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Zach Hyman
April 7, 2015
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April 4, 2015

 

 

Zach Hyman

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The accomplishments of the 2014-15 University of Michigan ice hockey team were recognized at the annual Dekers Blue Line Club banquet at Weber's Inn, where invited guests and several generations of the Michigan hockey family gathered today (Saturday, April 4).

Ice hockey alum Sean Ritchlin served as the host of the event, while Justin Clark, Danny Fardig, Brandon Kaleniecki, Mike Komisarek, Brendan Morrison, Matt Rust and Marty Turco were also on hand to present awards.

Senior forward Zach Hyman earned four of the eight team awards after his outstanding final year at Michigan. Hyman, the Big Ten scoring champion and Hobey Baker Award finalist, shared the Hal Downes Trophy as the team's most valuable player along with freshman forward Dylan Larkin. Larkin, the Big Ten Freshman of the Year, also garnered the Dekers Club Award as the best rookie.

Hyman also earned the Doc Losh Trophy as the team's scoring leader, the Joseph E. Barss Award for the true team player as well as the Carl Isaacson Trophy as the team's best student-athlete.

For the second consecutive year, senior defenseman Mike Chiasson earned the Howard Colby Award for sportsmanship. Junior forward Justin Selman, who set career highs in nearly every offensive category, earned the Alton D. Simms Award as the team's most improved player. Freshman defenseman Zach Werenski, who led all Michigan blueliners in scoring, earned the Vic Heyliger Award as U-M's most outstanding defensemen.

Hyman finished the season with a team-leading 17 multiple-point games and had a Big Ten-leading 54 points (22G, 32A). An All-Big Ten first team selection, Hyman was fourth in the nation with a scoring average of 1.46 points/game. He was the first U-M player to top 50 points in a single season since Carl Hagelin, who had 50 points (19G, 31A) in 2009-10 and the first U-M player to reach 20 goals since Louie Caporusso had 21 goals in 2009-10. Michigan was 15-2-0 when Hyman scored a goal this season, and he led the Big Ten at +24. One of the top student-athletes in college hockey, Hyman is a three-time Big Ten All-Academic selection and a finalist for the Wooden Citizenship Cup, a national award for character and leadership shown on and off the field. A published author of several children's books, Hyman has made several school visits in his native Ontario to promote literacy by reading to underprivileged students. Voted an alternate captain before the start of the season, Hyman was singled out unanimously as the strongest player on the team in a survey of his Michigan teammates.

Larkin led all Big Ten freshmen with 47 points (15G, 32A) on the season, and finished second in the nation in freshman scoring. An All-Big Ten first team and All-Rookie Team selection, Larkin had the most points by a Michigan freshman since Brendan Morrison had 48 points (20G, 28A) in 1993-94. His 32 assists were the most by a Michigan freshman since Aaron Palushaj had 34 assists in 2007-08. Paired on the same line with Hyman for the entire 2014-15 season, Larkin finished sixth in the nation with a scoring average of 1.34 points/game.

Chiasson, one of most respected members of the 2014-15 team, helped create the Michigan Moustaches for Men's Health initiative in November 2013. His efforts have led to greater awareness of men's health issues in the Michigan Hockey community. Chiasson logged 87 games on the Michigan blue line during his four-year career, including 15 during the 2014-15 season.

Selman nearly doubled his career point total with 23 points (11G, 12A) in 26 games, elevating his play to another level this season. Selman finished second on the team and tied for third in the Big Ten (with Larkin) with a +18 rating.

Werenski, led all Big Ten defensemen with nine goals and finished tops among U-M blueliners and second among Big Ten defensemen with 25 points (9G, 16A) this season. An All-Big Ten first team and All-Rookie Team selection, Werenski had the most points and goals by a freshman defenseman at Michigan since Jacob Trouba (13G, 16A) in 2012-13. Werenski led the team (along with Kevin Lohan) with 59 blocked shots this season.