ST. PAUL, Minn. ? University of North Dakota junior defenseman Chay Genoway was named Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Defensive Player of the Year and UND head coach Dave Hakstol was named WCHA Coach of the Year, highlighting the league's annual awards banquet this afternoon at the St. Paul RiverCentre.
Genoway was also named to the All-WCHA first team. UND senior forward Ryan Duncan earned All-WCHA second team honors and freshman goalie Brad Eidsness was named to the All-WCHA third team.
Eidsness was also named to the league's all-rookie team.
Genoway becomes the third player in Sioux history to win defensive player of the year honors, joining defenseman Brad Williamson (1998-99) and Matt Henderson (1997-98). In 39 games this season, the Morden, Manitoba, native has three goals and 29 assists for 32 points. His career-high 29 assists are tied for the WCHA lead among defensemen and his 32 points, also a career high, rank fourth among WCHA rearguards.
Genoway is aiming to become the first defenseman to lead the Sioux in scoring since James Patrick in 1982-83.
Hakstol received his first WCHA Coach of the Year honor after guiding the Sioux to their first MacNaughton Cup as the league's regular season champion since 2003-04. UND finished the regular season with a 17-7-4 conference record and enter this weekend's Red Baron WCHA Final Five with a 24-12-4 overall record.
A four-time Spencer Penrose Award finalist as national coach of the year, Hakstol has guided UND to the NCAA Frozen Four in each of his first four years behind the bench and owns a career record of 130-68-19.
Duncan, a native of Calgary, Alberta, earned his third straight selection to the all-conference team after nabbing second team honors last season and first team honors in 2006-07. In 40 games this season, Duncan leads the sixth-ranked Sioux in points (37), goals (18), power-play goals (nine), game-winning goals (four) and shorthanded goals (two).
UND's team captain, Duncan is the leading scorer among all active NCAA Division I men's hockey players with 170 career points. He enters the Final Five having played in 172 consecutive games, three shy of the NCAA record held by former teammate Chris Porter (2003-07).
Eidsness has appeared in 38 games this season and is 24-9-4 with a 2.44 goals against average and a .909 save percentage. The Chestemere, Alberta, native enters the Final Five having played in 37 consecutive games, the longest streak by a freshman in school history. He has also made 31 straight starts, one shy of UND's freshman record.
The league leader in wins, winning percentage (.703) and minutes played (2260:57), Eidsness joins Ed Belfour (29, 1986-87) and Karl Goehring (23, 1997-98) as the only freshmen in school history to win 20 games. He was a three-time WCHA Rookie of the Week, more than any other freshman in the league.
Click on the PDF link provided at the top of the page to view the complete list of award winners.
The Fighting Sioux earned the top seed for the Red Baron WCHA Final Five and will face either Minnesota or Minnesota Duluth on Friday in the semifinals. The puck drops at 7:07 p.m. Central.
