Esmark Stars AAA Hockey's U18 goaltender Nathan Dickey has signed his affiliate card and called up to the North American Hockey League's (NAHL) Kenai River (AK) Brown Bears.

Dickey, who tendered with the Brown Bears at the beginning of the 2021 tender period, was called up through the NAHL's "affiliate player" process.

"This is a great opportunity for Nathan to see and more importantly participate inside the world of junior A hockey," said Stars's Head Coach Dave Kosick.  "Amplify this by how the town of Kenai River and the surrounding Alaskan communities treat their junior team and it all adds up to a phenomenal opportunity."

Dickey recorded a record of 8-0-0 in nine NAPHL regular season games and 2-1-0 in three Dean Dixon Cup NAPHL Playoff games this season.  He recorded a 1.27 GAA with a .935 save percentage in the regular season and 3.60 GAA and  .881 save percentage in the playoffs.  He was also selected to participate in the NAPHL U-18 All-Star game.

Overall, he recorded a 20-5-4-0 record during the 2020-2021 season for the U18 Stars, including three shut-outs.  His GAA for the season was 2.11 and his save percentage was .917.