The North American Hockey League (NAHL) has announced its monthly player awards for the month of March, and the Vaughn NAHL Goaltender of the Month is Mattias Sholl from the Fairbanks Ice Dogs.

Only players who are nominated by their respective teams are considered for the NAHL monthly awards.

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The month of March was literally perfect for Fairbanks rookie goalie Mattias Sholl.

The 18-year-old native of Hermosa Beach posted a perfect 9-0-0 record during the month and helped the Ice Dogs claim the Midwest Division regular-season title. Sholl faced 233 shots in the nine outings and made 222 saves, allowing just 11 goals, which was good for a .953 save percentage. He also posted three shutouts during the month of March, which tied him for the NAHL lead with six.

For the 2018-19 season, Sholl currently leads all NAHL goalies in goals-against average with a 1.69 mark and ranks second in save percentage this season at .934.

“Mattias was lights out during March,” said Ice Dogs head coach Trevor Stewart. “His team played with confidence in front of him because he was playing with confidence. He made easy saves, he made hard saves, he did it all.”

“Any chance I got to play and start in goal, I wanted to make the most of,” added Sholl. “I think the biggest challenge is trying to mentally lock in and get in a zone where you are playing with confidence. You just have to believe you will always stop the next shot that comes at you. I think having an older brother (Tomas) who played in the league and has gone through the process of playing in the NCAA and then onto pro hockey has really helped. He has given me some great advice about not getting down when I am not playing, to keep working hard and play with confidence. He leads by example and definitely want to move down the path he did of getting an NCAA Division I opportunity coming out of the NAHL.”

During his youth career, Sholl played for the Los Angeles Jr. Kings.

Photo/NAHL

(April 4, 2019)