Finalists Named for League’s Best Defensive Defenseman Award
ALBANY, N.Y. -- ECAC Hockey today announced the finalists for
the 2009-10 Men’s Best Defensive Defenseman Award.
Derek Keller from St. Lawrence, Justin Krueger of Cornell, and
Union’s Mike Schreiber have each been nominated for the honor
by the League’s coaches.
A four-year letterwinner at St. Lawrence, Keller served as team
captain for the 2009-10 season following an outstanding junior year
in which he was a key player on a defensive unit which helped
compile the best team goals-against average since the 1950s.
A third-team all-league member this season, Keller was a workhorse
on the ice, ranking among the team leaders in minutes played and
guiding team which finished fourth in scoring defense in league
play. The Wilkie, SASK. native was an outstanding two-way
student-athlete that set a career-high for goal scoring, leading
all ECAC Hockey defensemen with nine. Keller was also a vital
cog on the Saints’ special teams, scoring six of his nine
goals on the power-play and being one of the first players that
head coach Joe Marsh looked for in defending a power-play.
Another finalist for the league’s top defenseman award is Justin Krueger from Cornell. The senior defender is second on the team (and top defenseman) with a plus/minus rating of +15. Krueger has played a critical role on Cornell’s penalty-kill units, which was tops in conference action with a success rate of 87.3%. The Germany native was matched up against opponent’s top offensive line each game, a role he has assumed since his rookie season. Krueger is also one of the team leaders in blocked shots on the year and helped guide the Cornell defense, which only surrendered 60 goals in 29 games (2.07 G/GM), second-best in the nation. Krueger has been characterized as the type of student-athlete who took any assignment on the ice without ever complaining and welcomed the different challenges each game.
A member of the all-league first-team this season, Union’s senior defenseman Mike Schreiber is another fine two-way player. He anchored Union’s defense which held its opponents to two or fewer goals 15 times this season, placing the team 15th in the country with a 2.68 goals-against average. The Dutchmen, who have outscored opponents 124-91, have held the competition to less than 30 shots 23 times, including six games with less than 20 shots. Entering the weekend, the defense has posted a plus-67 rating with senior Mike Schreiber (+23) leading the way. The Sherwood Park, ALB native led the conference in points (6g-13a-19pts) among his counterparts. This season Schreiber set a Union record for most points by a defenseman with 28 in overall games, which also led the conference.
