Your 2013 Hobey Baker Award Winner is...

 

 

Ok, let’s not get the wagon ahead of the horse here.  As every hockey fan knows, pre-season polls and predictions are anything but a perfect science.  Some Hobey hopefuls get hurt, some have down years, and in some cases a player comes in unheralded and has a fantastic year.  However, this unpredictability doesn’t make it any less interesting to try to guess who will be on the list at the end of the season.  This is my pre-season pick for the top 10 candidates in no particular order.

1)      Nick Bjugstad                     Forward               University of Minnesota

Bjugstad postponed his professional career for at least one more year to return for his junior season as a Golden Gopher. The saying is that “Hobey loves goals” and Bjugstad has plenty of them.  The 6’5” sniper was a 1^st team All-WCHA  pick and a 3^rd team All-American last season after posting 25 goals and 42 points .  The “U” has a ton of firepower up front this season so the balanced scoring could hurt his chances, but it could also be an advantage as a good supporting cast should help with production.  There will be a Minnesota forward up for it this year and I have my money on the big man.

 

2)      Danny Kristo                      Forward               University of North Dakota

Kristo is another player that turned down heavy pressure from his drafted team (Montreal) to return to some unfinished business at the college level.  After an average sophomore year where he was out of the line-up most of the second half due to severe frostbite, he found his scoring touch as a junior, notching 45 points and was named to the West Region All-Tournament team.  Like Bjugstad, the balance of this year’s team could hurt his chances, but he will be playing top line minutes and special teams.  Also, if tradition continues, he should be an All-American this season (Fun fact:  the last three players to wear number 7 at UND were All-Americans (TJ Oshie, Brandon Bochenski, and Travis Roche.)  With renewed drive and passion, Kristo is poised to have a Hobey caliber year.

 

3)      Danny Biega                       Defense               Harvard

Biega didn’t crack the top 10 in Hobey voting last season when he was the second leading scoring defenseman in the nation; a huge surprise and disappointment to the Crimson fans.  If he puts up those numbers again this season he won’t be left of the list.  He was named Defensive Defenseman of the year in the ECAC, ECAC 1^st team, ECAC All-Tournament team, CCM hockey 1^st team All-American, and a unanimous All-Ivy selection.  In addition to this, he was an ECAC All-Academic selection at an Ivy League school.  Given the award takes into account off-ice accomplishments, he looks to be a top-10 lock with his leadership, academics, and on-ice success.

4)      Jonny Gaudreau               Forward               Boston College

Gaudreau left a lasting impression on anyone that was watching the National Championship game last season with his highlight-reel goal to push Boston College further ahead.  He is the type of BC forward we’ve become familiar with under Jerry York’s tenure:  small, speedy, and skilled.  He was the USCHO rookie of the year after putting up an incredible 44 points as a freshman.  His only downfall will be if he can’t keep putting those numbers up when the other teams key on him this season.  I’m going to assume he can and will be a 5’7” force for the Eagles this season and crack the top 10.

5)      Troy Groseneck                                Goalie                   Union

 

Groseneck is the only Hobey Baker Candidate and the only USCHO 1^st team All-American returning for the 2012-2013 season.  He was also the ECAC goalie of the year last year and posted a .936 save percentage and 1.65 Goals Against Average.  If he puts up those numbers for a second year he will be a legitimate Top 10 candidate. 

 

6)      Joey LaLeggia                     Defense               Denver

 

LaLeggia had a terrific freshman campaign last season.  He led all rookie defensemen nationally in points (38), goals (11) and assists (27) and was tied for the league lead in defensemen scoring for the WCHA (yes, he tied Hobey runner-up Justin Schultz in conference points).  He was the HCA National Rookie of the Year, WCHA Rookie of the year, All-WCHA First Team, All-WCHA Rookie Team, Inside College Hockey WCHA Freshman of the Year, College Hockey News Rookie of the Year and All-College Hockey News Rookie Team.

 

 

7)      Joey Diamond                   Forward               Maine

Diamond was a tough call for me.   Like I said with Bjugstad “Hobey loves goals”.  Diamond lit the lamp 25 times last season and was a 3^rd team hockey east selection.  Some question if that was the result of his linemates who were both top 10 nationally in scoring last season (Spencer Abbott was first and Brian Flynn was tenth.)  Both Abbott and Flynn graduated so this year Diamond will have to prove he can do that on his own.  Last season’s Hobey Baker had the same question mark coming into the season, though.  Jack Connelly had lost his linemates Mike Connelly and Justin Fontaine and still came back to dominate the nation and take home the Hobey.  Maine fans are hoping history repeats itself and Diamond proves the naysayers wrong.

 

8)      Parker Milner                    Goalie                   Boston College

 

As much as I don’t want to have two Eagles in my Top 10 list, it’s hard to leave Parker Milner out of the Hobey talks.  He was the Hockey East Goaltender of the Year and ended the season with a .928 save percentage and 1.85 Goals Against Average after a relatively slow start.  Also, perhaps the most convincing thing is that Milner backstopped the Eagles to a National Championship and was named to the Frozen Four All-Tournament team.  I have a soft spot for the big-game players and Milner is as clutch as they come.

 

9)      Mark Zengerle                  Forward               Wisconsin

Zengerle was a 3^rd team All-WCHA pick last season.  He put up 50 points (7^th nationally) on a relatively weak Badger team.  If he can put up those numbers this season and Wisconsin can get back in the tournament picture, Zengerle could make a run for a Top 10 Hobey finish.

 

10)   Dan Dekeyser                    Defense               Western Michigan

Dekeyser was a huge reason for the Broncos success down the stretch last season.  For his efforts he was named a 2^nd team All-CCHA selection, a CCHA All-Tournament team selection, won the award for defensive defenseman of the year in the CCHA and capped his season off by being named a 2^nd team All-American.  Now that everyone knows who Dan Dekeyser is, it’s safe to say he will be in the Hobey discussion if he continues to perform the way he has the last two seasons.

 

 

My apologies to these guys who could definitely crack the top 10

-Ben Hanowski (St. Cloud State forward)

-Matt Nieto (Boston University forward)

-TJ Tynan (Notre Dame forward)

-Rylan Schwartz (Colorado College forward)

-Brett Gensler (Bentley forward)

-Alex Guptil (Michigan forward)

-Doug Carr (U-Mass Lowell goalie)

-Erik Haula and Kyle Rau (Minnesota forwards)

*Minnesota is so stacked up from this year it really depends which of the three has the biggest year.  Right now my money is still on Bjugstad.

 

               

Like I said, it’s always a guessing game who is going to have a big year but these are the players I would suggest watching.  We’ll check back in on these picks later in the season and look which guys seem to be still in the race.