WCHA Press Release
MADISON, Wis.
– University of Alaska
forward Cody Kunyk was chosen as Western Collegiate Hockey Association
Player of the Year and the University
of Alabama in Huntsville’s Chad Brears earned WCHA
Outstanding-Student Athlete of the Year honors to highlight 2013-14 men’s
awards announced by the conference today.
The league’s five other major individual awards went to
University of Alaska defenseman Colton Parayko as WCHA Defensive Player
of the Year, Lake Superior State University forward Alex Globke as WCHA
Rookie of the Year, Alaska’s Cody Kunyk as WCHA Scoring Champion,
Minnesota State University’s Cole Huggins as WCHA Goaltending Champion,
and Bob Daniels of Ferris State University as WCHA Coach of the Year.
Kunyk (Sherwood Park, AB) finished the regular season of his senior campaign as
the WCHA scoring champion, accruing 34 points on 17 goals and 17 assists in Alaska’s 28 conference
games. In the 34-game regular-season schedule, he scored a single-season
career-high 42 points with a WCHA-high 22 goals to go with 20 assists. Also
named to the All-WCHA First Team and to the WCHA All-Academic Team, Kunyk has
recorded five multiple-goal outings this season, including a career-best four
goals in the Nanooks’ victory over Alaska Anchorage on March 7. That mark was
achieved by only three other collegians during the 2013-14 year. He leads the
nation with seven game-winning goals, scored six power-play and two shorthanded
goals and owns a stellar +14 plus/minus rating. Kunyk currently ranks 13th
all-time on the program’s scoring list with 132 points (60g, 72a) in 145 career
games.
Brears (Cold Lake,
AB), a forward at Alabama
Huntsville, was chosen by member team Faculty Representatives as WCHA
Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year. Majoring in Mechanical Engineering,
Brears has maintained a 4.0 GPA in one of the institution’s most difficult
degree programs and despite the constant demands of being a student-athlete and
the extensive travel involved as a member of the Chargers’ hockey team. He
earned WCHA Scholar-Athlete honors in mid-February, is a member of the WCHA
All-Academic Team, and is one of his team’s leaders both on and off the ice. He
is an enthusiastic participant in mentoring activities with local school
children and an all-around great representative of the ethos of college hockey.
In 35 games played this season, Brears tied for third on the team in points
with 10 and was second on the team in goals scored with six. Brears’ on-ice
moment of the year came at Bemidji
State on Feb. 28 when he
fed a pretty pass to Jack Prince who scored the game-winning goal for a key
road victory over a long-time rival. The WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of
the Year Award is determined from nominations made by the member institutions
and each institution then has one final vote.
The league’s 10 head coaches voted Alaska
defenseman Colton Parayko (St. Albert,
AB) as the WCHA Defensive Player
of the Year. An All-WCHA First Team selection as just a sophomore, Parayko
finished his second collegiate season as one of the leading offensive
defenseman in the league, ranking tied for third with 18 points (4g, 14a) in
the 28-game league slate. In Alaska’s
34 regular-season outings, he tallied 23 points (4g, 19a) and led all defenders
with 19 assists. Defensively, he is always matched up against the opponents’
top lines and is a leader in ice time. He blocked a nation’s second-best 2.65
blocks per game (90) and owns a standout +17 plus/minus rating. Then Nanooks
went 13-5-0 when he recorded at least one point, compared to their 4-8-4 mark
when he went without a point. He has had five multiple-point outings during the
season and has scored all four of his goals on the power-play.
Honored by voters as the WCHA Rookie of the Year for 2013-14
is Lake Superior State University
forward Alex Globke, who also earned All-WCHA Rookie Team accolades. Globke (Waterford, MI),
who produced 31 points (12g, 19a) to lead the Lakers and played in all 36
games, was one of his club’s most consistent offensive players. As a freshman
among a senior-laden squad, Globke produced points at a rapid pace. He lead the
WCHA in freshman goals, assists, and points. He currently sits tied for seventh
nationally in rookie scoring, while also finishing eighth in overall conference
scoring. Globke also finished tied for sixth in overall assists in league play.
