Toronto – The Ontario Hockey League today announced that Andrew Agozzino of the Niagara IceDogs is the 2011-12 recipient of the Mickey Renaud Captain’s Trophy.

A three-year captain with the IceDogs, Agozzino was chosen for the award by a media selection committee as the OHL team captain that best exemplifies leadership on and off the ice, with a passion and dedication to the game of hockey and his community that Mickey demonstrated.

Nomination forms were submitted by OHL general managers on behalf of their individual team captains. The selection committee consisted of a panel of four, representing media from each OHL division.

“It is a special honor to have been awarded of the Mickey Renaud Captain’s Trophy,” said Agozzino, who competed against Mickey as a rookie with the IceDogs in 2007. “Mickey was very well respected and a great captain and to receive this in his memory is something I’m very proud of.”

On the IceDogs nomination form, Agozzino is described as a passionate and determined individual who truly cares for his teammates, his opponents, and the game. He leads by example putting team goals, objectives, and the well-being of those around him before his own personal goals. Agozzino is also very active in the community playing a large role in appearances and team initiatives in each of his five seasons, while personally raising $2,480 for Movember this year. His fundraising efforts led all OHL players in the first year of this CHL-wide initiative in support of men’s health and prostate cancer awareness.

“For five years Andrew has been the heart and soul of the IceDogs, just as Mickey was the heart and soul of the Spitfires,” said IceDogs’ owner Bill Burke. “With Mickey’s mother Jane having been from Niagara Falls and his father Mark having played for the Thunder, there is obviously a connection between the Renaud’s and the Niagara Region, making the award even more special for our team.”

Agozzino is a 21-year-old native of Kleinburg, ON, who played all five of his OHL seasons with the IceDogs after being the franchise’s first ever draft pick selected 15th overall in the 2007 Priority Selection. This season he tied for fifth in league scoring with a career-high 88 points in 67 games scoring 40 goals and 48 assists leading the IceDogs to their first Central Division title and best overall record in team history with a record of 47-18-0-3 for 97 points.

Also named the Overage Player of the Year, he led the IceDogs in both goals and points for the third time in five years finishing his career with a franchise record 159 goals and 147 assists for 306 points in a franchise record 318 regular season games played.

Agozzino becomes the fourth recipient of the award following Ryan Ellis of the Windsor Spitfires, John Kurtz of the Sudbury Wolves, and Chris Terry of the Plymouth Whalers who won the inaugural award for the 2008-09 season.

The Mickey Renaud Captain’s Trophy will be formally presented to Agozzino in addition to the Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy at the OHL Awards Ceremony on Tuesday June 5 at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

- From OHL news release

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Check out this story from The London Free Press on Dale Hunter leaving the NHL’s Washington Capitals to rejoin the OHL champion London Knights.

Toronto – The Board of Governors of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) have approved the sale of the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors to Mississauga businessman Elliott Kerr. Kerr, President of Landmark Sport Group Inc., will be the majority owner and the new franchise will continue to call the Hershey Centre home for the 2012-2013 season.

“We are very excited about the upcoming 2012-13 hockey season as well as the opportunity to continue Major Junior Hockey in our great City of Mississauga,” said Kerr. “I have been a proud resident of Mississauga for 25 years, my six year-old twins are actively involved in minor hockey here, our Mississauga Marathon event will be celebrating its tenth anniversary in 2013 and our Landmark Sport Group office is based here as well.”

“The Ontario Hockey League is excited to see the expanded involvement of Elliott Kerr in the OHL with his acquisition of the Mississauga franchise,” said OHL Commissioner David Branch. “ His experience as part of the ownership group with the Guelph Storm and the original Mississauga franchise, along with his passion for the game, family values, and being a Mississauga resident, will undoubtedly serve to see the Mississauga franchise grow and flourish”

Mayor Hazel McCallion is also thrilled to have the team staying in Mississauga “It is wonderful to know that we will continue to have an OHL team in Mississauga under the ownership of Elliott Kerr” said City of Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion. “I encourage community support for hockey at all levels in Mississauga and I am pleased that our residents will continue to enjoy a high caliber of sports entertainment that brings in many visitors to our City.

