Adam Gaudette has won the 2018 Hobey Baker Award, given annually to the best player in college hockey, as determined by the 27-member Hobey Baker committee. Gaudette beat out Ryan Donato of Harvard and Henrik Borgstrom of Denver to become the first player in Northeastern history to win the award.
Adam Gaudette becomes Northeastern's first @HobeyBakerAward winner in school history!
🔖: https://t.co/AwRvFUPki6#Ho8ey | #HowlinHuskies pic.twitter.com/xhtA1tJFFx
— Northeastern Men’s Hockey (@GoNUmhockey) April 6, 2018
Cementing his legacy as the greatest player in Northeastern hockey history, the case for which I advocated for in my piece on Gaudette signing his entry-level contract with Vancouver, Gaudette was widely considered the favorite by fans and media alike. The nation’s leading scorer with 60 points (30 goals, 30 assists), Gaudette outperformed his fellow finalists in nearly every major statistical category. In his piece comparing the finalists to other Hobey winners in recent years, Ryan Lambert showed just how much better Gaudette stacks up to them than Donato or Borgstrom. Without a doubt, Adam Gaudette was the best player in college hockey, from start to finish this season.
After winning the award, Gaudette was quick to credit Coach Madigan and his staff for his growth and development at the NCAA level, saying “They’ve helped me so much, not just as a player, but as a person too…I can’t thank them enough for sticking with me and putting me on the right path.” Gaudette said that Coach Madigan would preach “just play your game and the points with come.” It goes without saying how productive Gaudette was this season, but he takes pride in playing hard in all facets of the game, stating “I think having my mindset of playing a 200-foot game and taking care of the D-zone first” were his priorities each game.
Really cool aspect of Adam Gaudette winning Hobey is how many college/NHL teams doubted his skating, but Jerry Keefe/Jim Madigan saw something in him. With their guidance and his dogged determination, he now has NHL contract after being the best college hockey player of 2017-18.
— Jeff Cox (@jeffcox425) April 6, 2018
This was the first time in the 38 years of the Hobey Baker that all three finalists had played NHL games by the time the award was presented. Gaudette was the only finalist in attendance, as Donato (Boston Bruins) and Borgstrom (Florida Panthers) were with their NHL teams in a playoff hunt. Personally, I believe all three players should have been present for the award, especially since all three teams had days off today, but that’s water under the bridge at this point.
The Hobey Baker Award was Gaudette’s second accolade of the night- thirty minutes before being announced as the winner, he was named a CCM/ACHA First Team All-American, as were teammates Dylan Sikura and Jeremy Davies. This is the first time that Northeastern has ever placed three players on the All-American team, and NU is just one of two teams (Denver) to do so this season. This is in addition to Gaudette being named the Walter Brown Award winner, Hockey East Player of the Year, and Beanpot MVP this season.
Congrats to my liney and good friend @Hockey_Gaud on winning the Hobey Baker! Very deserving and to be the first @GoNUmhockey player to do so makes it even more special #Ho8ey
— Dylan Sikura (@Dsikky11) April 6, 2018
If there was any remaining doubt, it should be erased with this final award; Adam Gaudette is the greatest hockey player in the history of Northeastern University. And for 2017-18, he is the greatest player in NCAA hockey.
Congratulations to Adam! It has been a privilege to watch him play for the Huskies the last three seasons. We cannot wait to see what he can accomplish at the professional level.
• What a moment
• What a year
• What a guy#Ho8ey | #HowlinHuskies pic.twitter.com/sDcYJ8S311— Northeastern Men’s Hockey (@GoNUmhockey) April 6, 2018