Day One of T1ER Dixon Playoffs in the Books
The 2024 T1ER Dixon Cup Playoffs got underway on Friday, February 16, 2024. Day one of the event was spread between two Detroit, MI Suburban rinks; Buffalo Wild Wings Arena and Suburban Ice in Rochesters.
The 16 and 18U divisions will be divided into a Gold & Silver Division, based on a combination of factors to enhance the competition, balance, and development of the players and teams participating in the league event. Each of those divisions will crown a champion. The 14 and 15U divisions will crown a singular champion for each age group. The 12 and 13U divisions will be getting a taste of the NAPHL for the first time this season, and have an opportunity to win a tournament-style event as well.
Each age division will be split into brackets and will participate in a round-robin consisting of three games, taking place on Friday the 16th and Saturday the 17th. Individual bracket standings will influence the quarterfinal (12/13U), semifinal (14/15/16/18U), and consolation matchups on Sunday the 18th. Winners of the semifinals advance to Championship Monday.
Complete T1ER schedule can be found here
All games are broadcasted live on NAHLTV
Day 1 recaps
18U: The Vegas Jr. Golden Knights took an overtime win against the Seattle Kraken, 4-3. Vegas’ Daniel Madison scored two goals and goaltender Hayden Zernia took the win in net. The Philadelphia Little Flyers defeated the Madison Capitols by a score of 8-0. Luke Melito had a three point game adding a goal and two assists. Goalie Andrew Dubin posted a 12 shot shutout win. The Maine Nordiques topped the Philadelphia Hockey Club, 4-2. Trison Sherwood and Padraic Whited both dished out two assists in the win. Maine goalie Tyler Benjamin stopped 20 shots in the win. The Esmark Stars won in a shootout against the New Jersey Titans, 3-2. Aiden Petroff netted the overtime winner and goaltender Hleb Subach took the win stopping 30 shots. The Northeast Generals won 5-2 over the Ontario Jr. Reign. Generals goalie Carsten Komorowski was strong in net taking the win. CarShield AAA added two goals in the third period for a 5-3 final over the Tri State Spartans. Talen Garcia had a three point game and goaltender Brandson Appelman stopped 17 shots. Biggby Coffee AAA took a dominant win over Indy Elite with a final score of 7-1. Forward Connor Jalbert added two goals and an assist for Biggby and goaltender James King stopped 13 tries on net. Omaha Mastery AAA won 6-2 over Colorado Springs Tigers. Tyler Dahms posted three points in the game with two goals and an assist. Omaha goalie Ty Tanton stopped 18 shots on net.
16U: CarShield AAA defeated the Philadelphia Little FLyers by a score of 4-1. Alex DeGroat and Xander Mullens both added a goal and an assist. Goalie Andrew Bely stopped 17 of the 18 shots he faced. The Madison Capitols defeated Omaha Mastery AAA, 4-1. Capitols goalie William Zinnen took the win in net. The Maine Nordiques blanked the Northeast Generals by a final score of 5-0. Tygar Lister added two goals and netminders Indiana Billing and Brayden Nebus both were perfect in net. Florida Alliance won in overtime against the Seattle Kraken, 3-2. Tyler Green netted all three goals for the Alliance, and netminder Andrew DiSilvestro took the win in net. Indy Elite took down the Esmark Stars by a score of 5-2. Jack McIntosh posted a hat-trick in the game and goalie Hudson Kutchma stopped 20 shots. The New Jersey Titans won 5-1 over the Philadelphia Hockey Club. Dean Gasser added two of the Titans goals and goalie Reade Adams stopped 17 shots. The Las Vegas Jr. Golden Knights edged Biggby Coffee by a final score of 4-3. Logan Skym scored twice and goalie Nathan Bowman took the win between the pipes. The Colorado Springs Tigers took down the Tri State Spartans by a final of 6-2. Dylan McManus, and Jonathan Foster both scored two goals while Josh Schmitz stood tall in net, turning away 17 shots. Florida Alliance topped the Philadelphia Little Flyers in a 7-4 game. Dominic Huey added two goals and Kane Eanes added three assists. Goalie Charles Able stopped 25 shots. The New Jersey Titans blanked Biggby Coffee AAA, 5-0. Ryan Tartaglione and Aiden Stamm both recorded a goal and an assist. Peyton Million was perfect in net. The Las Vegas Jr. Golden Knights edged past the Philadelphia Hockey Club, 4-3. Collin Spencer added two goals and goalie Vincent Vitale stopped 15 shots. Indy Elite topped the Madison Capitols by a score of 4-2. Filippas Pliastos added a goal and an assist, while goalie Hudson Kutchma stopped 35 shots. The Maine Nordiques won 3-1 over the Colorado Springs Tigers. Brady Wilson netted a goal and an assist. Goalie Brayden Nebus took the win in the crease. The Esmark Stars took down Omaha Mastery AAA in a dominant 9-0 shutout victory. Emmett McClaine had a five point game with two goals and three assists. Goalie Kyle McLaughlin stopped all 12 shots he faced in the shutout win. CarShield AAA added a late goal breaking the tie to win 3-2 against the Seattle Kraken. Alex DeGroat scored the game winner and goalie Miles Jensen stopped 18 shots on net. The Tri State Spartans edged past the Northeast Generals by a score of 4-3 after a strong third period push. Benjamin Fiehrer scored all three goals in the third period. Spartans goalie Nigel smith stopped 40 shots in the game.