Under the new ownership, the hockey club will undergo a complete rebranding as the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors name will be returned to the school. We want to thank Eugene Melnyk for supporting minor hockey in Mississauga and for bringing the Majors to this great city. In an effort to engage the residents of Mississauga, the new team will be conducting a “Name the Team Contest” in association with the Mississauga News this week. The team name will be unveiled following the contest.

Coach and General Manager, James Boyd will remain with the team and Kerr has appointed Scott Rogers as Vice President and Director of Business Operations for the club.

- From OHL news release

Mercyhurst University men’s hockey coach Rick Gotkin has announced that senior Grant Blakey (Canton, Michigan) and juniors Nick Jones (Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania) and Daniel O’Donoghue (Port Jefferson Station, New York) will serve as the captains for the upcoming 2012-13 season.

The trio will serve as tri-captains for the upcoming season, with each player garnering the “C” on his jersey.

Blakey missed eight games last season due to an injury, but still posted four goals and 12 assists for 16 points, finishing 11th on the team in scoring. He was leading or near the team lead in scoring before he went down with his injury. He finished tied for third on the team with a +2 rating last season and also had one of Mercyhurst’s two shorthanded goals. His 12 assists was tied for eighth on the team. Blakey has played in 105 games for the Lakers in his three seasons, and has recorded 24 goals and 42 assists for 66 points. He will be one of only four seniors on next year’s squad, joining defenseman Charlie Carkin, forward Paul Chiasson, and goaltender Max Strang.

Named the team’s Top Defenseman at the team’s postseason banquet, Nick Jones was only one of five players last season to play in all 40 games. He was the only non-freshman from Mercyhurst to be named to an All-Conference team, earning a Third Team nod as a defenseman. Jones led all Laker defensemen in scoring with 10 goals and 14 assists for 24 points this season. He was tied for fifth on the team in both goals and points. His ten goals was the most goals by a Laker defenseman since Jamie Hunt scored 12 during the 2005-06 season. Hunt went on to become the first Laker to play in the National Hockey League, skating for the Washington Capitals.

In fact, Jones’ ten goals was tied for third-most by a Mercyhurst defenseman since the 1999-2000 season. T.J. Kemp scored 11 in 2002-03 and then scored 10 during the 2004-05 season. Jones finished in a tie for third among Atlantic Hockey defensemen with his 24 points this season, trailing only Air Force’s Tim Kirby (28) and Connecticut’s Alex Gerke (25). He was tied with Air Force’s Scott Mathis. Jones has played in 74 career games and has 15 goals and 19 assists for 34 points.

Named the team’s Top Defensive Forward at the team’s postseason banquet, Daniel O’Donoghue played in 39 games last season and was tied for seventh on the team in scoring with eight goals and 12 assists for 20 points. He was one of the Lakers’ best penalty killers all season and was usually on the team’s top unit when called upon to kill a penalty. O’Donoghue scored Mercyhurst’s first shorthanded goal of the season against Sacred Heart on January 6 and he was named the Atlantic Hockey Co-Player of the Week on January 23 after posting two goals and two assists in a series at Holy Cross. In 76 career games, O’Donoghue has 18 goals and 22 assists for 40 points.

Mercyhurst loses just three players to graduation from a team that finished the 2011-12 season with a 20-16-4 overall record and advanced to the Atlantic Hockey Association semifinals for the first time since the 2008-09 season. The team’s 20 victories was also the most by a Mercyhurst team since winning 22 games during the 2008-09 campaign.

Check out this story on Erie Otters defenseman Adam Pelech from thehockeywriters.com.

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Hockey East Commissioner Joe Bertagna says the conference’s expansion plans are focused on the University of Connecticut.

Bertagna and UConn Athletic Director Warde Manuel say they hope to know in June whether UConn will be upgrading its men’s hockey program and becoming a member of Hockey East.

