Peterson notches hat trick for St. Cloud State

Another week passed with another Sabres forward prospect stepping up to lead his team to victory with a three-goal game.
Judd Peterson (2012, seventh round) notched his first-ever NCAA hat trick Friday to thrust St. Cloud State to a 6-5 overtime victory over Minnesota.

Peterson put the Huskies on the board 2:20 into the second period when he positioned himself in front of the net while on the power play and deflected an incoming shot from the point to cut the Gophers' lead to 2-1.
After Minnesota increased their lead with a pair of power play markers, Peterson was again a presence down low to bat home his own rebound with 2:49 remaining in the middle frame to halve the deficit to 4-2.
St. Cloud State would continue battling in the third period, with the 23-year-old centerman getting his hat trick goal with the extra attacker with 1:13 left in regulation to force overtime.
Peterson would follow up with three shots on goal the following night as the Huskies again came from behind to earn a 3-2 win. He remains the team leader with four goals and five points through three games.
St. Cloud State defenseman William Borgen (2015, fourth round) combined for an even rating in the sweep of the Gophers. Borgen will look for his first points of the year this weekend when the Huskies host Alabama-Huntsville.

NCAA

Casey Fitzgerald (2016, third round) connected on a quick wrist shot through traffic for his first goal of the year and added one assist as Boston College opened the weekend with a 4-1 Friday night win over Colorado College.
Fitzgerald poured in two more goals Saturday, connecting from a tough angle in the opening period and then converting from the slot in the final frame, as Boston College trounced Holy Cross 6-1. The sophomore defenseman has goals in consecutive games for the first time as a collegian.
Boston College forward Christopher Brown (2014, sixth round) entered the weekend as the Eagles leading scorer (3-3-6), but did not factor into the scoring in the wins over Colorado College and Holy Cross. Brown will look to get back on track Tuesday when Boston College opens conference play at Merrimack.
Fresh off a healthy scratch the night before, senior defender Anthony Florentino (2013, fifth round) returned Saturday to produce his first goal of the year plus two assists as Providence doubled St. Lawrence 6-3. The three-point night was the first in Florentino's 104 games as a Friar.
Notre Dame goaltender Cal Petersen (2013, fifth round) made 29 saves Friday as the Fighting Irish came back to tie Penn State 3-3. Petersen made another 30 stops on Saturday in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Nittany Lions. Petersen has started all six of Notre Dame's games this season, compiling a 3-2-1 record with a 2.45 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage.
Connor Hurley (2013, second round) saw his four-game point streak come to an end Friday, finishing with three shots on goal in Notre Dame's 3-3 stalemate with Penn State. The playmaking centerman was again shut out on Saturday as the Fighting Irish closed the home series with a 3-2 overtime loss.
Hurley has one goal and six assists in six games heading into this weekend's set with Connecticut.
Ivan Chukarov (2015, seventh round) finished with two shots on goal and a plus-two rating Friday as Massachusetts closed out Army West Point 3-2. Through three games, Chukarov has one assist and an even rating.
In a Saturday scrimmage, Sean Malone (2013, sixth round) scored a power play goal as Harvard and Dartmouth played to a 3-3 tie. Malone also added the winning marker in the exhibition shootout. The Crimson open regular season action this weekend at Arizona State.
Junior forward Maxwell Willman (2014, fifth round) will hit the ice Friday when Brown opens its season against Holy Cross.

OHL

Cliff Pu (2016, third round) scored a tap-in goal from the doorstep Thursday as London erased a three-goal deficit to claim a 5-4 victory over Kitchener.
Pu contributed two assists Friday as London downed Saginaw 5-1, and followed up with his sixth goal of the year plus an assist on Sunday to extend his point streak to seven games as the Knights won their third in a row with a 7-2 thrashing of Hamilton.
Pu has 15 points (6+9) through his first nine games while winning 62.8 per cent of his draws.
One night after finishing with a minus-2 rating in Thursday's 5-4 overtime loss to Barrie, Austin Osmanski (2016, seventh round) was credited with a pair of helpers as Mississauga edged Niagara 6-5 in overtime. The Friday effort was Osmanski's first multiple point game of the season and third since joining the Steelheads a year ago.
The 6-foot-4 defenseman was unable to produce in a 3-2 loss to Kitchener on Sunday, leaving him with three points (1+2) and 19 shots on goal at the 10-game mark.

