OUA announces 2015-16 West Division Men's Hockey Major Awards and All-Stars
BURLINGTON, Ont. – Ontario University Athletics (OUA) is excited to announce the 2015-16 men’s hockey major award winners and all-stars for the West Division.
BURLINGTON, Ont. – Ontario University Athletics (OUA) is excited to announce the 2015-16 men's hockey major award winners and all-stars for the West Division.
For just the fifth time since 1987-88, and the first since the 2009-10 season, a Waterloo Warrior has been crowned the West Division Most Valuable Player. Colin Behenna (Waterloo, Ont.) takes home the esteemed award this season, after leading the West in both goals (21) and points (44), which also ranked third in the entire country.
Behenna was also a special-teams maven, scoring the most power-play and shorthanded goals in the division with 11 and two, respectively, while also leading the West with four game-winning goals. This contributed to Behenna, after being named to the all-rookie team in 2012-13 and the OUA second-team a year ago, receiving the first first-team all-star nod of his career.
A pair of Warriors' defencemen also received all-star honours, as Joe Underwood (Canton, MI) and Mike Moffat (Waterloo, Ont.) earned spots on the OUA second-team.
It is the fourth consecutive year Underwood has received the honour, in a season that saw him dish out the sixth most assists (24) in the province, while racking up the fourth most points (26) by a defenceman in the West Division.
An all-rookie a year ago, Moffat avoided the sophomore slump by scoring the most goals among West blueliners (10), with five of those being power-play goals, also tops among West defencemen, and compiling the third most points (27).
Moffat is also this year's West Division winner of the Randy Gregg Award of Merit, given to the player who best exemplifies outstanding achievement in hockey, academics and community involvement.
In addition to his aforementioned on-ice accomplishments, Moffat is a role model off-the-ice. He is actively involved the Cystic Fibrosis Canada Fundraiser, which includes raising money and awareness at multiple events such as barbecues and charity garage sales. He is also involved with Send'em Off Smiling, where he picks up, fills up and delivers backpacks for less fortunate children in the Kitchener-Waterloo area. These backpacks include school necessities such as supplies, clothes and shoes, among other things. Moffat does all this while also serving as an assistant coach with the Atom 'AAA' Waterloo Wolves.
Windsor Lancers freshman forward Justice Dundas (Richmond Hill, Ont.) broke into the league in a big way in 2015-16 and takes home the Rookie of the Year award. Dundas becomes just the third Lancer to do so since the 1987-88 season and the second in as many years, after leading the Lancers' second best offence in the West Division (3.61 goals per game) in goals (14) and points (29).
This year's Coach of the Year award winner is York Lions' bench boss Chris Dennis.
After laying claim to the second worst offence in the entire league a year ago, and finishing last in the West Division, Dennis overtook the reigns, in an overhaul of coaching personnel. The Lions never looked back, and created one of the most drastic turnarounds in OUA history, compiling a 16-7-5 record which earned them the No. 1 seed in the division.
Also playing key roles in the Lions' rebound success were Trevor Petersen (Thornhill, Ont.) and Derek Sheppard (Ajax, Ont.), who gained OUA first-team honours.
Petersen finished fourth in the West in points with 29 in 27 games, while also placing in the top five in OUA in game-winning goals (4) and power-play goals (7), leading a Lions' power-play that ranked third best in the province (26.5%).
Meanwhile, Sheppard, who was named West division Defenceman of the Year, topped all West defencemen in points with 30, while finishing third in assists among West blueliners, with 20.
Goaltender Chris Perugini (King City, Ont.) caps off the York all-star nods, as he was named to the OUA second-team. It is the fourth-year administrative studies student-athletes' first all-star honour of his career, coming in a season that saw him field the West Division's top goals against average at 2.31.
A pair of Guelph Gryphons earned first-team all-star honours: defenceman Nick Trecapelli (Guelph, Ont.) and OUA West Division Goaltender of the Year Andrew D'Agostini (Scarborough, Ont.).
Trecapelli anchored a Gryphons' defence that allowed the least goals against per game in the West (2.44), while also ranking in the top five for scoring by a defenceman, with 23 points in 27 games.
