Slate of American-born Division One hockey players in New England includes 19 forwards, four defensemen, and three goaltenders 

BOSTON – February 5, 2024 – Gridiron Club of Greater Boston president Cheryl Duddy Schoenfeld announced today that 26 NCAA Division One players are semifinalists for the72^nd Walter Brown Award, presented annually to the best American-born Division I college hockey player in New England.

The nation’s oldest nationally-recognized college hockey honor, the Walter Brown Award was established in 1953 by the members of the 1933 Massachusetts Rangers, the first American team ever to win the World Championship Tournament. Brown coached the Rangers to the title in Prague, Czechoslovakia, where the team defeated Canada 2-1 in overtime in the championship game.

Fourteen teams are represented in the slate of candidates that includes 19 forwards, four defensemen, and three goaltenders. Sixteen semifinalist nominees are from teams in Hockey East; fivenominees are from ECAC Hockey; and five are from Atlantic Hockey.  Boston College leads the way with five semifinalists; American International, Boston University, Holy Cross, Massachusetts, Merrimack, New Hampshire, Northeastern, and Quinnipiac each have two. Brown, Connecticut, Dartmouth, Harvard, and Sacred Heart have one each..

The following is the complete list of semifinalists, by team, with statistics through February 4:

American International College: Sophomore forward John Lundy (Brooklyn, NY) 12-7-19; grad forward Dustin Manz (Vanderbilt, MI) 3-19-22.

Boston College: Sophomore forward Cutter Gauthier (Scottsdale, AZ) 21-13-34; freshman forward Gabe Perreault (Hinsdale, IL) 10-29-39; freshman forward Will Smith (Lexington, MA) 14-23-37; freshman forward Ryan Leonard (Amherst, MA ) 14-17-31; freshman goalie Jacob Fowler (Melbourne, FL) 2.21 g.a.a., .925 save pct.

Boston University: sophomore defenseman Lane Hutson (North Barrington, IL) 10-22-32; senior forward Luke Tuch (Baldwinsville, NY) 6-15-21.

Brown: Sophomore forward Ryan St. Louis (Old Greenwich, CT) 10-11-21.

Connecticut: Junior forward Chase Bradley (St. Louis, MO) 11-1122.

Dartmouth: Sophomore goalie Cooper Black (Alpena, MI) 2.60 g.a.a., .912 save pct.

Harvard:  Sophomore forward Joe Miller (Minneapolis, MN) 10-9-19.

Holy Cross: Senior goalie Jason Grande (West Chester, PA) .1.99 g.a.a., .929 save pct.; junior forward Liam McLinskey (Pearl River, NY) 11-24-35.

Massachusetts: Junior defenseman Scott Morrow (Darien, CT) 6-17-23; junior defenseman Ryan Ufko, (Smithtown, NY) 6-13-19.

Merrimack: Sophomore defenseman Zach Bookman (Syracuse, NY) 3-22-25; junior forward Matt Copponi (Mansfield, MA) 7-23-30.

New Hampshire: Freshman forward Ryan Conmy (Alexandria, VA 12-12-24; sophomore forward Cy LeClerc (Brentwood, NH) 8-11-19.

Northeastern: Sophomore forward Jack Williams (Biddeford, ME) 14-16-30; senior forward Gunnarwolfe Fontaine (East Greenwich, RI.) 5-16-21.

Quinnipiac: Junior forward Collin Graf (Lincoln, MA) 15-21-36; sophomore forward Sam Lipkin (Philadelphia, PA) 12-18-30.

Sacred Heart: Graduate forward T.J. Walsh (Shrewsbury, MA) 13-11-24.                                                       

“This is a superb field of semifinalists, with a bit more emphasis on forwards – 19 this year versus 16 a year ago.  As always, we’re looking forward to following them closely down the stretch run toward the playoffs,” noted committee chairman Tim Costello. “We will announce the winner in the final week of March.”