The Hobey Baker Award Committee today announced its top ten finalists for this years’ award. Each year, the top college hockey player in the U.S. is presented the Hobey Baker Award.
This group was determined by a ballot of all 60 Division I college hockey coaches and by a fan vote. The award winner will be announced on Friday, April 7, 2000 at 4 p.m. from Providence, R.I. during the NCAA Frozen Four championship tournament. A selection committee of 20 members and fan vote at uscollegehockey.com will determine the winner.
Alphabetically, here are the 2000 Hobey Baker Award Finalists:
Mike Comrie – Univ. of Michigan – Sophomore forward – Edmonton, Alberta
For the second straight season, Comrie has led the Wolverines in scoring and his 53 points tops all other sophomores in the nation. He has ranked among the top five scorers nationally all season. Last years’ CCHA Rookie of the Year is also a First Team All Star this season.
Ty Conklin – Univ. of New Hampshire – Junior goaltender – Anchorage, Alaska
Ranking second nationally and first in Hockey East with 20 wins, Conklin helped the Wildcats to their fourth straight 20 win season. Playing in 33 of 34 games, he posted a 2.53 goals against average and .907 saves percentage. Ty was named Co-Player of the Year in Hockey East.
Jeff Farkas – Boston College – Senior forward – Williamsville, New York
Lead Hockey East in scoring with 53 points. He also led in shots on goal and tallied three hat tricks including a five goal game against Vermont, an NCAA season high. Farkas is a two time Hockey East All Academic Team selection and a draft pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Brian Gionta – Boston College – Junior forward – Rochester, New York
The only returning finalist from last year, Gionta is a two time Hockey East First Team All Star. He was second in the nation with 29 goals, twice named as Hockey East player of the month and earned the Bob Johnson Award from USA Hockey for his excellence in international competition.
Shawn Horcoff – Michigan State Univ. – Senior forward – Castlegar, British Columbia
Won the CCHA scoring title with 56 points while finishing third in the nation, Horcoff also led the country in assists with 45. He was named CCHA Player of the Year, Best Defensive Forward and was on the All Academic Team with a 3.4 GPA in his Marketing major. He figured in on almost half the Spartans goals.
Joel Laing – Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute – Senior Goaltender – Maryfield, Sask.
In setting school records with six shut outs in a single season and a career mark of 13, Laing posted the best saves percentage in the nation at .947. His 1.85 goals against average was third best and helped him earn Goaltender of the Year in the ECAC. Joel has a 4.0 GPA in the world renowned Lally School of Management.
Andy McDonald – Colgate Univ. – Senior forward – Strathroy, Ontario
The Colgate captain led the ECAC in scoring with 52 points and was second in the nation in points per game with 1.68. He was named the ECAC Player of the Year while also leading the league in goals and assists. McDonald has 16 multiple point games this season and 41 in his career.
Mike Mottau – Boston College – Senior defense – Avon, Massachusetts
The BC captain is the only defenseman candidate. Mottau has been named Hockey East Defensive Defenseman of the Year and is Co-Player of the Year. He is fourth on the team in scoring with 31 assists and 35 points. BC is the third ranked defense nationally and first in penalty killing with his help.
Jeff Panzer – Univ. of North Dakota – Junior forward – Grand Forks, North Dakota
Won the WCHA scoring title with 44 points in conference play, and finished second in the nation in overall scoring. The First Team All Star was also named one of North Dakota’s greatest athletes of the century by Sports Illustrated. Panzer played in all 39 games, recorded 16 multiple point games and is a marketing major with a 3.1 GPA.
Steve Reinprecht – Univ. of Wisconsin – Senior forward – Edmonton, Alberta
The Badgers two year captain was named WCHA Player of the Year while leading the nation in scoring with 63 points in 34 games, averaging 1.85 points per game. Reinprecht was second in the country in assists per game while centering the highest scoring line in the nation. Wisconsin is ranked number one in the country and won their first WCHA regular season title in ten years.
Following the award winner announcement on April 7th, the Decathlon Hotel and Athletic Club of Bloomington, MN will host a banquet to honor the Hobey Baker Award winner on Friday, April 14. On the program that night, the Legend of Hockey Award will honor former Wisconsin coach Bob Johnson. Current Badger coach Jeff Sauer will present the award to Bob’s wife Martha Johnson and their son Mark, an assistant coach at Wisconsin.
Boston College led the Hobey Baker candidate parade with three entrants, the second time in the 20 year history of the award a team has placed three finalists. By conference, Hockey East has four finalists while the WCHA, ECAC and CCHA each placed two members. Seven forwards, two goalies and one defenseman make up the on-ice mix and includes five Americans and five Canadians.
