The 10 finalists for this year’s Hobey Baker Memorial Award were announced Wednesday afternoon. The award, given annually to college hockey’s top player, will be announced Friday, April 6, 2018 at the Frozen Four in St. Paul, Minn.
Denver senior defenseman Will Butcher won the 2017 award, but the honor was given to New Englanders the previous two years: Harvard’s Jimmy Vesey in 2016 and Boston University’s Jack Eichel in 2015.
Harvard junior center Ryan Donato (Scituate, Mass.), Northeastern junior center Adam Gaudette (Braintree, Mass.), and Northeastern senior right wing Dylan Sikura were among the 10 finalists.
Donato is the son of former Bruins forward Teddy Donato, who is his coach at Harvard. The younger Donato was a second round pick of the hometown Bruins in 2014. A Dexter School alum, Donato has 26 goals and 15 assists in 28 games played. Donato leads the nation in goals per game and shots on goal per game. He missed three games while representing the United States at the Olympics in Pyeongchang where he lit the lamp five times. Donato surpassed 100 points for his career this past Sunday night, recording a hat trick in a decisive game three against Dartmouth in the ECAC Hockey Quarterfinals. Donato and the Crimson face Clarkson in the ECAC Hockey Semifinals Friday night in Lake Placid, N.Y.
Gaudette is the nation’s leading goal scorer and point producer with 30 goals and 59 points. Amazingly, Gaudette has racked up 141 in 114 games played through his first three seasons of college hockey. He trails only Robert Morris’ Brady Ferguson for the active career-scoring race. The Vancouver Canucks prospect was named MVP of the Beanpot, helping the Huskies to their first championship of Boston’s hallowed tournament since 1988. A product of Thayer Academy and the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, Gaudette has been part of one of the nation’s top lines for two years in a row.
Sikura has been Gaudette’s right-hand man for the past few seasons. The Aurora, Ontario, native is the third leading scorer in the nation, behind only Gaudette and Princeton’s Max Verroneau. A draft pick of the Chicago Blackhawks, Sikura has 20 goals and 32 assists for 52 points. He ranks second in the nation in assists per game. Sikura’s skill set favors his hands and agility compared to the more bullish style of Gaudette.
2018 Hobey Baker Memorial Award – Top 10 Finalists
- Henrik Borgström, Soph., C, Denver
- Ryan Donato, Jr., C, Harvard
- Matthew Galajda, Fr., G, Cornell
- Adam Gaudette, Jr., C, Northeastern
- Dylan McLaughlin, Jr., LW, Canisius
- Cale Morris, Soph., G, Notre Dame
- Colton Point, Soph., G, Colgate
- Jimmy Schuldt, Jr., D, St. Cloud State
- Dylan Sikura, Sr., RW, Northeastern
- C.J. Suess, Sr., C, Minnesota State
