NAT1HL Recognizes Top Performers from Pittsburgh Showcase

Frisco, TX - The North American Prospects Hockey League (NAPHL) has announced the T1ER League Peak Performers from the T1ER Central Invitational event in Pittsburgh, PA, and three members of the Pittsburgh Stars AAA Hockey Program were named.

Congratulations to Pittsburgh Stars AAA Hockey players Ethan Bombalski, U18 defenseman, Nikita Oleksiienko, U16 goaltender, and Joseph Crimboli, U16 forward, as all were honored as T1ER League Peak Performers for the T1ER Central Invitational event in Pittsburgh.

Second year U18 Pittsburgh Stars defenseman Ethan Bombalski had another solid weekend from the blueline, accumulating three points in four games. The Apollo, PA, native kicked off the weekend dishing out an assist to teammate Danila Shiriaev, who banked home the overtime winner as the Stars defeated the Buffalo Jr. Sabres 2-1. Bombalski continued to contribute to the scoresheet during Sunday’s set of games as he and the Stars faced-off with Madison and the Pens Elite. In each game, Bombalski scored a goal, including capitalizing on the power-play to tie the game against the Stars' cross-state rivals. 

"Bomber continues to exceed expectations," offered U18 head coach Dave Kosick. "He brings such a poise and sense of confidence to each and every game, that we often take it for granite. His compete level is off the charts."

The 6'2" U16 Stars' goaltender, Nikita Oleksiienko, improved to 6-2-0-0 in NAT1HL action on the season after securing three additional wins at the Pittsburgh Showcase. He posted "W's" in wins over the Madison Capitols, Biggby Coffee, and Indiana Elite. Over the course of the weekend he grabbed his second consecutive T1ER League Peak Performer - Goaltender honor for the U16 division. The Pittsburgh Showcase wins did not come easy as Oleksiienko was tested heavily, facing a total of 131 shots and recording 122 saves over the weekend in four performances. His standout performance of the event came against Indiana Elite, where he stopped 35 of the 36 shots he faced, allowing just one goal for a .972 save percentage, and leading his team to a 3-1 victory.

"Nikita was a rock," 16U Pittsburgh Stars head coach Yuri Krivokhija said. "He came up big time-and-time agains and gave us a chance to win."

As the U16 Pittsburgh Stars’ overall leading NAT1HL scorer, Joseph Crimboli continues to be a high impact player, racking up six points in four games at the Showcase. After recording an assist during game one against Madison, the Latrobe, PA native posted his best performance of the season, putting up four points against Biggby. He recorded three of his four points in the second period, scoring Pittsburgh’s fourth goal, assisting on the fifth, and then adding another tally to extend the Stars’ lead to 6-4. He followed up with another assist, capping off a stellar game for his team. Wrapping up the event, Crimboli potted his third goal of the weekend against Indiana Elite. With these six points, the 2008 forward now has 19 points in 12 games, averaging 1.58 points per game.

“Joey worked his backside off," said 16U Pittsburgh Stars head coach Yuri Krivokhija. “His attention to detail and his sweat equity certainly showed at the Showcase. He clearly demonstrated his level of compete at the event."

Players were chosen based on their performances at the Pittsburgh Showcase games that took place from Jan 31 - Feb 2.

NAT1HL "Peak Performers" are selected by the NAT1HL scouting service, following the completion of each event ... top forward, defenseman and goaltender ... at each age level of play at the showcase.

U18 and U16 teams were involved in the T1ER Central Invitational event - Pittsburgh.