The 10-member conference, which is in the process of adding Notre Dame for 2013, has been looking for a 12th member.

The school and the conference have been in talks that also have included Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and officials with Hartford’s XL Center, a likely venue for games.

Bertagna says while there have been casual conversations with other schools, the league’s talks with UConn are the most serious.

Connecticut currently plays in the Atlantic Hockey conference.

Toronto – The Canadian Hockey League in association with SUBWAY® restaurant chain and the Ontario Hockey League today announced that the OHL’s Guelph Storm and Sarnia Sting will host Game 3 and Game 4 of the 2012 SUBWAY® Super Series.

Game 3 of the series will be played on Thursday November 7 in Guelph, Ontario, who last hosted the event in 2008. The series then returns to Sarnia, Ontario, for Game 4 to be played on Monday November 12, 2012. This will mark the third time that the Sting have hosted a Canada-Russia contest with previous games played in 2006 and 2003 when the event first began.

The 2012 SUBWAY® Super Series marks the tenth straight year that regional teams of CHL All-Stars will compete against the Russian National Junior Team as part of a six-game series. The series takes place November 5-15 and begins with two games in the QMJHL hosted by the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada and Val-d’Or Foreurs, and wraps up with two games in the WHL hosted by the Victoria Royals and the Vancouver Giants.

The SUBWAY® Super Series is an integral part of the identification process for Team Canada prior to the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship which will be played in Russia next season. Last season the CHL edged Team Russia with a 3-2-1 record to win the series by a 10-8 margin in points, just one year following Russia’s first ever series victory in 2010. Canada and Russia would later meet at the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship hosted by Calgary and Edmonton, AB, with Russia winning the semifinal contest with a roster that included 16 players from this event. 19 CHL players from the 2011 event competed on the bronze medal winning Team Canada.

All six games of the SUBWAY ® Super Series will be broadcast nationally on Sportsnet with TVA Sports televising both games from the QMJHL. The 2012 SUBWAY® Super Series is supported by CHL associate sponsors, Bank of Montreal and CCM.

2012 SUBWAY® Super Series Schedule of Games:
Game 1 – Monday November 5 at Blainville-Boisbriand, QC
Game 2 – Wednesday November 7 at Val-d’Or, QC
Game 3 – Thursday November 8 at Guelph, ON
Game 4 – Monday November 12 at Sarnia, ON
Game 5 – Wednesday November 14 at Victoria, BC
Game 6 – Thursday November 15 at Vancouver, BC

For more information please www.subwaysuperseries.ca

- From CHL news release

ERIE, Pa. – The Mercyhurst University men’s hockey team recently held its annual postseason team banquet and head coach Rick Gotkin presented eight postseason team awards to members of the 2011-12 roster.

The Lakers finished the 2011-12 season with a 20-16-4 overall record and advanced to the Atlantic Hockey Association semifinals for the first time since the 2008-09 season. The team’s 20 victories was also the most by a Mercyhurst team since winning 22 games during the 2008-09 campaign.

Redshirt junior goaltender Max Strang was named the team’s Most Valuable Player, while freshman Daniel Bahntge was the only player to winning multiple awards, finishing as the team’s Top Forward and as the Freshman of the Year.

The Top Defenseman award was given to sophomore Nick Jones, while the Top Defensive Forward went to sophomore Daniel O’Donoghue. Sophomore Randy Cure was named the team’s Most Improved Player and freshman Edward DeWald was given the team’s Hustle Award. Freshman Grant Gettinger earned the final honor of the evening, picking up the team’s Scholar Athlete Award.

Most Valuable Player – Max Strang
Strang, who will be returning for a fifth season in 2012-13, posted remarkable numbers in his first year as the starting goaltender. The native of Gilbertsville, Pa. had started just seven games in three years entering the season, but finished the campaign with a 16-14-3 overall record with a 2.68 goals against average and a .927 save percentage. His numbers were even better in the conference, as he helped lead Mercyhurst to a tie for third place in the standings and a first round bye in the postseason. He went 12-6-3 against conference opponents and sported a 2.25 goals against average and a .939 save percentage.

