And then there were three. Hobey finalists, that is.
Congratulations to Michigan's Kevin Porter, Miami's Ryan Jones, and Boston College's
Nathan Gerbe, who today were
tabbed as the three finalists for the NCAA's Hobey Baker Award - also known as the Hobey Hat Trick.
Gerbe, a junior forward, has helped guide his Eagles to their third straight NCAA Frozen Four. He has produced 30 goals and 30 assists in 41 games and ranks second in the nation in scoring. Gerbe was named first-team Hockey East and the league's playoff MVP, The Dodge Holiday Classic MVP and was the Hockey Commissioner's December National Player of the Month.
It's worth noting that Hockey East commissioner Joe Bertagna suggested over a month ago that Gerbe's November suspension
should not factor into the award voting.
"I think that would be a shame," Bertagna said. "Believe me, I believe whether it's players or coaches I've always been a stickler for people doing what's expected of them. I think it would be a shame if someone took it that far [to punish Gerbe in the Hobey Baker voting]. I really don't believe there's a body of evidence to make that a factor in the voting, just a couple incidents that happened. It seems like a long time ago to me, and he paid the price for it. To me, he's been a great player since, and I haven't had an incident, or anything anybody has asked me to look at or anything."
This is the first year since 2002 that a goaltender was not part of the 'Hat Trick', and for the first time since 2001 (Ryan Miller - Mich. St./CCHA), the winner will come from a non-WCHA school. The award will be handed out on Friday, April 11th.
The Sabres selected Gerbe in the 5th round (142nd overall) of the 2005 Draft.