He produced like an experienced veteran and helped anchor one of the most
effective lines in the league with seniors Colin Campbell and Dan Radke. With
center Radke out for two straight weeks and gone from the top line, Globke
added four assists over the four games against conference foes Michigan Tech
and Bemidji State. He has been named conference Rookie of the Week. Globke
began his collegiate career with 15 points in his first 12 games including
seven in his first six.
The WCHA Scoring Champion for 2013-14 is Alaska’s
Cody Kunyk while the league goaltending champion is Minnesota State
University rookie Cole
Huggins. Huggins (Centennial, CO), who has three shutouts in his last four
games played heading into the playoffs, owns an overall 17-7-1 won-loss record,
a 1.96 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage. He has started 15 of
the last 17 games for the Mavericks, ranks ninth in the nation in goals-against
average, 27th in save percentage and his school-record tying five shutouts on
the year is tied for third. Huggins led the league with a 1.73 goals-against
average and .794 winning percentage (he was 17-4-1 in league games), tied for
the league lead with a .927 save percentage and was named WCHA Rookie of the
Week following MSU’s games with Bowling Green (Nov. 15-16) and WCHA Defensive
Player of the Week after the Mavericks earned a league road sweep at Lake
Superior State (Feb. 28-March 1). He had a career-high 33 saves in 1-0 shutout
victory vs. Bowling Green
Nov. 9.
Chosen as the WCHA Coach of the Year is Bob Daniels of Ferris State
University, who led the
Bulldogs to the regular season title as first-year league members. In the midst
of his 22nd season at the helm and a two-time National Coach of the Year Award
recipient, Daniels led the Bulldogs to their second conference championship in
the last three years as FSU became only the third program ever to win both the
WCHA and the former Central Collegiate Hockey Association titles. The Bulldogs
led the league race from wire-to-wire in claiming the fabled MacNaughton Cup
and securing the number one seed for the league playoffs. During the 2013-14
season, the Bulldogs established a new school record under Daniels with a
nation-leading 16-game unbeaten streak, which lasted from late October until
early January. Ferris
State did not drop a
conference game until the middle of January and the Bulldogs finished the
regular-season with a first-place 20-6-2 league slate.
Under Daniels’ leadership, Ferris State
has compiled a nation-leading 25 wins (25-9-3), the fourth most in school
history, and the Bulldogs own one of the country’s top marks on home ice with a
14-1-1 record inside the Ewigleben Ice Arena. FSU, ranked as high as second and
among the nation’s top 10 teams each of the last 15 weeks, went unbeaten at
home (13-0-1) in conference action and posted its sixth-straight season with
increased home attendance. This season’s average of 2,141 fans per game was its
best in 32 years. Additionally, Ferris
State is also presently
sixth in the national PairWise and RPI rankings with the Bulldogs eyeing their
third overall NCAA Tournament bid, including the second in three seasons
following the memorable 2011-12 run to the national championship game at the
NCAA Frozen Four.
Four conference teams – Alaska,
Alaska Anchorage,
Ferris State
and Minnesota State – are represented on the All-WCHA
First Team, with both the Nanooks and the Mavericks having two honorees each.
Named to the All-WCHA First Team, with statistics for league games, were
forwards Cody Kunyk (Sr., Alaska, 28 gp, 17-17=34), Matt Bailey (Sr.,
Alaska Anchorage, 28 gp, 12- 15=27), and Matt Leitner (Jr., Minnesota
State, 26 gp, 8-25=33), defensemen Colton Parayko (So., Alaska, 28 gp,
4-14=18) and Zach Palmquist (Jr., Minnesota State, 28 gp, 3-16=19), and
goaltender C.J. Motte (Jr., Ferris State, 19-6-2, 2.29, .927).
Voted to the All-WCHA Second Team were forwards Jean-
Paul Lafontaine (Jr., Minnesota State, 28 gp, 16-16=32), Colton Beck (Sr.,
Alaska, 28 gp, 11-19=30) and Garrett Thompson (Sr., Ferris State, 28 gp,
11-7=18), defensemen Scott Czarnowczan (Sr., Ferris State, 28 gp,
4-13=17) and Kevin Czuczman (Jr., Lake Superior State, 28 gp, 6-9=15)
and goaltender Cole Huggins (Fr., Minnesota State, 17-4-1, 1.73, .927).
