DENVER – The Denver Pioneers hockey team, presented by Centura Health, announced its 2020-21 year-end awards on social media on Thursday.
2020-21 Award Winners:
Barry Sharp Award (Freshman of the Year):
Carter Savoie
Murray Armstrong Award (Most Improved Player):
Reid Irwin
Dr. Ralph Verploeg Award (Most Inspirational Player):
Kohen Olischefski
Dr. Ken Bredesen Award (Sportsmanship):
Jaakko Heikkinen
Keith Magnuson Award (Defensive Player of the Year):
Griffin Mendel
Bob Martin Award (Community Service):
Jack Doremus
Bill Masterton Award (MVP):
Cole Guttman
Art Mason Award (Top Scholar Athlete):
Lane Krenzen
Dallas Gaume Award (Offensive Player of the Year):
Cole Guttman
Savoie had 12 goals and seven assists for 19 points in 22 regular-season games. The St. Albert, Alberta, native and Edmonton Oilers prospect paced NCHC freshmen in goals while placing second in rookie point-getters behind St. Cloud State's Veeti Miettinen. He also led conference rookies in power-play goals (6) and game-winning goals (3), which he scored against North Dakota on Dec. 8, Colorado College on Jan. 2 and Colorado College on Feb. 27. Savoie added a power-play goal to his season total in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff Semifinal against North Dakota on March 15.
Irwin played in 12 games on the Pioneers' blue line, scoring three goals in his rookie season including two in a win over Colorado College on Jan. 2. Irwin blocked four shots including one in Denver's win over No. 2 North Dakota on Jan. 17, a game that also saw him score the game winner.
Olischefski captained the Pioneers in 2020-21, playing in 23 of Denver's 24 games and tallying 14 points on four goals and 10 assists. He scored the game-winning goal in Denver's 3-2 win over Western Michigan in the NCHC Pod. Olischefski had two multi-point games, scoring a goal and adding an assist in Denver's 5-1 win at Colorado College on Feb. 25 while adding two assists in a 5-4 NCHC Quarterfinal win against Omaha. For his work in the classroom, Olischefski was named to the NCHC Academic All-Conference Team and was tabbed an NCHC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete.
Heikkinen played in all 24 games for the Pioneers this season, scoring a goal and adding seven assists while taking just three penalties in the campaign. In his final season with the Pioneers before signing a professional contract with Kouvolan KooKoo, the Helsinki native had two assists in Denver's win over No. 2 North Dakota on Jan. 17, and had a goal and an apple in Denver's 4-1 win at Omaha a week later. Heikkinen was named to the NCHC Academic All-Conference Team.
An alternate captain for the Pioneers in 2020-21, Mendel played in all 24 games on the Pioneers' blue line this season, taking just six penalties, blocking 30 shots and earning assists in wins over No. 2 North Dakota on Jan. 17 and at Colorado College on Feb. 25. Mendel had multiple blocks in nine games including each of Denver's last three and a season-high three blocks in Denver's 4-1 win over No. 2 North Dakota in January.
Doremus was the program's representative on the Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) and took the lead in the program's relationship with the Headway Foundation. A member of the 2020-21 NCHC Academic All-Conference Team, Doremus played in 14 games, tallying assists in December wins against Miami and Western Michigan.
A sixth-round selection by the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2017, Guttman played in 23 of 24 games, scoring eight goals to go with 14 apples for 22 points. He had five goals on the power play and game-winning tallies against Omaha and at Colorado College in February. The California native had a pair of three-point games against Omaha and a multi-goal game in February against CC. Guttman was tabbed an NCHC Distinguished Scholar Athlete in March and was named to the Academic All-Conference Team in his junior season.
An NCHC Academic All-Conference selection and NCHC Distinguished Scholar-Athletes, Krenzen has a 3.93 grade point average through his first two years with the Crimson and Gold. Krenzen had an assist against Colorado College on Jan. 2, one of his three appearances for the Pioneers in 2020-21.
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