Hobey Baker Watch: Week 23
We’re onto the Frozen Four and many Hobey Baker candidates remain in the hunt for some hardware. Only the best of the best are left in the race. Which of the remaining players make this week’s list for the Hobey Baker award?
Adam Fantilli, Forward, Michigan
Fantilli has been carrying over his dominant way into the NCAA tournament. In the two games he has played so far, he has scored three points, increasing his season total to 64. Fantilli has taken the NCAA by storm.
Every so often a freshman will come in and take the league by storm, but Fantilli has done that on a whole nother level. He carries so much hockey IQ, and his skill and play-driving abilities will translate very well into the next level.
Michigan plays a very fast style of offense, and not many players of his size might be up to that task. Even with a 6-foot-2 frame, Fantilli has the ability to speed down the ice and create chances for himself or one of his many talented teammates.
Logan Cooley, Forward, Minnesota
Cooley has also been on fire during the NCAA tournament, scoring five points in the two recent playoff games. Cooley is another play that has almost all the tools one would need to be a star in the NHL.
He’s got 57 points on the year and with the explosive speed and the impact he has in all zones of the ice. Cooley has allowed the Golden Gophers to go from great to even greater. He has created a lot of chemistry with his linemates Matthew Knies and Jimmy Snuggerud.
Cooley is excited to join the Arizona Coyotes after the NCAA season, but first, he has plans to win the National Championship. The Coyotes are in a prime position to have an amazing core in the upcoming years, and Cooley is one of the major keystones the franchise needs.
Matthew Knies, Forward, Minnesota
Another goal-scorer originating from Arizona, who also is a part of the Toronto Maple Leafs organization. Does that remind you of anyone? Matthew Knies is one that heads on the three-headed monster the Golden Gophers have.
It hasn’t scored any points so far in the NCAA tournament, but that doesn’t take away from the amazing season Knies has put together. 21 goals and 20 assists make up the 41 points he’s accumulated over the course of the season.
Knies was a player that was heavily rumored to be moved during the NHL trade deadline, but Toronto did all it could to keep him within the organization. With the Maple Leafs already being a high-end talent group, adding Knies to the mix might finally get them over that first-round roadblock.
Anthony Desher is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email acd5698@psu.edu.
