With the end of collegiate hockey calendar approaching, the ten finalists for the Hobey Baker Award have been announced. The trophy is given to the top NCAA player in the country and has an impressive line of winners. In 2014, Johnny Gaudreau, Jack Eichel, Cale Makar, and Cole Caufield have all taken it home over the last decade, with each going on to star at the professional level.
Goaltender Dryden McKay, last year’s winner, is currently playing with the Newfoundland Growlers of the ECHL, after a history career at Minnesota State-Mankato. McKay posted a .932 save percentage and 26 shutouts across 140 college games, winning 113 of them.
The award also has several top NHL alumni in its small fraternity, including Neal Broten, Tom Kurvers, Paul Kariya, Chris Drury, Ryan Miller, and Brendan Morrison. With that group behind them, this year’s winner is certainly not someone to take lightly.
Earlier this year, 87 players from the NCAA ranks were nominated for the award, and today that number has been reduced to just ten. These ten players will be narrowed to just three, a process that anyone can be a part of by participating in the fan vote. Votes will be added to the decision from a selection committee to produce three finalists, from which a winner will be crowned.
The top 10 finalists are as follows, with the NHL organization that owns their draft rights in parenthesis:
Logan Cooley, University of Minnesota (Arizona Coyotes)
Adam Fantilli, University of Michigan (2023 draft eligible)
Sean Farrell, Harvard University (Montreal Canadiens)
Collin Graf, Quinnipiac University (undrafted)
Lane Hutson, Boston University (Montreal Canadiens)
Matthew Knies, University of Minnesota (Toronto Maple Leafs)
Devon Levi, Northeastern University (Buffalo Sabres)
Yaniv Perets, Quinnipiac University (undrafted)
Blake Pietila, Michigan Tech University (undrafted)
Jason Polin, Western Michigan University (undrafted)
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