Vaillancourt Honored as Finalist for Kazmaier Award

Photo by DSPics.com

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard senior forward Sarah Vaillancourt has been chosen as one of the top 10 finalists for the 2009 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, given to the nation’s best women’s hockey player, USA Hockey announced Tuesday morning. Vaillancourt, the recipient of the trophy last season, has been named a top 10 finalist three straight years.

Vaillancourt, who was named the Ivy League Player of the Year last week, is looking to become just the second women’s hockey player to win the Patty Kazmaier Award twice. Jennifer Botterill ’02-03 earned the honor in 2001 and 2003.

The native of Sherbrooke, Que., leads the Crimson with 52 points, 25 goals, 27 assists, four game-winning goals and a +28 rating. She ranks second in the nation with 2.00 points per game, third with 1.04 assists per game and is tied for sixth with 0.96 goals per contest. Vaillancourt led ECAC Hockey during the regular season with 35 points on 20 goals and 15 assists in only 17 conference games. A unanimous selection to the All-Ivy first team for the second straight season, she also was the Ancient Eight’s leading scorer with 20 points, tallying 12 goals and handing out eight assists.

Vaillancourt recorded 14 multi-point games this season, including the last four games in a row, as she helped No. 7 Harvard (19-9-3) win the Ivy League and ECAC Hockey regular-season crowns. She was tabbed ECAC Hockey Player of the Week on three consecutive occasions Feb. 9, Feb. 16 and Feb. 23 and has netted three hat tricks, including a four-goal performance at Cornell Feb. 13. Vaillancourt amassed a season-best seven points on three goals and four assists against Boston University in the Beanpot semifinal Feb. 3 and had a hand in 13 of the Crimson’s 14 goals that week, scoring five and assisting on eight.

Vaillancourt, a 2006 gold medalist with Team Canada, ranks seventh on Harvard’s all-time scoring list with 237 points in her career, fifth with 106 goals and stands tied for fifth with 131 assists.

The other nine finalists this season are Meghan Agosota (Mercyhurst), Rebecca Johnston (Cornell), Hilary Knight (Wisconsin), Monique Lamoureux (Minnesota), Erika Lawler (Wisconsin), Gigi Marvin (Minnesota), Molly Schaus (Boston College), Jessie Vetter (Wisconsin) and Jenn Wakefield (New Hampshire).

The top finalists represent all four women’s college conferences in College Hockey America, ECAC Hockey, Hockey East and the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

The award selection process began in early February, when NCAA Division I women’s ice hockey coaches were asked to nominate players for the award. Nominated players were then placed on an official ballot, which was sent back to the coaches to vote for the top 10 finalists.

The top three finalists, including the recipient of the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, are chosen by a 13-member selection committee comprised of NCAA Division I women’s ice hockey coaches, representatives of the print and broadcast media and a representative of USA Hockey, the National Governing Body for the sport of ice hockey in the United States.

The three finalists for this year’s award will be announced March 10.

The 2009 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award will be presented at a brunch ceremony at the Royal Sonesta Hotel Boston on March 21, in conjunction with the NCAA Women’s Frozen Four, in Boston. Tickets to the event may be purchased at PattyKaz.com or by calling 800-566-3288, ext. 184 ($85/individual seats, $800/table of 10).

The Patty Kazmaier Award has been presented to the top women’s college hockey player since 1998, and the award has gone to a Harvard player six times in the first 11 years of the trophy’s existence. A.J. Mleczko ’97-99 took home the award in 1999, followed by Botterill in 2001 and 2003. Angela Ruggiero ’02-04 was the winner in 2004, while Julie Chu ’06-07 joined the group after capturing the trophy in 2007. Most recently, Vaillancourt was named the winner in 2008 in Duluth, Minn.