15U: CarShield AAA blanked the Maine Nordiques, 7-0. Zachary Pruss added two goals and goalie Nathan Arnold took the win in net. The Esmark Stars took down the Tri State Spartans by a final score of 5-2. Nar-Ulan Baiken scored twice and goalie Nikita Oleksiienko stopped 15 shots. The Madison Capitols posted four goals in the second period to solidify a 6-2 win over the Philadelphia Hockey Club. Jackson Stocker had a three point game and goalie Hayden Niceswanger turned away 10 shots. The New Jersey Titans added two goals in the third frame to win 4-2 over the Philadelphia Little Flyers. Aiden Strzelecki had a three point night and goalie Timothy Engleman blocked 16 shots.
14U: CarShield AAA took a shootout win over Omaha Mastery AAA by a score of 4-3. Colin Powers dished out two assists and goalie Henry Skale took the win in net. Indy Elite topped the Orange County Ice Dogs by a score of 6-3. Ryder Carpenter scored twice and Kade Ackley got the win between the pipes. Biggby Coffee AAA topped the Seattle Kraken by a score of 6-3. Goalie Ryder Owen picked up the win in net after stopping 16 shots.
13U: Florida Alliance won 6-2 over the Texas Tigers. Alec Walker added a goal and two assists and goalie Zakary Litchfield got the win in net. The Esmark Stars shutout the Tri State Spartans by a score of 8-0. Asan Abdygulov posted a hat trick and goalie William Hanner earned the shutout. CarShield AAA defeated the Little Caesars Farmington Hills squad by a score of 6-1. Owen Kelsey scored a hat-trick and goalie Romanus Reilmann won in the pipes. Sylvania North Stars topped the Las Vegas Jr. Golden Knights in a 5-2 game. Cameron Sellers had a two goal game and goalie Lucas Martin stopped 14 shots.
12U: CarShield AAA got a 4-3 win over the Seattle Kraken. CarShield goaltender Carter Althage got the win in net. The Sylvania North Stars shutout the Esmark Stars by a score of 4-0. Jason Shank added a goal and an assist. Goalies Elliott Lewis and Bentley Allred split time in net. The Esmark Stars Red shutout the Tri State Spartans in a 8-0 contest. Goalie Isaac Helsel was perfect in net for the Stars. The Windsor Spitfires dominated the Columbus Capitals by a score of 10-0. Everhett Townsend added four goals and goalie Cage Rainville was perfect in net stopping 15 shots.
The NAPHL’s T1ER Playoff Championships (Dixon Cup) are named after Dean Dixon, longtime coach of the NAPHL’s Lansing Capitals, one of the charter members of the NAPHL. In the Summer of 2013, Dixon was diagnosed with brain cancer. Even though the tumor was thought to be inoperable, it was successfully removed, and Dean continued his fight through radiation and chemotherapy. On March 17, 2014, Dixon ultimately lost his battle with the disease, but his influence and legacy on the Capitals program and the NAPHL is something that will never be forgotten.
Along with the chance of winning a Dixon Cup Championship, players this weekend will have the opportunity to showcase their individual talents in front of many NAHL and NA3HL scouts. To this date, 45 T1ER players have signed NAHL tender agreements for the 2024-25 season.
Follow the action over the course of the weekend here on our website as well as on the league’s Facebook, Instagram, and X (Twitter).