WHL

In Friday action, Brandon Hagel (2016, sixth round) notched an empty-net goal as Red Deer defeated Calgary 4-1.
Hagel kept it going Saturday, burying a pretty feed from the left side for his third goal of the year and adding an assist in a 3-1 triumph over Prince Albert.
Through 10 games, Hagel has captured three goals, nine points, and 14 penalty minutes.
Giorgio Estephan (2015, sixth round) scored his third goal of the year as Lethbridge was shellacked by Regina 6-1. The blocker-side snipe gives Estephan, who recorded a minus-four rating in a 6-1 loss to Brandon on Friday, nine points (3+6) through his first nine games. Four of his six helpers have come with the man advantage.
Devante Stephens (2015, fifth round) notched his first goal of the season Wednesday, jumping into the play and taking a defender around the edge for the lamplighter as Kelowna edged Everett 4-3. The first-period marker was the seventh of his career and first since November 20, 2015 for the stay-at-home defenseman.
Stephens picked up an assist in Friday's 4-2 win over Tri-City, and finished the week with a plus-2 rating in 5-1 victory at Seattle.
Brendan Guhle (2015, second round)continued to match up against the opposition's top lines as Prince Albert dropped 3-1 decisions at Edmonton and Red Deer before closing the week with a 3-2 win at Calgary on Sunday. Guhle has a plus-2 rating through his first five games back with the Raiders.
Prince Albert defenseman Vojtech Budik (2016, fifth round) launched a power play point shot for an assist in Saturday's 3-1 loss to Red Deer. Ten games into the season, Budik has collected three assists and a plus-3 rating.

QMJHL

After getting blanked in losses to Gatineau and Blainville-Boisbriand, Cape Breton forward Vasily Glotov (2016, seventh round) connected with a wrist shot from the right circle Sunday for his second goal of the year as the Screaming Eagles downed Drummondville 7-2. Glotov, who scored for the first time since his first game of the year, has amassed 10 points (2+8) through 11 games.

USHL

Brett Murray (2016, fourth round) saw his three-game point streak snapped as Youngstown dropped a pair of decisions to Dubuque. Murray's 11 points (3+8) are tied for third among league point-getters.
Defenseman Philip Nyberg (2016, fifth round) recorded an assist Friday as Madison got past Waterloo 3-2, and then logged a minus-one rating in Saturday's 6-1 loss to Lincoln. The Swedish import has two points (1+1) in his first eight North American contests.

Sweden

In Saturday action, Jonas Johansson (2014, third round) made 42 saves as Almtuna IS shut out HC Vita Hästen 3-0. Johansson's second shutout in eight starts moves him to 4-4 on the year with a 1.39 GAA and a .950 save percentage.
Rasmus Asplund (2016, second round) skated for a career-best 21:56 Wednesday as Farjestad BK got past Djurgarden IF 3-2 in a shootout. Asplund, who went without points as Farjestad closed the week with a home-and-home sweep of the Vaxjo Lakers, has two goals and five points through his first 11 contests.
On Tuesday, Victor Olofsson (2014, seventh round) recorded one assist as Frolunda HC doubled Orebro HK 4-2. Olofsson was unable to get on the board in the final two games of the week in wins over Leksands IF and Skelleftea AIK, leaving him with three points (2+1) in his first 12 games, off his pace from last season when he produced three goals and 10 points in his first dozen games with MODO on his way to finishing as the team's leading scorer.
Djurgarden IF winger Gustav Possler (2013, fifth round) remained sidelined with a lower body injury.
For more on all the youngsters in the Sabres pipeline, check out Kris Baker's website, SabresProspects.com. You can also follow him on Twitter (@SabresProspects) for in-game updates throughout the week on any Buffalo prospects that are in action.