Central, East, Selects Silver Win on Day One of NAHL Top Prospects

The 2024 North American Hockey League (NAHL) Top Prospects Tournament got underway on Monday, February 5th. The event is taking place from February 5-6, 2024, at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania. 

Day one saw a great scout and fan turnout with the East, Selects Silver and Central teams coming away with wins. 

Day 1 recaps

Midwest 4 vs East 3: In the opening game of the 2024 NAHL Top Prospects tournament, Team East edged Team Midwest by a score of 4-3. The first period saw Ethan Wongus (New Jersey Titans) and Lukas Klemm (Johnstown Tomahawks) score for Team East to take a 2-0 lead. In the second period, Massimo Gentile (Rochester Jr. Americans) added to Team East’s lead, 3-0. Later in the period, Nolan Bettens (Minnesota Wilderness) scored, getting Team Midwest on the board for a 3-1 score. In the third, Ethan Wongus netted his second goal of the game to extend Team East’s lead, 4-1. Team Midwest found the back of the net two more times with Adam Johnson (Minnesota Wilderness) and Nick Blood (Minnesota Wilderness). Team East  split time with Jacob Osborne (Johnstown Tomahawks), stopping all 17 shots he faced and Peter Wickstrom Stumer (Northeast Generals), who turned away 16 shots. 

Selects Gold 2 vs Selects Silver 4: In the second game of the Top Prospects Tournament, Selects Silver added two goals in the third period to top Selects Gold by a score of 4-2. In the opening period, Brandt Dubey (Minnesota Wilderness) got Selects Gold on the board, 1-0. Selects Silver answered back to even the game 1-1 with a goal from Bryce Ingles (Lone Star Brahmas). In the second period, Pierson Sobush (Corpus Christi IceRays) got the Silver Selects ahead, 2-1. In the third period, the Silver Selects scored back-to-back with Anthony Cafarelli (Oklahoma Warriors) and Isaac Keller (Springfield Jr. Blues) for a 4-1 lead. Later in the period, Micheal Coleman (St. Cloud Norsemen) added a goal for Selects Gold. Stephen Peck (Bismarck Bobcats)and Ajay White (Chippewa Steel), who both stopped 25 shots, split time in the net. 

Central 1 vs South 0: Team Central blanked Team South by a score of 1-0. The game's only goal came in the first period from Weston Turner (Aberdeen Wings). Klayton Knapp (Bismarck Bobcats) was perfect in net stopping all 27 shots he faced. 

The Top Prospects Tournament continues tomorrow with three more games. All of the action can be seen live on NAHLTV.com. 

Tuesday, February 6: 

Midwest vs. At Large, 10:00am

South vs. Selects, 12:45pm 

East vs. Central, 3:30pm 

To see all team rosters click here. 

The NAHL Top Prospects Tournament is one of the most highly scouted events of its kind, featuring almost every NHL team and NCAA Division I school. It continues to provide the hundreds of NHL and NCAA scouts in attendance with a look at the best uncommitted players the NAHL has to offer, as well as some potential NHL Draft picks. It is an important part of the NAHL event model, which is inclusive of the NAHL Showcase in September and the NAHL Robertson Cup National Championship in May.

The UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex is the primary practice and training facility for the Pittsburgh Penguins as well as a comprehensive outpatient facility for UPMC Sports Medicine. This first-of-its-kind facility in the Pittsburgh region is a true partnership between two world-class organizations, and features 185,000 square feet of total space dedicated to treating, training and inspiring athletes at every level. This multi-use facility is a destination for athletes of all ages and skill levels seeking sports medicine, performance, and rehabilitation expertise as well as hockey-specific skills and performance training. UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex has hosted prominent events such as the NHL's Kraft Hockeyville Game, USHL's Fall Classic, NWHL regular-season games and All-Star weekend, as well as USA Hockey National Championships and tournaments.