Army hockey netminder Abric nominated for top collegiate goaltender award
WEST POINT – Coach Brian Riley has a reigning All-American on his skaters’ roster but he says sophomore goaltender Gavin Abric has been the MVP for the Black Knights.
The Black Knight heads into the second half of its Atlantic Hockey schedule with a .500 league mark and fifth-place spot in the standings and Riley attributes the success to Abric, the netminder who replaced his other All-American from last season, current AHL pro Trevin Kozlowski.
Abric ranks No. 24 in NCAA Division I and No. 3 in Atlantic Hockey with a 2.38 goals against average. His save percentage of .925 ranks No. 14 nationwide and No. 3 in the league. He carried an 8-8-3 record into this weekend’s home series with Holy Cross. It’s no wonder Abric was one of 28 named to the watch list for the Mike Richter Award, presented to the top goalie in Division I.
Abric, from Hayward, Wisconsin, is also one of three Army players – including forward Colin Bilek and defenseman Anthony Firriolo – who were recently named to the Hobey Baker Award nomination list. The Hobey Baker Award goes to the top collegiate player.
“Gavin gives us a chance to win every night,’’ Riley said. “Obviously he’s a great goalie but he’s also an outstanding young man. He is exactly what you hope for.
“He’s really devoted to being the best possible goalie that he can be. What I love about him is he has this zoom focus every time he’s in net. He doesn’t get rattled by anything. If somebody does score on him, he’s already dialed in for the next shot.’’
“He would be one, if not our most valuable player,’’ Riley added.
Admittedly, Abric has struggled a bit of late, going 1-3-1 in his last five outings since the start of January, but that includes a New Year’s Day loss to Penn State of the Big Ten and keeping Army in the game as it rallied for a 3-3 draw with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute the next afternoon.
“The thing about him is he has a real calming influence in goal,’’ Riley said. “So when the guys in front of him may be running around, or when we need somebody to steady the ship he does that for us.’’
The Richter list will be pared down to 15 finalists over the next two weeks. The winner will be announced at the Frozen Four in April. Kozlowski made the Richter watch list in 2020-21.
Past winners include NHL netminders Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets (Mass. Lowell, presented the first Richter award in 2014) and Thatcher Demko of the Vancouver Canucks (Boston College, 2016).
kmcmillan@th-record.com
Twitter: @KenMcMillanTHR
The candidates
Atlantic Hockey – Gavin Abric, Army, Soph.; Jacob Barczewski, Canisius, Jr.; Evan DeBrouwer, Bentley, Grad
Big Ten – Ryan Bischel, Notre Dame, Jr.; Drew DeRidder, Michigan State, Sr.; Jakub Dobes, Ohio State, Fr.; Matthew Galajda, Notre Dame, Grad; Jared Moe, Wisconsin, Jr.; Erik Portillo, Michigan, Soph.
CCHA – Dryden McKay, Minnesota State, Sr.; Blake Pietila, Michigan Tech, Jr.
ECAC – Ethan Haider, Clarkson, Soph.; Connor Murphy, Union, Jr.; Yaniv Peretz, Quinnipiac, Soph.; Ian Shane, Cornell, Fr.
Hockey East – Gabe Carriere, Vermont, Soph.; Drew Commesso, Boston University, Soph.; Darion Hanson, Connecticut, Grad; Devon Levi, Northeastern, Soph.; Matt Murray, Massachusetts, Grad; Owen Savory, Mass. Lowell, Jr.; Jaxson Stauber, Providence, Jr.
NCHC – Dominic Basse, Colorado College, Soph.; Brandon Bussi, Western Michigan, Jr.; Magnus Chrona, Denver, Jr.; Ryan Ganti, Minnesota Duluth, Jr.; David Hrenak, Saint Cloud State, Grad; Isaiah Saville, Omaha, Jr.
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Army West Point NCAA college hockey Mike Richter Award Gavin Abric
