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Ex-Jr. Duck Dixson wins USHL’s Clark Cup with Tri-City

By AAHA, 06/07/16, 3:30PM PDT

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Former Anaheim Jr. Ducks forward Justin Dixson was part of the Tri-City Storm’s United States Hockey League (USHL) Clark Cup championship recently. “It was pretty special,” the 1998 birth year said. “We had a long point streak (13 games) midway through the season, so we knew we always had a chance to win.” Dixson played for the Jr. Ducks Midget 16U AAA-1 team from 2013-15, and he said that experience helped prepare him for his first season of junior hockey. “Playing two years with the Ducks helped my development and exposure a lot,” he said. “All of the showcases and weekends in the playoffs, the time with the National team, that gave me tremendous opportunities to get noticed.” Dixson scored a team-high 61 goals in his final Midget season, when the Jr. Ducks 16Us advanced to the USA Hockey Youth Nationals after capturing CAHA State and USA Hockey Pacific District championships. Dixson also led the NAPHL 16U division in scoring (35 points in 18 games) during 2014-15 for the Jr. Ducks. In addition, he played two games for the U.S. National Team Development Program’s U17 team in late 2014 and appeared in two more games for the U.S. National U17 team. “It’s great to see a player from our organization move on and win a championship in his first year of junior, especially at a level as high as the USHL,” said Alex Kim, the club’s director of player personnel and Dixson’s 16U coach.  Dixson had six assists in 37 regular-season games for Tri-City. He appeared in five playoff contests for the Storm. “Even though I got bigger and faster last summer, I didn’t know exactly what to expect,” he said. “You don’t realize how much faster and stronger players are in junior.” Still, Dixson felt he hit his stride after playing a handful of games, and he anticipates having a much larger role next season. “The coaches have told me they expect me to take on a bigger role,” he said. “Not only more power-play time, but being one of the more reliable guys – someone who is on the ice for the last minute of a period or a game.” Dixson committed to play college hockey at UMass-Amherst while a member of the Jr. Ducks last season. The Minutemen made an offseason coaching change, but that hasn’t dampened his enthusiasm. “St. Lawrence, where coach (Greg) Carvel come from, also had recruited me, and they’ve kept in good contact,” Dixson said. “I really liked the staff at St. Lawrence, and it’s good to see them (Carvel and assistant Jared DeMichiel) at UMass.”
 - Chris Bayee
Photo attached ... credit - Photo courtesy of John Dixon