Junior Hockey’s Rising Stars - Mar. 23rd - Mar. 29th, 2026
WRITTEN BY JOSHUA BOYD
Each week, check back with The Dan K Show as Joshua Boyd breaks downthe past week's top performances from 2007 and younger U.S. junior players (2008 and younger for USPHL Elite and EHL Premier). All statistics are taken from league sites; if there are any statistical errors, please contact the league in question.We are also now monitoring top performances by 2026 NHL Draft prospects, based on NHL Central Scouting rankings.
USHL
It's been a good start to Spring for the Cedar Rapids Roughriders' Jason Musa '07, a University of Massachusetts recruit who recently bypassed the 50-point mark. In three games between March 25-28, Musa posted a 2-4-6 line. This is part of an overall four-game point streak that also includes two goals from March 21. The recent point streak pushed him to 54 points in 59 games. For his two-year career, he has 50 assists and 79 points in 118 regular season games. A former Trinity-Pawling School and Hartford Jr. Wolfpack AAA standout, Musa was drafted by the RoughRiders in the 2023 USHL Phase I Draft (sixth round, 82nd overall).
In 2027, Sammy Nelson '08 will become the third member of his family to put on the golden helmet of the University of Notre Dame. He currently sees brothers Danny ('05) and Henry ('03) playing for the Fighting Irish, but Nelson is doing his damage for the U.S. National Under-18 Team, recently scoring a 2-2-4 line March 27-28. Like Musa, he is also enjoying a good streak, now at five games and eight points in USHL play. In 20 games, Nelson has scored 19 points in 20 games, matching the 19 points scored in 38 games with the National Under-17 team in 2024-25. Due to his later September birthdate, he's eligible for the 2027 NHL Entry Draft, so there's likely to be dozens of NHL teams keeping their eyes on him next year.
A pair of strong, young forwards enjoyed lines of 3-1-4 in three games last week, namely Cole Braunshausen '07 (Lincoln Stars) and Jamie Glance '08 (U.S. NTDP U18's). Braunshausen just started his USHL career, joining from St. Thomas Academy in Minnesota. In his first five games, he has five points, after originally being drafted by Lincoln last spring in the Phase II Entry Draft (12th round, 202nd overall). For Team USA, Glance is a Boston University recruit who now has 26 points in 24 games. Along with Nelson, he was a member of the 2026 U.S. championship team at the Five Nations Tournament. Glance is four days younger than Nelson, and thus also eligible for the 2027 NHL Entry Draft.
In net, we pay tribute to Leo Henriquez '07, who won two in a row March 27 and 28, stopping 58 of 62 shots and giving up just two goals in each of his two victories. With the March 28 victory, the Green Bay Gamblers goalie now has 19 wins, equaling his total games played of 2024-25. Henriquez leads the USHL in save percentage at .920, and he is second in goals against average at 2.26. In 54 career regular season games, he has 23 wins. He will move on to the University of New Hampshire after completing his junior career.
NAHL
Lindenwood University recruit Bryce Wiitala '07 pushed his way to a six-point weekend May 26-28, including a season-and career-best four-point (2-2-4) performance on May 27. With that, Wiitala hit the 40-point mark on the season, exactly, over 43 games. He has an even 20 goals and 20 assists in his junior debut season. The former Madison Capitols USHL draft pick (10th round/136th overall in 2023) made his USHL debut in January of this year with two games for the Capitols. Wiitala came to the NAHL's Minnesota Mallards from Holy Family Catholic in Minnesota.
Also hitting four points for the first time this season (and in his career) was Mate Tardi '07, which he did on March 28 with a 2-2-4 line. He now has 15 points in 16 games with the St. Cloud Norsemen, after originally posting 14 points in 35 games with the Maryland Black Bears. He is on a six-game scoring streak with 10 points over that stretch going back to March 14. Tardi joined the NAHL from the Mount St. Charles Academy AAA team.
Lake Superior State University recruit and New Hampshire Mountain Kings defenseman Mikhail Cherepanov '08 has been strong down the stretch with five points in his past two games March 27-28 - and six points over three. Cherepanov has improved to 31 points in 54 games in his second North American season after playing with Team Illinois during the 2024-25 season.
Maryland Black Bears goaltender Ryan Denes '07 put up his league-leading seventh shutout on March 27, stopping all 25 shots he faced. That also gave him his league-leading 27th win, part of a shining 27-2-2-1 record. Denes' 2.07 GAA is third, as well. He is on an eight-game winning streak, and he has an 11-0-1-0 point streak. Denes now has 39 wins for his 51-game career since joining in 2024 from the Little Caesars AAA team.
