We flipped the calendar to February this week, which means we have monthly NCAA conference awards to go along with our usual weekly recognitions. This week, six former BCHL players were honoured, including a defenceman who took home a weekly and monthy award. We recap it all in the NCAA Roundup, presented by Johnston Meier Insurance.
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Atlantic Hockey
Zak Galambos – Junior – American International College (Wenatchee Wild)
Defensive Player of the Month- Defensive Player of the Week
Galambos was a force at both ends of the ice as he helped lead the Yellow Jackets to a 10-1-0 month of January. The Walnut Creek, Calif. native was the team’s playmaking leader with nine helpers, four of those coming on game-winning goals. Galambos also boasted a +7 rating and a team-best 16 blocked shots.
The 24-year-old spent the 2017-18 season playing for the Wenatchee Wild, where he put up 28 points in 41 regular-season games. In the playoffs, he outperformed his regular-season pace and notched 15 points in 20 games en route to a Fred Page Cup championship.
ECAC Hockey Goalie of the Month
Yaniv Perets – Sophomore – Quinnipiac University (Penticton Vees)
In his five starts last month, Perets allowed just three total goals, rounding out the month with a 4-1-0 record, a .970 save percentage and 0.59 goals-against average. He posted three shutouts to run his season total to nine, surpassing the Quinnipiac single-season record and helping the Bobcats tie the NCAA Division I team shutout record of 12.
Perets played the 2019-20 season with the Penticton Vees, posting the third-best goals-against average in the league at 2.19, the second-most shutouts with five and a .918 save percentage.
This is the third straight month he has won the award.
ECAC Hockey Player of the Week
Zach Metsa – Senior – Quinnipiac University (Merritt Centennials)
Metsa averaged a point per-game last week to help the Bobcats win all three games. He scored and assisted in a 6-0 win at Princeton on Tuesday, before potting the overtime game-winner in the Connecticut Ice semifinal against Sacred Heart Friday evening. The Hobey Baker candidate finished with 15 shots on goal and a +3 on-ice rating.
Metsa suited up for the Merritt Centennials in 2016-17 and had 27 points in 57 games.
ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week
Jack Watson – Freshman – Rensselaer Polytechnic University (Coquitlam Express)
Watson continued his hot stretch of play this week, going 1-1-0 while allowing just one goal in two starts. He posted a 39-save shutout against Harvard on the road on Tuesday, before stopping 15 of 16 against Union in Saturday’s eighth annual Mayor’s Cup. The Engineer netminder finished the week with a 0.51 goals-against average and .982 save percentage.
The Toronto, Ont. native played the 2019-20 season with the Coquitlam Express, going 13-4-0 in 17 games and finishing the campaign with a .911 save percentage, a 2.51 goals-against average and one shutout.
CCHA Goaltender of the Week
Seth Eisele – Junior – Lake Superior State University (Wenatchee Wild)
Eisele backstopped the Lakers to a road split against Northern Michigan last weekend. In Friday’s 6-1 win, he stopped 40 of the 41 shots he faced to earn his sixth win of the season. He followed that up with another solid performance in goal in Saturday’s 2-1 overtime loss. The Lake Elmo, Minn. native made 33 saves in the game and closed out the weekend with 73 stops on 76 shots, totaling a .961 save percentage and a 1.68 goals against average in the series.
Eisele played the 2017-18 season in Wenatchee and went 20-11-0 with three shutouts and a 2.64 goals-against average. He made three appearances in the playoffs on the way to a Fred Page Cup championship.
Hockey East Goaltender of the Week
Darion Hanson – Graduate – University of Connecticut (Vernon Vipers)
Hanson went 2-1-0 in three outings last week, including a 1-1-0 mark over the weekend at the Connecticut Ice Tournament, making 53 saves on the 55 shots he faced against his in-state rivals. He shutout both Yale and Quinnipiac for two periods, toppling the Bulldogs in a 5-1 win, before holding the Bobcats scoreless into the third period and allowing just one goal against in an eventual 2-0 setback. On Tuesday, he denied 18 Merrimack attempts in a 3-2 conference victory.
Hanson played the 2016-17 campaign with the Vernon Vipers, joining the team midseason. In 21 games after joining the club, he posted a 14-4-0 record, a .945 save percentage and a 1.84 goals-against average with two shutouts.