In the quarterfinals against Holy Cross, Strang stopped 111-of-115 Crusader shots (.965) to lead the Lakers to the best-of-three series victory and to advance to the Atlantic Hockey semifinals for the first time in four years. In 14 of his 33 starts, he stopped at least 38 shots and in 17 of his starts, he allowed two goals or fewer.

Freshman Of The Year / Top Forward – Daniel Bahntge
A native of Westlake, Ohio, Bahntge led Mercyhurst in scoring as a freshman, recording 10 goals and 21 assists for 31 points. He was named to the Atlantic Hockey Association’s All-Rookie Team, finishing third in points by a rookie in the conference behind Bentley’s Alex Grieve and Brett Switzer, who had 34 and 33 points respectively. Earlier in the season, Bahntge was named the conference’s Rookie of the Week on January 9 and was also the conference’s Rookie of the Month in November. He had his first collegiate hat trick against Sacred Heart on January 6 at the Mercyhurst Ice Center, and then scored both of the Lakers’ goals in last Friday’s game one victory over Holy Cross.

Top Defenseman – Nick Jones
Jones was the only non-freshman from Mercyhurst to be named to an All-Conference team, earning a Third Team nod as a defenseman. A native of Cranberry Township, Pa., Jones led all Laker defensemen in scoring with 10 goals and 14 assists for 24 points this season. His ten goals is the most goals by a Laker defenseman since Jamie Hunt scored 12 during the 2005-06 season. Hunt went on to become the first Laker to play in the National Hockey League, skating for the Washington Capitals. In fact, Jones’ ten goals is the tied for third-most by a Mercyhurst defenseman since the 1999-2000 season. T.J. Kemp scored 11 in 2002-03 and then scored 10 during the 2004-05 season.

Jones finished in a tie for third among Atlantic Hockey defensemen with his 24 points this season, trailing only Air Force’s Tim Kirby (28) and Connecticut’s Alex Gerke (25). He was tied with Air Force’s Scott Mathis.

Top Defensive Forward – Daniel O’Donoghue
A native of Port Jefferson Station, New York, O’Donoghue earned the Top Defensive Forward award after posting eight goals and 12 assists for 20 points this season. O’Donoghue was one of the Lakers’ best penalty killers all season and was usually on the team’s top unit when called upon to kill a penalty. The sophomore scored Mercyhurst’s first shorthanded goal of the season against Sacred Heart on January 6 and he was named the Atlantic Hockey Co-Player of the Week on January 23 after posting two goals and two assists in a series at Holy Cross.

Most Improved Player – Randy Cure
Hailing from Bloomington, Minnesota, Cure worked his way into the lineup on a regular basis this past season after being in-and-out of the lineup as a freshman. Although he only posted one assist in 34 games this season, Cure played a valuable role on the Mercyhurst blueline and was also regularly on the team’s penalty killing unit. Primarily a defenseman this past season, Cure was also pressed into services as a third- or fourth-line winger when injuries or illnesses came about. His only point was an assist on the team’s final regular season game of the season against Canisius.

Hustle Award – Edward DeWald
A native of Southampton, Pa., DeWald always gave 100% whether in practice or when he cracked the Mercyhurst lineup. Appearing in 19 games as a freshman, the winger posted one assist on the season – a helper against Niagara University on December 10. Mercyhurst was one game over .500 (9-8-2) when DeWald was in the lineup this season.

Scholar Athlete Award – Grant Gettinger
A native of North Olmsted, Ohio, Gettinger was honored with the Scholar Athlete Award by posting the best numbers in the classroom during the season. Gettinger was also a mainstay on the Mercyhurst blueline in his rookie season, appearing in all but one game and finishing the season with three assists. He earned assists against Alaska, RIT, and Canisius this season and also finished the year as a +1.

