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 April 12, 2026. 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: Denis Hodas, Forward, North Iowa Bulls

Securing his second Central Division Star of the Week honors, Denis Hodas tore it up on the scoresheet in North Iowa’s final regular-season games. The ‘05 skater from Zilina, Slovakia, featured a big nine-point weekend for the Bulls. His domination on the ice kicked off on Friday night with a career first. Hodas first finds twine in the second period while shorthanded in a one-timer fashion. He continues his scoring ways in the third frame, this time on the power play. With 9:51 left in the regulation, Hodas buried another goal in a one-timer fashion, helping to even the contest 3-3. The game eventually moved into overtime, and Hodas would be the hero on the ice. With a little over a minute to go in the extra frame, the 21-year-old scored with a backdoor goal off a feed from Michael Malatino. Hodas skates away with a hat trick and seals the 4-3 overtime win for the Bulls.

Moving into Saturday night, the career-first continues. The 6-foot-1 second-year skater recorded a career-high six-point night. Hodas recorded his first point of the night with a primary assist on Michael Malatino’s tally in the first period. His play-making ways continued in the frame, this time providing the primary assist on Andrej Tomasec’s goal a few minutes later. He wrapped up his first period’s performance with another assist, this time on the power play with the Bulls at the 7:53 minute mark. Moving into the middle frame, the 21-year-old would secure his second power-play assist of the night, this time for Vitaliy Korolyuk’s goal. Hodas would round out his night with two more assists in the final frame. His fifth assist of the night would be notched on Andrej Tomasec’s tally at the 8:59 minute mark in the third period. Hodas’ last assist of the night would be on the last goal of the game. The second-year veteran provided the setup for Denis Kuzmenkov’s power-play goal.

Hodas’ play-making ways ended his weekend with three goals and six assists. He contributed to every goal except two on the weekend for the Bulls. Hodas showed up on the scoresheet in his last seven games as a junior hockey player, securing six multi-point games in that span. He ended his season with 26 goals and 33 assists in 57 games played.

Head coach of the Bulls, Nick Bruneteau, shares how impactful Hodas was this season.

“Denis had a phenomenal finish to the season! He made it impossible to take him off the ice and showcased why he is one of the most talented players in our league. We look forward to watching his future achievements and wish him nothing but the best.”

2nd Star: EJ Paddington, F, Austin Bruins

3rd Star: Mikey Coleman, F, Austin Bruins

Midwest Division Star of the Week: Oliver Barna, Forward, Fairbanks Ice Dogs

The 5-foot-11 forward, securing his third Star of the Week honors this season, Oliver Barna, spotlighted a six-point performance in his last two regular-season games with the Ice Dogs. His offensive dominance kicked off on Friday night at the Big Dipper Ice Arena. The ‘06 skater first showed up on the scoresheet with a primary setup on Mack Diggins’ tally in the opening frame. Four minutes later, Barna would score a goal himself four minutes later for the Ice Dogs. His play-making continued into the third frame, this time providing a secondary assist on Harrison Kaszubowski’s power-play tally. Later on in the contest, Barna would provide one final assist of the night, this one for Luca Ricciardi’s third goal of the night in the final 30 seconds of the matchup. The Ice Dogs skate to a dominant 8-4 victory with the help of a four-point night by the ‘06 skater.

Moving into Saturday night, the Dunaujvaros, Hungary, native got the scoring started with a goal within the first two minutes of the game. He continued his play-making, this time providing the primary assist on Mack Diggins’ tally in the final two minutes of the opening period. Barna secured a two-point night in Fairbanks’ 6-2 win.

For the weekend, Barna spotlighted a six-point performance, tallying two goals and four assists. On his roster, the ‘06 skater leads his team with 32 goals and 69 points, while sitting in second with 37 assists on the season. He ranks first overall as well with his +25 rating on the year. His offensive prowess on the ice ranks him in the top 10 of skaters in the NAHL in goals scored on the season.

Head coach of the Ice Dogs, Dakota Bell, explains how Barna has been a key player for Fairbanks all season.

“Oliver being named star of the week for the final regular season weekend of the year is fitting, as he has been our most consistent scorer this year. Finishing the year with 32 goals and over a point per game in our league is really tough to do. Obviously, Oliver had a great weekend with 6 points in two games, but he’s helped out in so many ways this year in every situation. He played in every single game this season and is worthy of the recognition yet again. We’re excited to see how he helps us as we enter the playoffs!”

2nd Star: Grant Dillard, F, Janesville Jets

3rd Star: Kaenan Smith, F, Janesville Jets