March 7, 2007
The Hobey Baker Memorial Award is presented
to a deserving recipient on the day before the last
college hockey game of the season. But that doesn’t
mean that college hockey fans, players and media members
don’t think about it all season. Inside College
Hockey's Hobey Tracker looks at the top three candidates
for the award, those whose stock is rising or falling,
and other players worthy of consideration.
THE
BIG BOARD |
1.
Ryan Duncan
North Dakota
Soph. | Forward |
Last
Week: Had one assist as North Dakota got
a tie and win at St. Cloud State to finish third
in the WCHA.
The Buzz: The Fighting Sioux scored
nine goals against St. Cloud State last weekend,
and all Duncan contributed was
one assist. Facing Minnesota State may rejuvenate
Duncan — in nine career games against the
Mavericks, he has 4-8—12, including 4-5—9
in four prior meetings this season. |
2. David Brown
Notre Dame
Senior | Goalie |
Last
Week: Did not play, Notre Dame had a bye
in the opening round of the CCHA playoffs.
The Buzz: After a week's rest,
Brown comes back to face an Alaska team he's already
beaten three times this season and shut out once,
and against whom he's posted a .957 save percentage
this season. Oh, and this time it's personal —
the Nanooks knocked Brown and the Fighting Irish
out of the CCHA playoffs last season with a first-round
series sweep. |
3.
T.J. Hensick
Michigan
Senior | Forward |
Last
Week: Did not play, Michigan had a bye
in the opening round of the CCHA playoffs.
The Buzz: The Hobey isn't a lifetime
achievement award, but Hensick's remarkable career
statistics bear notice. In four seasons with the
Wolverines, he's scored 46, 55, 52, and 56 points.
His assist numbers during that same span? How
about 34, 32, 35, and 39 helpers? He'll try to
add to those impressive totals against Northern
Michigan this weekend.
|
|
BULL
MARKET |
Jon Quick
Massachusetts
Sophomore
Goalie
|
The
Minutemen are playing a Hockey East playoff series
on home ice for just the second time in the program's
history this weekend, and they earned that right
by sweeping Maine last weekend. Quick is proving
himself to be one of the best among a stellar crop
of Hockey East goalies, something that UMass fans
don't take for granted. |
BEAR
MARKET |
Alex
Goligoski
Minnesota
Junior
Defense |
With
just two points in the Gophers' last seven games,
Goligoski's production has tailed off, as has his
prominence in the Hobey Baker race. It also doesn't
help that Minnesota has just one win in its last
four games. |
|
HIDDEN
HOBEY |
Dylan
Reese
Harvard
Senior
Defense
|
The Crimson's
regular season achievements were hardly remarkable,
but Reese was a stalwart on the blueline for the
team that finished seventh in the ECAC Hockey League.
He had a hat trick in last weekend's opening-round
playoff sweep of rival Yale, and as has been recent
tradition for the Crimson, they're rolling early
on in the ECACHL playoffs, a tournament they'll
need to win to extend their NCAA Tournament participation
streak to six years. |
|