Wisconsin Badger junior defenseman Brendan Smith and senior forward Blake Geoffrion are among the 10 players named finalists for the Hobey Baker Award, which is given to college hockey’s top player.
Smith is the only defenseman among the top-10 finalists. He leads all defensemen in the country with 44 points (15 goals, 29 assists). The WCHA Defensive Player of the Year and an All-WCHA First Team selection, Smith ranks in the top 17 nationally among all players in points-per-game and assists-per-game.
Smith is a three-time WCHA Defensive Player of the Week and the WCHA’s December nominee for national player of the month. He was a first-round draft pick and the 27th overall selection of the Detroit Red Wings in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.
Blake Geoffrion led the WCHA with 19 goals and a 1.36 points per game scoring average in league games. His 34 league points were one point off the WCHA scoring lead, but he played in three less games than the WCHA scoring champion.
Geoffrion is an All-WCHA First Team pick. He eclipsed two milestones this season, reaching 100 career points with an assist on Feb. 19 against St. Cloud State and scoring his 50th career goal on March 13 against Alaska Anchorage.
Smith and Geoffrion’s selection as finalists makes this the first time in UW history the school has produced two Hobey Baker Memorial Award finalists in the same season. A Wisconsin player has never won the Hobey Baker Award.
WCHA Final Five
The Badgers face St. Cloud State today in the WCHA Final Five semifinals today (2:07pm FSN). Denver faces North Dakota in the other semifinal with the winners to meet in the league championship game on Saturday in St. Paul.