Monday, March 15, 2010

Post-Season Awards - Offensive and Defensive MVP

Welcome to installment #2 of the 3-part Post-Season Awards series.

For those just joining us, here are awards given at a previous ceremony:

Flying Under the Radar: Andrew Hammond
Runner(s)-up: Cameron Sinclair, Marc Rodriguez, and Max Grover, Ian Ruel

Freshman of the Year: Jordan Samuels-Thomas
Runner(s)-up: Nathan Pageau

Now that we're up to speed, let's get on with naming the next two awards.

Defensive MVP

Overall this year the Falcons had their share of defensive issues. The team gave up almost four goals per game and only had three players with a positive +/- rating, two of whom played less than 20 games.

Throughout the season, though, there were a number of players who showed signs of promise. Some players improved greatly over their previous seasons. One player stood out above the rest. That player was Kyle Page.

Another shocker. This awards thing is turning out to be pretty boring, eh?

Wait. Forget I wrote that. This is exciting stuff! You should keep reading!

But in all seriousness, Kyle Page deserves the nod for this award for continuing to be a part of the "glue" that held this team together. When the program was in its darkest hours, Kyle stuck with it, persevered, and has come out of it with a professional contract and the admiration of many BGSU fans.

Kyle Page is the definition of a leader, which is important on an underclassman-heavy defensive unit. On the ice, despite often giving up significant size to his opponents, he battled for the puck, blocked shots, finished his checks, and gave the Falcons offensive chances that helped keep them in games. Off the ice, Kyle excelled in the classroom and in life, earning three nominations for the CCHA's Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award, and twice being named to the CCHA All-Academic First Team. Additionally, he received the Jack Gregory Scholar-Athlete Award and the Dr. Ron Zwierlein Leadership Award for the 2008-2009 season.

Kyle finished the season fourth in scoring, notching three goals and dishing out 14 assists. On the defensive side of things, he blocked 71 shots. Try to wrap your head around that for a moment - 71 frozen vulcanized rubber missiles that he willingly stepped in front of. Any team would be happy to have a player like that on their side.

Also worthy of mention are Ian Ruel, who is showing early signs of being a solid defender, and Andrew Krelove, who has made great strides in his game since last season.

Offensive MVP

There were a number of players at the top of the pack this season offensively. Tomas Petruska, Tommy Dee, David Solway, Jordan Samuels-Thomas and Kyle Page all stepped up at various times to carry the offensive load. You could probably make the case for any one of them, but I will avoid taking the easy way out and choose one. My offensive MVP is Tomas Petruska.

Locked in a close race at mid-season with Tommy Dee and Jordan Samuels-Thomas, Petruska was edged out for the award. While his overall production dropped off after the mid-point of the season (4-10-14 / 6-4-10) his goal scoring increased, and he came up big when it mattered. Most fans will long remember Petruska as the hero of shootouts against Notre Dame and Michigan State.

Petruska isn't the flashiest player on the ice, and I think his straight-forward style often left him out of the spotlight, but his physical play in the offensive end often resulted in loose pucks and scoring chances for the Falcons, and you can't argue with his success late in the season. It seemed whenever the Falcons needed a big boost or a clutch goal, Petruska was there to make it happen.

Tomas will be moving on after a fantastic senior season to join the Las Vegas Wranglers, reuniting with former Falcon Jimmy Spratt.

Both Petruska and Page have contributed in a big way to the Falcons over the past four years, and both will be dearly missed. I am sure I speak for all Falcon fans when I wish them the best of luck in the future with their professional careers and beyond.

Check back next week (hopefully!) for the final two awards, Most Improved Player and Team MVP, and as always, feel free to leave me a comment and let me know how you feel about my picks or make suggestions for the final two awards.

1 comment:

  1. My two favorite players :) I couldn't agree more for both of them. They contributed so much for the last four years and have grown incredibly as players. Great choices.

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