D'Agostini was also instrumental in the Gryphons top West Division defence, as he was the division's top netminder, with the West's second best goals against average at 2.34,. The Scarborough, Ont. native recorded the top save percentage, .927, which was third best in all of OUA.
Ryerson's Michael Fine (Toronto, Ont.) rounds out the first-team all-stars, as the fourth-year arts and contemporary studies student-athlete averaged a point-a-game with 27 points, while scoring the seventh most goals (12) in the division.
Brandon Devlin (Brampton, Ont.) of the Rams was named to the all-rookie team, as the former Mississauga Steelhead finished third in goals by a blueliner (6) in his first season.
Across town, Christian Finch (Markham, Ont.) and Patrick Marsh (Oakville, Ont.) are the University of Toronto Varsity Blues' all-star selections with each taking home second-team honours for the first time.
Finch's 23 assists and 31 points were both second most in the conference, while Marsh's 14 goals and 29 points were good for fifth and fourth, respectively, in OUA.
The Blues also featured a forward who was named to the all-rookie team in Matt Campagna (Mississauga, Ont.). The former member of the now extinct Plymouth Whalers played in all 28 games for Toronto, averaging a point-per-game, with 10 goals and 18 assists.
Brock's Chris Maniccia (St. Catharines, Ont.) rounds out the second-team all-stars, as the transfer from U-Mass Lowell of the NCAA was one of the bright spots for a Badgers team that missed the playoffs this season, finishing in the top 10 in the West Division in assists (20) and points (28).
Joining Windsor's Dundas on the OUA all-rookie team are Lancers' goaltender Blake Richard (Hamilton, Ont.), Lakehead forward Billy Jenkins (Ottawa, Ont.) and Laurier defenceman Mac Clutsam (Flamborough, Ont.).
Richard backstopped the Lancers to the West's third least goals against per game in his first season, as the first year liberal studies student ranked in the West Division top five in goals against average (2.66) and save percentage (.921).
In addition to a successful offensive campaign, recording 24 points in 24 games, Jenkins showed grace on the ice, which earned him the Most Sportsmanlike award, in a season that saw him avoid the penalty box in every single game he played in.
Clutsam netted totals of 14 assists and 18 points this season, which ranked him seventh and sixth, respectively, among West Division defencemen.
OUA Major Award Winners
Most Valuable Player: Colin Behenna – Forward – Waterloo Warriors
Rookie of the Year: Justice Dundas – Forward – Windsor Lancers
Randy Gregg Award of Merit: Mike Moffat – Defenceman – Waterloo Warriors
Most Sportsmanlike Award: Billy Jenkins - Forward - Lakehead Thunderwolves
Defenceman of the Year: Derek Sheppard – Defence – York Lions
Goalie of the Year: Andrew D'Agostini – Goaltender – Guelph Gryphons
Coach of the Year: Chris Dennis – York Lions
OUA First-Team All-Stars
Colin Behenna – Forward – Waterloo Warriors
Michael Fine – Forward – Ryerson Rams
Trevor Petersen – Forward – York Lions
Derek Sheppard – Defence – York Lions
Nick Trecapelli – Defence – Guelph Gryphons
Andrew D'Agostini – Goaltender – Guelph Gryphons
OUA Second-Team All-Stars
Chris Maniccia – Forward – Brock Badgers
Patrick Marsh – Forward – Toronto Varsity Blues
Christian Finch – Forward – Toronto Varsity Blues
Joe Underwood – Defence – Waterloo Warriors
Mike Moffat – Defence – Waterloo Warriors
Chris Perugini – Goaltender – York Lions
OUA All-Rookie Team
Justice Dundas – Forward – Windsor Lancers
Matt Campagna – Forward – Toronto Varsity Blues
Billy Jenkins – Forward – Lakehead Thunderwolves
Brandon Devlin – Defence – Ryerson Rams
Mac Clutsam – Defence – Laurier Golden Hawks
Blake Richard – Goaltender – Windsor Lancers