Named to the All-WCHA Third Team for 2013-14 were forwards Tyler
Morley (So., Alaska, 25 gp, 15-14=29), Zach Lehrke (Sr., Minnesota
State, 24 gp, 7-18=25) and Johnny McInnis (Sr., Minnesota State, 28 gp,
17-11=28), defensemen Matt Prapavessis (Jr., Bemidji State, 28 gp,
5-12=17) and Jason Binkley (Jr., Ferris State, 26 gp, 2-16=18), and
goaltender Kevin Kapalka (Sr., Lake Superior State, 8-9-0, 2.62, .924).
And voted to the All-WCHA Rookie Team were forwards Alex
Globke (Fr., Lake Superior State, 28 gp, 9-12=21), Marcus Basara (Fr.,
Alaska, 28 gp, 9-12=21) and Kyle Schempp (Fr., Ferris State, 28 gp,
6-12=18), defensemen Shane Hanna (Fr., Michigan Tech, 28 gp, 4-18=22), Ruslan
Pedan (Fr., Bemidji State, 28 gp, 3-8=11) and Sean Flanagan (Fr.,
Minnesota State, 24 gp, 5-6=11), and goaltender Cole Huggins (Fr., Minnesota
State, 17-4-1, 1.73, .927).
A repeat all-league honoree from 2012-13 was forward Matt
Leitner of Minnesota State, who was an All-WCHA First Team selection this
season after being All-WCHA Third Team a season ago. Alaska forward Cody
Kunyk, who was an All-WCHA First Team choice, was an All-CCHA Second Team
honoree in 2011-12 while Nanooks’ forward Tyler Morley, who was All-WCHA
Third Team, was a member of the All-CCHA Rookie Team in 2012-13. And Lake Superior goaltender Kevin Kapalka, an All-WCHA
Third Team selection, was named to the All-CCHA Rookie Team in 2010-11.
Seven players who were named as major award winners and/or
to this season’s all-league teams were also honored as WCHA Scholar-Athletes
for 2013-14 back on Feb. 13. They were forward Chad Brears of Alabama
Huntsville (WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year), forward Matt
Bailey of Alaska Anchorage (All-WCHA First Team), defenseman Colton
Parayko of Alaska (WCHA Defensive Player of the Year, All-WCHA First Team),
Bemidji State defenseman Matt Prapavessis (All-WCHA Third Team), Ferris
State defenseman Jason Binkley (All-WCHA Third Team), Lake Superior
State defenseman Kevin Czuczman (All-WCHA Second Team) and Lakers’
goaltender Kevin Kapalka (All-WCHA Third Team). To earn recognition as a
WCHA Scholar- Athlete, student-athletes must have completed at least one year
of residency at their present institution prior to the current academic year
and must also have a grade-point average of at least 3.50 on a 4.0 scale for
the previous two semesters or three quarters, or may qualify if his or her
overall GPA is at least 3.50 for all terms at his or her present institution.
Major award winners and/or members named to all-league teams
who were also earned 2013-14 WCHA All-Academic Team honors were: Chad Brears
of Alabama Huntsville (WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year), Matt
Bailey of Alaska Anchorage (All-WCHA First Team), Alaska’s Colton Beck (All-
WCHA Second Team), Cody Kunyk (WCHA Player of the Year, All-WCHA First
Team), Tyler Morley (All-WCHA Third Team) and Colton Parayko (WCHA
Defensive Player of the Year, All-WCHA First Team), Bemidji State’s Matt
Prapavessis (All-WCHA Third Team), Ferris State’s Scott Czarnowczan (All-WCHA
Second Team) and C.J. Motte (All-WCHA First Team), Lake Superior State’s
Kevin Czuczman (All-WCHA Second Team) and Kevin Kapalka (All-WCHA
Third Team), and Minnesota State’s Zach Lehrke (All-WCHA Third Team) and
Zach Palmquist (All-WCHA First Team).
Voting for WCHA awards and all-league teams is done by
member team head and assistant coaches and captains or sports information
directors. Each team receives four ballots for a total of 40 voters. Points for
awards and all-league teams are awarded on a 5-point (1st team vote), 3-point
(2nd team vote), and 1-point (3rd team vote) basis. The WCHA Outstanding
Student- Athlete of the Year award is administered by member team Faculty
Athletic Representatives. The WCHA Defensive Player of the Year is chosen by
the league’s 10 head coaches.