- From Mercyhurst news release

London, ON – The Ontario Hockey League today announced that goaltender Michael Houser of the London Knights is the 2011-12 recipient of the Red Tilson Trophy awarded to the OHL’s Most Outstanding Player of the Year as voted by the writers and broadcasters that cover the league.

Houser played an incredible 62 games between the pipes for the first place Knights backstopping the club to their fifth Hamilton Spectator Trophy as the OHL’s top regular season team. Also named the OHL’s Goaltender of the Year, Houser posted a record of 46-15-0-1 tying the OHL single season record for most wins by a goaltender set by Andrew Engelage of the OHL Champion Windsor Spitfires in 2009.

“It’s a huge honour,” said Houser. “There are a lot of great players in the league, especially this year, and it is nice to be recognized. It’s an award that I couldn’t have won without the teammates in front of me. They play hard every night and they make my job a lot easier. A lot of thanks go out to them.”

Houser is just the fifth goaltender to receive the prestigious Red Tilson Trophy following Andrew Raycroft (Kingston 2000), Bill Harrington (Kitchener 1952), Glenn Hall (Windsor 1951), and Gil Mayer (Barrie 1949). He is also the fifth member of the Knights to win the award following Corey Perry in 2005, Jason Allison in 1994, Dave Simpson in 1982, and Dennis Maruk in 1975. The 19-year-old native of Wexford, PA, is also just the third American-born player to win the award following David Legwand (Plymouth 1998), and Pat Peake (Detroit 1993).

“We’re honoured to have had Michael on our team once again this season,” said Knights General Manager and Head Coach Mark Hunter. “He’s a leader both on and off the ice and is definitely one of our hardest workers setting an example for the rest of the team. Houser is one of the biggest reasons we finished first overall and have made it all the way to the Rogers OHL Championship Series and we’re pleased to see him receive the Red Tilson Trophy as the OHL’s Most Outstanding Player of the Year.”

Undrafted into the OHL, Houser joined the Knights prior to the 2009-10 season and has already played in 141 regular season contests. His 62 games played led all OHL goaltenders this season while his 1862 saves was also the league’s top mark. He finished second with six shutout victories while his goals-against-average of 2.47 was third-best in the league, and his save percentage of .925 ranked fourth overall.

In this year’s Western Conference Coaches Poll, he appeared in three categories and was considered the Best Shootout Goalie, the second Hardest Worker, and the third Best Puckhandling goalie. This season Houser stopped at least 30 shots in 36 different games including six games with 40 or more saves.

The Red Tilson Trophy is the most prestigious individual award presented by the Ontario Hockey League. Accredited media were asked to select their top three choices from the 20 nominees representing all 20 member clubs. Players received five points for a first place selection, three points for second place and one point for a third place selection.

In the 80 ballots collected, Houser received 182 points in the voting process and was listed as the number one selection on 30 of the submitted ballots. OHL Top Scorer Michael Sgarbossa of the Sudbury Wolves finished in second place with 164 voting points, ahead of Tyler Toffoli of the Ottawa 67’s who received 106 voting points, and Mark Visentin of the Niagara IceDogs who received 104 voting points.

The trophy is named in honour of Albert “Red” Tilson, who was killed in action in Europe during World War II. Tilson was the OHA scoring champion for the 1942-43 season after scoring 19 goals and 38 assists for 57 points in 22 games with the Oshawa Generals.

Other winners of the Red Tilson Trophy include Frank Mahovlich (Toronto 1957), Mike Foligno (Sudbury, 1979), Doug Gilmour (Cornwall 1983), Eric Lindros (Oshawa 1991), Brian Campbell (Ottawa 1999), Brad Boyes (Erie 2001 & 2002), Corey Locke (Ottawa 2003 & 2004), John Tavares (Oshawa 2007), Cody Hodgson (Brampton 2009), Tyler Seguin (Plymouth 2010), and Ryan Ellis (Windsor 2011).

Houser will be the OHL’s nominee for the Canadian Hockey League Player of the Year Award presented at the CHL Awards Ceremony during the 2012 MasterCard Memorial Cup in Shawinigan.

- From OHL news release