MASON CITY, Iowa – By any measure, it’s been one incredible start to the year for North Iowa Bulls forward Peter Verstegen. With 13 goals on the year, he’s far and away the top goal-scorer on this year’s Bulls team. With six power-play goals, he’s also one of the North American Tier 3 Hockey League’s most prolific special-teams scorers.
With two big games against the Alexandria Blizzard, the Oshkosh, Wisconsin native earned this week’s Bauer Hockey West Division Star of the Week award from the NA3HL. It wasn’t just the big numbers he put up – it was the big moments in which he posted those numbers.
Verstegen ran his active point streak to five games with a pair of goals Friday night and two more on Saturday in 5-3 and 4-1 wins over the Blizzard. His second goal on Friday night was the game-winner, and three of his four goals this past weekend came on the power play. He has scored a power play goal in three straight games, and North Iowa enters the weekend with a six-game streak of power play scoring success.
The Bulls have only had one West Division Star of the Week this season, with Brendan Studioso earning a Star of the Week honor in late September after wins over the Breezy Point North Stars and the New Ulm Steel. However, North Iowa has had a player named the West’s 2nd Star of the Week on four separate occasions.
The Bulls wrap up a seven-game homestand this weekend with Friday and Saturday night home games against the Willmar WarHawks. Game times are 7:30 p.m. both nights, with live streaming coverage on HockeyTV and free audio streaming on Mixlr. It’s College Weekend at the North Iowa Ice Arena – tickets are just $5 for any college student with a valid college ID. For advance tickets to this week’s games against the WarHawks or any future Bulls home game, click here.