NCDC
Second-year NCDC veteran Vitalii Ulianov '07 picked a perfect time to score his first hat trick in the league, sending home three on March 27 to close a 3-0 sweep for the first-year Lewiston MAINEiacs against the CT Chiefs North. The Ukrainian native also scored a pair of goals in Game 1 of their next series against the Woodstock Slammers for five goals in two games. Ulianov finished the regular season with a career-best 43 points in 44 games, and his five goals (over four total playoff games) ranks third in NCDC playoff goal-scoring. Ulianov was a 2023 NCDC draft pick of the Jersey Hitmen (seventh round, 120th overall). After a long run of seasons with the Pittsburgh Stars in the THF, he joined the Hitmen first and then the WBS Knights in his first NCDC season in 2024-25, scoring 12 points in 35 games.
The Mercer Chiefs' Justin Ouellet '07 helped his team push past the WBS Knights in a 4v5 play-in series in the Atlantic Division playoffs. Another second-year veteran, Ouellet improved from six points in 32 games last year to 39 points in 51 contests this year, all with the Chiefs. He helped his team bounce back from an opening loss with two shutout wins to capture the series, scoring two goals - including the Game 2 GWG - and three assists for five points in the three games. Ouellet was selected by Mercer in the 2024 NCDC Phase I Draft (second round, 29th overall) after a huge season with the USPHL Premier's San Diego Sabers, scoring 76 points in 41 games there.
Alexander Raskin '07 closed his season with the Rock Springs Miners by setting a season-and career-best of three points on March 27 (2-1-3). He also had an assist on March 24 for four points - half of his eight total points over 15 NCDC games. This season, he also played in the NAHL (Amarillo Wranglers) and SJHL (La Ronge Ice Wolves) before closing the season in Rock Springs, Wyo. He was a standout player the past two seasons with Fairmont Prep in California.
For the Islanders Hockey Club, Blake McMeniman '07 - an Army Hockey recruit - kept up his strong play that was also mentioned last week. McMeniman shone brightly in the IHC's series win against the rival Northern Cyclones, playing every game of the five-game series. Between March 24 and the clinching win on March 28, he stopped 114 of 121 shots for a .942 save percentage and a 2-1 record. His three playoff wins were ranked third in the NCDC playoffs.
EHL
It only took two games for Aidan Forcier '07 to become one of the EHL postseason's leading scorers. He racked up a 1-5-6 line, including four assists in HC Rhode Island's playoff-opening win on March 25. As mentioned (often here), Forcier was one of the EHL's top talents this year and is 12th all-time in single season scoring. That came from a 77-point season, placing him as the only 18-year-old player (at the start of the season) in the EHL's all-time Top 20. Forcier is the Prout School's all-time leading scorer, in his last stop before joining HC Rhode Island.
Another frequent visitor to this column is Ernests Muska '07, Forcier's HC Rhode Island teammate who posted a 1-4-5 line in the opening series against the New York Apple Core. With 68 points in 48 regular season games, Muska joined Forcier as the only 2007-born (or younger) players in the EHL's Top 10 of scoring, with Forcier finishing third and Muska at sixth. Muska is in his first North American season after playing all his previous hockey in his native Latvia.
Jack Copponi '07 posted five assists in two games for the East Coast Wizards, giving him the league lead among defensemen in postseason points thus far in the EHL. During the season, the former Worcester Academy blueliner scored 25 points in 38 games. His three points (all assists) on March 27 gave him a season-and career best. Copponi originally started the season with the Worcester Railers Junior Hockey Club of the NCDC.
Forcier's former Prout School hockey (and lacrosse) teammate Angelo Evangelista '07 came away with a 28-save shutout to help HC Rhode Island win their opening playoff series. Evangelista registered four shutouts during the regular season, tying for the second most in the EHL. He also had a 13-6-1-0 record with a .922 save percentage and a 2.32 GAA.
USPHL Premier
Brett Holman '07 became a National Champion this past weekend, helping the Vernal Oilers repeat that honor in the USPHL Premier. Holman was a massive help for the defending and new champs, pushing them with four goals and four assists for eight points in their five Nationals games played March 25-29. Holman finished fifth in playoff scoring with 16 points in nine games total. In the regular season, Holman scored 52 points in 39 games in his first year after joining from the Idaho Jr. Steelheads 18U squad.
The Oilers' goaltender Noah Pfab '07, a second-year veteran who has seen NCDC time, was in net for the final victory against the Fresno Monsters, stopping 38 of 42 shots for the title. For the full Nationals, he posted a .918 save percentage by stopping 112 of 122 shots. This included a 27-save shutout in the semifinals on March 28. Pfab joined the Oilers in December, playing - and winning - 10 games and posting a .939 save percentage. Between last year and this year, he has 30 games of Premier experience with 20 wins and a .928 save percentage, while in the NCDC, he's played 11 games and won five, all with the Mercer Chiefs. The Chiefs signed him in 2024-25 and he earned a permanent call-up for the rest of that season from the Premier's Hershey Cubs in February 2025.
Vertti Sakko '07 and his Fresno Monsters teammates came away with the proverbial "silver" after falling 6-4 to Vernal in the National Final on March 29. Sakko racked up seven points in his five Nationals games, another heroic effort following a first North American regular season that saw him score 83 points in 46 games.
