In this week’s NCAA Roundup, presented by CWENCH Hydration, we have both weekly and monthly award winners to recognize, including a pair of BCHL alumni who doubled up with two awards last week.
CCHA Forward of the Month/Forward of the Week
Connor Milburn – Junior – Lake Superior State University (Chilliwack Chiefs)
Milburn led all CCHA skaters with 14 points in 10 November contests, recording six goals and eight assists to lead the Lakers to a 6-3-1 month. Amassing a league-best five multi-point games, he netted two power-play tallies. For the month, he totaled 16 shots on goal and six blocks at the defensive end. He had a three-point game (one goal, two assists) at St. Thomas on Nov. 29 and a three-assist outing on Nov. 8.
The 2001-born forward played three seasons with the Chilliwack Chiefs from 2019 to 2022, amassing 42 points in 83 games over that stretch. He was named team captain his final year.
ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Month/Rookie of the Week
Jake Manfre (F) – Freshman – Princeton University (Coquitlam Express)
November was a breakout month for Manfre, who amassed six points (three goals, three assists). The Kings Park, N.Y. native ended the month off with a strong performance against Ohio State, collecting four points in a sweep of the Buckeyes.
Manfre played two seasons with the Coquitlam Express from 2022 to 2024. He was the team’s second-leading scorer in 2023-24, finishing his campaign with 42 points in 54 games, while his 21 goals were the most on the team. He represented the Express at the 2024 All-Star Weekend.
Atlantic Hockey Defenceman of the Month
Hunter Sansbury – Senior – Sacred Heart University (Salmon Arm Silverbacks)
Sansbury collected nine points on three goals and six assists in November. He picked up six points (three goals, 3 assists) in a five-game stretch from Nov. 8 to 22, helping lead Sacred Heart to a five-game winning streak in conference play. The Lomita, Calif. native scored the game-winning goal on Nov. 22 vs. RIT and scored a power-play marker on Nov. 9 at Mercyhurst.
Sansbury spent two seasons with the Salmon Arm Silverbacks from 2019 to 2021, including one as team captain, totaling 37 points in 74 career games.
Atlantic Hockey Defenceman of the Week
Will Elias – Sophomore – College of the Holy Cross (Cowichan Valley Capitals)
Elias helped the Crusaders sweep Sacred Heart last week by netting his first two collegiate goals. Elias scored the eventual game-winner at 16:08 of the first period last Friday, then on Saturday, the sophomore defenceman tied the game at one with a goal in the first period, which sparked a 4-0 run for the Crusaders en route to a 4-1 win. In addition, Elias blocked three shots and helped lead Holy Cross to a perfect 11-for-11 on the penalty kill over the weekend.
The 2003-born defender played the 2022-23 campaign for the Cowichan Valley Capitals where he put up five goals, 20 assists and 20 points in 52 games to lead all team blueliners.
Atlantic Hockey Rookie of the Week
Owen Kim (F) – Freshman – College of the Holy Cross (Langley/Vernon)
Kim picked up two assists in the Crusaders’ 6-1 win over Sacred Heart last Friday. He assisted on William Elias’ first period goal, which served as the eventual game-winner. , then tallied another later in the game. It was the second consecutive multi-point outing for him.
The 20-year-old forward played three seasons in the BCHL, the first two with the Langley Rivermen and his third with the Vernon Vipers. His best year was with Vernon where he averaged over a point per game with 49 in 47 contests.
Hockey East Defenceman of the Month
Frank Djurasevic – Sophomore – University of Maine (Penticton Vees)
Djurasevic helped anchor a Black Bears defense that held opponents to just nine goals against in eight games played last month. He scored three goals and added two assists to go with a plus-four rating in November and led all league defenders with his three tallies. He scored one power-play goal and one shorthanded goal and wrapped the month with five points in his final four games.
The New Rochelle, N.Y. product played three seasons with the Penticton Vees from 2020 to 2023 and totaled 85 points in 127 career games. He won a pair of Fred Page Cup championships, one as team captain during the 2023 postseason where he was the league’s top scoring defenceman with 14 points in 17 games.
Hockey East Goaltender of the Week
Mathieu Caron – Senior – Boston University (Chilliwack Chiefs)
Caron made 59 saves last week, the most of any league netminder, across two Terrier victories in Belfast, leading BU to the Friendship Four title. His weekend included 31 saves in last Friday’s win over Merrimack. He then stopped all 14 shots he faced in the third period of Saturday’s comeback win over Notre Dame as the Terriers clawed back from a two-goal deficit ,
The Abbotsford, B.C. native played four seasons with the Chilliwack Chiefs from 2017 to 2021, manning the crease for a total of 126 regular-season games. He wrapped up his BCHL career with 67 wins, a .905 save percentage, a 2.67 goals-against average and eight shutouts.
