Sunday, April 5, 2009

Golden Puck Awards

Press Release

MONTREAL, Wednesday, April 1st, 2009 – The Golden Puck Awards Gala, an event where the year’s brightest stars are celebrated alongside the new wave of Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Hall of Fame inductees, took place this evening at the elegant Hyatt-Regency Hotel in downtown Montreal.

This year, twelve prestigious awards, including the Jean-Rougeau Trophy, were handed out to the most deserving players of the 2008-09 season. Moreover, four junior hockey legends were inducted into the QMJHL Hall of Fame - presented by RDS.

Hosted by Christian Tétreault of Radio Energy and Louis Jean of Rogers Sportsnet, the evening was held in the friendliest of atmospheres as the QMJHL celebrated its fortieth anniversary.

"This event seems to get better and better every year," said the Commissioner, Gilles Courteau. "More than three hundred fifty people were present to pay tribute to our four new Hall of Fame inductees: Lucien Deblois, Marc Fortier, Jean Gagnon and Richard Trottier. Furthermore, it is an interesting contrast to see today’s greatest players being celebrated for their outstanding seasons beside yesterday’s greatest legends. Some of these fine young men will undoubtedly become future inductees themselves."

Here is the list of the evening’s award-winners:

Jacques-Plante Trophy - Goaltender with the best goals-against-average
Nicola Riopel (Moncton Wildcats)
The St-Pie-de-Bagot native played in 59 of the team’s 68 games, collecting 43 wins. He also recorded five shutouts, maintained a 0.931 save percentage and 2.01 goals-against-average, breaking the League record (2.09).

Émile-Bouchard Trophy - Best Defenseman
Dmitry Kulikov (Drummondville Voltigeurs)
The Russian defender registered 12 goals and 50 assists for a total of 62 points in 57 games. He scored 6 of his 12 goals on the power-play. Kulikov also posted a +34 rating.

RDS Cup - Rookie of the Year
Dmitry Kulikov (Drummondville Voltigeurs)
In addition to the Émile-Bouchard Trophy, Kulikov also won the RDS Cup for his outstanding performance during his rookie season.

Ron-Lapointe Trophy - Coach of the Year
Danny Flynn (Moncton Wildcats)
Flynn lifted the Wildcats to a first-place finish in the Atlantic Division standings and third overall with 102 points. He led the team with a steady hand, getting the best out of his players on a game-by-game basis.

Marcel-Robert Trophy – TELUS Scholastic Player of the Year
Payton Liske (Saint John Sea Dogs)
When he arrived in Saint John in 2006, Liske immediately began taking Economics classes at UNB. He has since completed five courses, registering excellent grades. In addition to being an academic role model, he remains a strong and positive influence in the community.

Humanitarian Award
Matthew Pistilli (Shawinigan Cataractes)
Pistilli has always been very involved in the community, but he stepped it up in a big way this year. One of the League’s top forwards, Matthew distinguished himself by visiting underprivileged children throughout the year and by participating in local school activities and minor hockey initiatives.

Jean-Béliveau Trophy – Scoring Champion
Yannick Riendeau (Drummondville Voltigeurs)
Drummondville’s right-winger recorded 58 goals and 68 assists for a total of 126 points in 64 games. He also posted a +38 rating. Yannick scored 24 of his markers on the power-play.

Frank-J.-Selke Trophy – Most Sportsmanlike Player
Cédric Lalonde-McNicoll (Shawinigan Cataractes)
With a total of 104 points, including 38 goals and 66 assists, there are few doubts that Cédric is an excellent player. Moreover, he registered only 22 penalty minutes in 65 games, earning the award for the second consecutive year.

Paul-Dumont Trophy - Personality of the Year
Guy Boucher (Drummondville Voltigeurs)
The bench boss of the Voltigeurs for three years now, Guy Boucher has transformed the team over the past two seasons. He was the head coach of Team QMJHL at the ADT Canada-Russia Challenge and was as an assistant coach under Pat Quinn with the Canadian National Junior Team. Guy Boucher has been a strong promoter of the QMJHL throughout Canada.

Michael-Bossy Trophy - Best Professional Prospect
Dmitry Kulikov (Drummondville Voltigeurs)
In addition to the Émile-Bouchard Trophy and the RDS Cup, Kulikov was awarded the Michael-Bossy Trophy.

Michel-Brière Trophy - Most Valuable Player
Nicola Riopel (Moncton Wildcats)
Along with the Jacques-Plante Trophy, Nicola Riopel received the QMJHL Most Valuable Player award.

ALL-STAR TEAMS

First Team All-Stars
G – Nicola Riopel (Moncton Wildcats)
D – Dmitry Kulikov (Drummondville Voltigeurs)
D – Marc-André Bourdon (Rimouski Océanic)
C – Cédric Lalonde-McNicoll (Shawinigan Cataractes)
A – Mike Hoffman (Drummondville Voltigeurs)
A – Yannick Riendeau (Drummondville Voltigeurs)

Second Team All-Stars
G – Charles Lavigne (Quebec Remparts)
D – Charles-Olivier Roussel (Shawinigan Cataractes)
D – Sébastien Piché (Rimouski Océanic)
C – Dany Massé (Drummondville Voltigeurs)
A – Paul Byron (Gatineau Olympiques)
A – Nicholas Petersen (Shawinigan Cataractes)

All-Rookie Team
G – Christopher Holden (Cape Breton Screaming Eagles)
D – Dmitry Kulikov (Drummondville Voltigeurs)
D – Brandon Gormley (Moncton Wildcats)
C – Ben Duffy (P.E.I. Rocket)
A – Sergey Ostapchuk (Rouyn-Noranda Huskies)
A – Dmitri Kugryshev (Quebec Remparts)

Of note, six awards were presented during on-ice ceremonies on March 20th:

Michel-Bergeron Trophy - Offensive Rookie of the Year
Dmitri Kugryshev (Quebec Remparts)

Raymond-Lagacé Trophy - Defensive Rookie of the Year
Dmitry Kulikov (Drummondville Voltigeurs)

Guy-Carbonneau Trophy - Best Defensive Forward
Jean-Philip Chabot (Gatineau Olympiques)

Kevin-Lowe Trophy – Best Defensive Defenseman
Maxime Ouimet (Rimouski Oceanic)

Robert-Lebel Trophy – Best Defensive Team
Moncton Wildcats

Luc-Robitaille Trophy - Best Offensive Team
Drummondville Voltigeurs

The Maurice-Filion Trophy (General Manager of the Year), John-Horman Trophy (Administrator of the Year) and John-Sawyer Trophy (Marketing Manager of the Year) will be awarded at the QMJHL Annual Session in June.


(Nathan also is a writer for Maineiacs Post to Post and the Maine Hockey Journal. He can be reached at fourniern@students.nescom.edu)

No comments: