Barlow Named MVP at Cornell Awards Banquet

Photo by Joe Bell/Ithaca Journal Staff

ITHACA, N.Y. -- Senior Evan Barlow was named the recipient of the 2009 Cornell men's hockey team's Nicky Bawlf Award, presented annually to the team's most valuable player, at the annual awards banquet, held Friday night at the Lake Watch Inn. In all, six different players split up the nine awards voted upon by team members.

Barlow finished the season tied for fourth nationally with six game-winning goals among his 13 goals on the season. He posted career highs in both goals (13) and assists (14) while finishing fourth on the team with 27 points, also a career best after having entered his senior season with 34 career points. He played in 35 of the team's 36 games, and scored some of the team's most memorable goals, including an end-to-end unassisted goal in the ECAC Hockey semifinal victory over Princeton on March 20 and the game-winning goal in the NCAA Midwest Regional Semifinal victory over Northeastern eight days later. Barlow also excelled at the defensive end of the ice, making ESPN's Sportscenter on Jan. 16 for his goal-saving effort in a 4-1 win at Union.

Senior Michael Kennedy was a triple winner on the night, earning the Bill Doran Sportsmanship Award, the Sam Woodside Award and the Mark Weiss Memorial Award. The Bill Doran Sportsmanship Award is presented to the player best exhibiting sportsmanship, both on and off the ice, as well as being an outstanding player. The Sam Woodside Award is given to the senior whose overall play has improved the most from his freshman to senior seasons, while the Mark Weiss Memorial Award is given to the player who best exemplifies the determination and passion for the game of hockey that the late Mark Weiss had.

Kennedy began his Cornell career by scoring seven points as a freshman and finished with his senior season with 10 goals and 10 assists for 20 points. Despite missing four games due to injury, he still finished fifth on the team in scoring, recording four multi-point games on the season. Kennedy was also a key member of both the power play and penalty-killing units.

The evening's other multi-award winner was junior Colin Greening, who was presented with the Crimson Cup and the Joe DeLibero-Stan Tsapis Award. The Crimson Cup goes to the most outstanding player during the team's season series against Harvard, while the DeLibero-Tsapis Award is presented to the player displaying skilled efficiency, unselfish dedication and a hard-nosed approach to the game.

Greening, who finished second on the team in scoring with a team-high 15 goals and 16 assists for 31 points, had nine multi-point games on the year in addition to being the only unanimous selection to the Ivy League first-team. He was also named second-team All-ECAC Hockey. Greening also scored two goals and had a pair of assists in the two games against Harvard on the year.

The night's three other winners were senior Tyler Mugford, junior Blake Gallagher and freshman Keir Ross. Mugford was the recipient of the Cornell Hockey Association Award, presented to the player whose contributions go beyond the box score, but are more in measured in enthusiasm and a desire to give an extra boost of energy to the team. Gallagher, meanwhile, won the Iron Man Award, given to the player who worked to overcome injuries to contribute to the team, and Ross won the Greg Ratushny Award as the most promising freshman.

Mugford closed out his Cornell career by winning the ECAC Hockey's Best Defensive Forward award, while also contributing on the offensive end of the ice. He set career highs with five goals and nine points, while his four assists were two shy of his career high. He scored the game-winning goal in the season-opening 1-0 victory at Princeton on ESPNU.

Gallagher, meanwhile, missed just one game on the season due to injury, sitting out game three of the ECAC Hockey quarterfinals against Rensselaer with a badly sprained ankle. Gallagher fought through the injury to appear in each of Cornell's next four games despite having his leg in a walking cast. On the bad ankle, Gallagher scored a goal and had an assist in the Big Red's win over Northeastern in the NCAA regional semifinals. He finished the season with seven goals and 21 assists for 28 points, the third highest total on the team and 10 points more than his previous career high.

Ross, a defenseman, finished second on the team in scoring among first-year players, tallying three goals and four assists for seven points. He also was one of the regulars in the defensive corps from the very beginning of the season, missing four games due to injury. Ross was also the lone Cornell player selected to the ECAC Hockey All-Rookie team.

Cornell finished the 2008-09 season with a 22-10-4 record after advancing to the NCAA Midwest Regional Final, falling to Bemidji State, 4-1, in Grand Rapids, Mich. The Big Red returns 15 lettermen next season.