Men's hockey announces team awards, 2009-10 captains
April 10, 2009 | Men's Hockey
Of the six annual men's hockey team awards for the 2008-09 season, four will reside on the mantles of Wisconsin defensemen, while two Badgers will have their names etched twice in the UW record books.
The Badgers finished this past season with a 20-16-4 overall mark and a 14-11-3 record in the WCHA. Those numbers were good for third in the WCHA regular-season standings, while the team also captured third in the WCHA playoffs.
Leading the way for the Badgers was junior defenseman and Hobey Baker top-10 finalist Jamie McBain, who was voted by his teammates as the Spike Carlson Most Valuable Player. The WCHA Player of the Year finished as the team's leading scorer with 30 assists and 37 points, and represented the Badgers on the All-WCHA first team, the school's first first-teamer since blue liner Tom Gilbert in 2006.
McBain is the second consecutive defenseman to win the Spike Carlson MVP award after Davis Drewiske won last year's honor.
Sophomore defenseman Ryan McDonagh earned the Fenton Kelsey, Jr., Most Competitive award, also voted on by his teammates. McDonagh posted five goals and 16 points in 36 games played as a team assistant captain. A player for Team USA at the 2009 IIHF World Junior Championship, the Arden Hills, Minn., native is known as a tough, gritty defenseman and an anchor in the UW defensive corps.
The first of UW's double award winners is sophomore defenseman Craig Johnson. The Waupaca, Wis., native was voted the Otto Breitenbach Most Improved Player and also won the Dr. Joseph Coyne Most Consistent Player award. Johnson skated in 23 games for the Badgers, including the final 13 contests and 20 of the last 22 games after skating in just three of the first 17 games of the year. The stay-at-home rear guard chipped in his only two assists of the season among the last four games, all during the postseason.
Johnson earned the most consistent award by leading the team with a plus-7 during the season.
The final two awards go to senior forward Tom Gorowsky. His first is the Ivan B. Williamson Scholastic award. The finance major is a three-time All-WCHA Academic Team member and is expected to become a three-time Academic All-Big Ten team member later this spring.
Gorowsky posted a career year this past season, finishing third on the Badgers with 12 goals and 30 points in 36 games played, and topping his prior career totals in goals, assists, points, power-play goals and game-winning goals in one season.
His performance earned recognition by Badger fans and viewers of UW hockey games on Wisconsin Public Television, who voted the Lino Lakes, Minn., native the WHA-TV Jim Santulli 7th Man Award winner. Viewers cast their votes for the UW men's hockey player who gives his all on the ice and best represents the Badger trademarks of team spirit and good sportsmanship.
Gorowsky will compete Friday evening in the 2009 NCAA Frozen Four Skills Challenge in Washington, D.C.
Earlier this year, the UW men's hockey program handed out a couple of traditional honors, including the Mel Ross Award. The annual award, previously handed out by the Blue Line Club, went to Bob Lindauer, who frequently volunteers to help move equipment for the program. The Gramps O'Sheriden Award, given for dedication to the program, was given to Carol Marshall. The long-time friend of the UW men's hockey program still helps with equipment repairs for the team.
In addition to the team awards, head coach Mike Eaves has named tri-captains for the 2009-10 season. Senior forwards Ben Street and Blake Geoffrion will share the duties with junior defenseman Ryan McDonagh. It will mark the fourth time in UW history that the team will skate with tricaptains, including most recently in 2003-04, when Rene Bourque, Dan Boeser and Andy Wozniewski served in that capacity. The program also used tricaptains during the 1974-75 season with Steve Alley, Bob Lundeen and John Taft, as well as the 1976-77 NCAA championship season with Alley, Taft and current UW head coach Mike Eaves sharing the duties.