WCHA Player of the Year
Cody Kunyk • Forward, Senior, University
of Alaska (Sherwood Park, AB)
WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year
Chad
Brears • Forward, Sophomore, University
of Alabama in Huntsville
(Cold Lake, AB)
WCHA Defensive Player of the Year
Colton Parayko • Defenseman,
Sophomore, University of Alaska (St. Albert, AB)
WCHA Rookie of the Year
Alex Globke • Forward, Freshman, Lake
Superior State
University (Waterford, MI)
WCHA Scoring Champion
Cody Kunyk • Forward, Senior, University
of Alaska (Sherwood Park, AB)
WCHA Goaltending Champion
Cole Huggins • Freshman, Goaltender, Minnesota State
University (Centennial,
CO)
WCHA Coach of the Year
Bob Daniels • Ferris
State University
2013-14 All-WCHA First Team
Pos Name Team Ht Wt Yr Hometown 2013-14 WCHA Stats
F Cody Kunyk Alaska
5-11 197 Sr Sherwood Park, AB 28 gp, 17-17=34
F Matt Bailey Alaska Anchorage 6-1 196 Sr Oakbank, MB 28 gp,
12-15=27
F Matt Leitner Minnesota State 5-9 175 Jr Los Alamitos, CA
26 gp, 8-25=33
D Colton Parayko Alaska
6-5 218 So St. Albert, AB 28 gp, 4-14=18
D Zach Palmquist Minnesota State 6-0 175 Jr South St. Paul,
MN 28 gp, 3-16=19
G C.J. Motte Ferris State 6-0 190 Jr St. Clair, MI 19-6-2, 2.29, .927
2013-14 All-WCHA Second Team
Pos Name Team Ht Wt Yr Hometown 2013-14 WCHA Stats
F Jean-Paul Lafontaine Minnesota State 5-10 172 Jr Oxford,
MI 28 gp, 16-16=32
F Colton Beck Alaska
5-11 187 Sr Langley, BC 28 gp, 11-19=30
F Garrett Thompson Ferris State 6-2 191 Sr Traverse City, MI 28 gp,
11-7=18
D Scott Czarnowczan Ferris State 5-10 176 Sr Macomb,
MI 28 gp, 4-13=17
D Kevin Czuczman Lake Superior State 6-3 205 Jr Port Elgin, ON 28 gp, 6-9=15
G Cole
Huggins Minnesota
State 6-0 180 Fr
Centennial, CO 17-4-1, 1.73, .927
2013-14 All-WCHA Third
Team
Pos Name Team Ht Wt Yr Hometown 2013-14 WCHA Stats
F Tyler Morley Alaska 5-8 174 So Burnaby, BC 25 gp, 15-14=29
F Zach Lehrke Minnesota State 5-8 170 Sr Park Rapids, MN 24
gp, 7-18=25
F Johnny McInnis Minnesota State 6-1 195 Sr Boston, MA 28 gp, 17-11=28
D Matt Prapavessis Bemidji State 6-1 183 Jr Oakville, ON 28 gp, 5-12=17
D Jason Binkley Ferris State 5-9 191 Jr Powell, OH
26 gp, 2-16=18
G Kevin Kapalka Lake Superior
State 6-1 206 Sr Mississauga, ON 8-9-0, 2.62, .924
2013-14 All-WCHA
Rookie Team
Pos Name Team Ht Wt Yr Hometown 2013-14 WCHA Stats
F Alex Globke Lake Superior State 6-3 206 Fr Waterford, MI 28 gp,
9-12=21
F Marcus Basara Alaska
6-0 197 Fr Port Moody, BC 28 gp, 9-12=21
F Kyle Schempp Ferris State 6-0 178 Fr Saginaw, MI 28 gp,
6-12=18
D Shane Hanna Michigan Tech 5-11 190 Fr Salmon Arm,
BC 28 gp, 4-18=22
D Ruslan Pedan Bemidji State 6-0 190 Fr Moscow,
Russia
28 gp, 3-8=11
D Sean Flanagan Minnesota State 6-1 180 Fr Kindersly, SK 24
gp, 5-6=11
G Cole
Huggins Minnesota
State 6-0 180 Fr
Centennial, CO 17-4-1, 1.73, .927