While the majority of the USPHL was either done or playing in Nationals, the first-year Alberta Division just recently wrapped up its divisional playoffs (the new division was not eligible for Nationals in Year 1). Thane Swampy-Meguinis '07 scored his first junior hat trick to close the season for the Calgary Bandits. Swampy-Meguinis scored 15 points in 18 regular season games and added five goals and eight points in five playoff games.
NA3HL
Another league that saw its overall season come to an end prior to the start of April, the NA3HL awarded the Fraser Cup to the Granite City Lumberjacks for the fifth time and second time this decade (they also won in 2022-23). In net for the Lumberjacks, Nathan Mach '07 won three games and stopped 73 of 82 shots along the way towards the championship. He shut out the Louisiana Drillers - giving them their only loss of the entire 2025-26 season - with a 22-save gem in the Fraser Cup Final on March 29. During the season, Mach went 13-2-0-1 and he went 4-1-0-0 in the playoffs that led up to the Fraser Cup Championship series. Mach played in his second NAHL game during the 2025-26 season, with the Minnesota Wilderness. He had previously played in an OT loss for the Chippewa Steel in 2023-24. Last season, he played fully for the Omaha Mastery AAA program.
Also putting up strong performances in the playoffs were the Texas Brahmas' Ben Humphreys '07 and column regular Emerson LaRoche '07, for the Drillers. Both finished in a multi-player tie for third with five points at the championships.
Humphreys was second in goals with four, also adding an assist for his five points. His best performance was on March 27, a 2-1-3 showing that saw him score the GWG. During the regular season, he scored 60 points and a team-leading 28 goals for the Brahmas. Humphreys came to the Brahmas from his hometown Spokane (Wash.) Braves in the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League.
LaRoche, who previously starred for his hometown Minnetonka (Minn.) High School team, scored a 2-3-5 line in four games, including their March 27 GWG. LaRoche was a sensation during the regular season, posting a 55-72-127 line in 47 games. That ranks seventh for a single season in NA3HL history. With a March birthday that saw him turn 19 last month, he is the youngest to place in the all-time single season Top 10. Drillers teammate and fellow '07 Brayden Pelcl with 125 points and a January birthdate was close behind. Thus, Pelcl and LaRoche are the only two on the NA3HL single season leaderboard to have started a Top 10-worthy season starting at age 18.
USPHL Elite
The USPHL Elite also wrapped up its Nationals last week, with the Carolina Jr. Hurricanes repeating as National Champions. The Jr. Hurricanes, ninth oldest in the Elite at 18.6 years average age, didn't have a lot of 2008 or younger players on their roster, but a couple had impressive performances.
Charlie Connor '08 averaged a point per game during the event, a 1-4-5 line, including the insurance goal in the 4-2 win that gave them the championship against runners-up Fort Wayne. In the end, Connor was named to the Elite Nationals All-Tournament Team. During the season, Connor scored 26 points in 39 games, and he added eight points over nine postseason contests. Connor previously played in the Yale Jr. Bulldogs program.
Eric Mosquin '08 scored two goals and added an assist, scoring most of his four total playoff points at Nationals. Mosquin, a first-year junior player, scored 25 points in 32 regular season games for the Elite Jr. Canes, while also registering one assist in 11 Premier games with Carolina.
EHL Premier
Helping the Union Jr. Thunder win a two-game series sweep against Pennsylvania, Slovenia native Tai Jausovec '08 scored a goal and two assists for three points as a defenseman. Jausovec recently was named a March Player Of The Month in the EHLP, finishing a season that saw him score 26 points in 40 games, including 10 points in 10 March games. He was the highest-scoring 2008-or-younger blueliner in the EHLP, in this, his first season coming from Slovenia's HK Maribor. He also saw his first EHL game with the New York Apple Core this year.
Cameron Soucy '08 was one of the top scoring players of his age group in the postseason, but unfortunately saw his Connecticut Nor'Easter's season end in a three-game series. He scored a goal and two assists over the course of that run. The second-year Nor'Easter scored 26 points in 41 games this year and has 40 points in 74 combined regular season and playoff games in his EHLP career. This past season, he also saw nine games interspersed throughout the season with the EHL's Nor'Easter, registering his first two points at that level.
Torrin Cotter '08 also scored three points in three games for the other side in that series, the victorious Providence Capitals. Like Soucy, he registered a 1-2-3 line in the series. Originally from Fairbanks, Alaska, Cotter joined Providence from the Wenatchee Wild AAA program in Washington state. He saw three games in January and February with the EHL's Providence Hockey Club, registering an assist at that level on Feb. 6. During the season, Cotter scored 11 points in 34 games.
The Philadelphia Little Flyers' Anthony Foster '08 registered an impressive 35-save win to close out their victorious sweep against the New Jersey Bears on March 28. Foster won two games during the regular season, splitting this year between the Little Flyers and La Salle College High School in his native Pennsylvania.