The USPHL has announced its players of the week for Week 1 of the 2022-23 season, and a pair of California connections took home honors for the Pacific Division.

Long Beach Shredders forward Nathan Compton is the division’s Forward of the Week while Bakersfield Roughnecks’ blueliner Emile Rodrigue has bagged Defenseman of the Week accolades.

Making his debut in the USPHL Premier, Compton, a 2003 birth year from Lakewood, helped his team to a Sunday evening victory over Bakersfield. Not only did he have the game-winning goal Sunday, but he finished the weekend with a total of four points off two goals and two assists.

Back home, Compton played for the California Wave and for the Beach Cities high school team.

Transitioning from California high school hockey to the USPHL, Rodrigue, a 2004-born native of Chicoutimi, Que., has shown what he’s got in the first weekend of play against Long Beach. He comes away with three points including two goals and one assist. One of those goals was the OT game-winning goal in the first-ever Roughnecks game and win.

Rodrigue skated in the LAKHSHL for the Kern County Knights (pictured).

(September 25, 2022)