he will be one of our best players. Congrats to Tanner on this well-deserved honor.”
2nd Star: Lukas Fursten, G, Maine Nordiques
3rd Star: Austin Borgaard, F, Maine Nordiques
Midwest Division Star of the Week: Zach Howard, Forward, Springfield Jr. Blues
The Army-West Point commit, Zach Howard, played an integral role on and off the ice for his team this past weekend. Serving as the Captain of the Jr. Blues, the fourth-year veteran featured a career-high weekend against the Janesville Jets. Starting on Friday night, the 6-foot-1 forward produced two assists in the Jr. Blues' 4-2 victory over the Jets. His first assist helped to give Springfield the lead heading into the second period, while his second assist was notched on Niko Laus’ short-handed goal in the third frame. Moving into Saturday night, the ‘05 skater from Wisconsin showed off in his home state, putting up a career-high game. He first secured a game-tying assist in the first frame on Niko Laus’ goal at the 9:08 minute mark. He then went on to give the Jr. Blues the lead in the second period with another primary assist, this time on Logan Sutton’s goal. As the contest moved into the third period, the teams were tied at two. While on the man advantage, Howard secures a goal to give his team a short-lived lead against Janesville. The Jets would tie up the matchup a few minutes later, forcing the contest to head into extra minutes. The Jr. Blues would eventually fall 4-3 in shootout fashion; however, the Captain played a role in every goal scored in regulation.
Over the weekend, Howard scored a power-play goal while notching four assists in the two-game series. Right now, the fourth-year Springfield veteran leads his roster with 12 points on the season, with all five of his goals scored for the season done on the man advantage.
Head coach of the Jr. Blues, Todd Pococke, dives into detail on Howard’s work this season.
“Zach has been playing very well for us so far this season. Not only has he been great offensively, but he’s been strong defensively as well. He’s also been a great leader both on and off the ice, and excited to see what he can do the rest of this year.”
2nd Star: Grant Dillard, F, Janeville Jets
3rd Star: Alexios Georgaklis, F, Wisconsin Windigo
South Division Star of the Week: Vladislav Bryzgalov, Goaltender, Corpus Christi IceRays
Hailing from the Garden State, Vladislav Bryzgalov featured a stellar performance between the pipes for the South Division team. The 6-foot-1 netminder kicked off his weekend on Friday night with a 19-save performance against the Shreveport Mudbugs. The contest was tight with Shreveport finding the back of the net once when Jared Grenier scored a goal on the power play. Heading into game two on Saturday night, the second-year goaltender again only allowed one goal from the Mudbugs. He turned away 28 out of 29 shots in the contest before the game eventually moved into a shootout. In a back-and-forth battle between the teams, Bryzgalov helped to lift his team to a 2-1 shootout victory, securing a weekend sweep over the Mudbugs.
For the weekend, he featured a 0.96 goals-against average and spotlighted a .959 save percentage. After this series against the Mudbugs, it marked Bryzgalov’s third shootout win while playing in the blue paint for his team this season.
Head coach of the IceRays, Kevin St. Jacques, shares more on Bryzgalov’s contribution to the team.
“Vlad has put in the work this summer and is a big part of our club. He has been playing at a very high level the last few weeks. We are proud to see his work be rewarded and are excited for his continued development.”
2nd Star: Ian Kastamo, F, El Paso Rhinos
3rd Star: Nick Puricelli, F, Odessa Jackalopes
