Toronto, ON – The Ontario Hockey League today announced that goaltender Andrew D’Agostini of the Peterborough Petes is the 2011-12 recipient of the Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy presented to the OHL’s Humanitarian of the Year.

D’Agostini, a 19-year-old from Scarborough, ON, earns the award for his efforts in support of Cystic Fibrosis Canada shown large in part through his support and friendship of six-year-old Anthony Romanelli who was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis three years ago. D’Agostini is the fifth member of the Petes to receive this award and the second straight following Jack Walchessen who was last year’s recipient.

“I would like to thank the Peterborough Petes and the OHL for this great honour,” said D’Agostini. “Peterborough has always made me feel welcome and I have enjoyed every minute giving back to them. The real heroes are people like Anthony and his family who understand how precious every day is.”

D’Agostini first reached out to Cystic Fibrosis Canada after hearing the affects of the disease when the local chapter spoke to the Petes’ organization on December 17 prior to club’s fundraising efforts and team skate in support of the foundation. D’Agostini took it upon himself to meet the presenter, Tracy Romanelli, and her son Anthony, and expressed his interest in helping to raise money for the cause. The meeting turned into an ongoing and impactful friendship where D’Agostini has maintained constant communication with Anthony and his family providing gracious comfort and support. D’Agostini is now the spokesman for the Cystic Fibrosis Great Strides Walk which takes place on May 27, 2012, and captains the team “Shutout for Anthony” which has already raised over $5,000.

“Seeing the boys together is just amazing,” said Tracy Romanelli. “Andrew had said to me in that first meeting that he was going to help make a difference in Anthony’s life. I realize it is not easy for a young man to get involved with a sick child but Andrew has given Anthony the dream of becoming a goalie and the hope that one day he may not have to deal with Cystic Fibrosis.”

In addition to his work for Cystic Fibrosis, D’Agostini has contributed over 250 hours in the past three seasons to various causes such as the Petes’ “Partners in Education Program”, while spending time in the pediatric ward of the Peterborough Regional Health Centre, playing floor hockey with a local group of Special Olympians, and visiting a young Petes’ fan after returning home from an extended stay in the hospital as a result of a car accident leaving a Petes’ game earlier in the season. On the ice, D’Agostini played in 38 games between the pipes posting a record of 17-15-1-1 with one shutout, a goals-against-average of 3.90 and save percentage of .890. He was last year’s recipient of the Ivan Tennant Memorial Award presented to the league’s top High School Student Athlete of the Year.

“The Peterborough Petes are very proud of Andrew and the announcement of him being named the recipient of the Dan Snyder Memorial Award as OHL Humanitarian of the Year,” said Petes’ Assistant General Manager Aaron Garfat. “This is an award that the Petes take great pride in nominating a player for. Andrew’s involvement in the community goes above and beyond and is a true reflection of his character. He is a great role model for the youth of our community both on and off the ice.”

Each year the OHL awards a player that has demonstrated outstanding qualities as a positive role model in the community with the Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy. The Ontario Hockey League Board of Governors announced in 2004 that the OHL Humanitarian of the Year award would be renamed in recognition of the former Owen Sound Platers captain, who was twice named his team’s Humanitarian of the Year in recognition of his tremendous efforts in supporting community activities.

In addition to D’Agostini and Walchessen, other Petes to win the award include Brent Tully (1994), Mike Martone (1997), and Jeff MacDougald who was the first player to receive the award in recognition of Snyder in the 2004-05 season. This is the third time where a team has had back-to-back recipients following Chris Terry and Ryan Hayes of the Plymouth Whalers in 2009 and 2010, while David Silverstone and Michael Mole earned the award as members of the Belleville Bulls in 2002 and 2003 respectively.

D’Agostini will be the OHL’s nominee for Humanitarian of the Year at the annual CHL Awards on May 26 and will be formally presented with the Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy at the OHL Awards Ceremony which takes place June 5 at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

- From OHL news release

2011-12 Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy Nominees
Barrie – Dylan Smoskowitz*
Belleville – Luke Judson
Brampton – Mitchell Porowski
Erie – Mac MacDonnell
Guelph – Kyle Pereira
Kingston – Cody Alcock
Kitchener – Ben Fanelli*
London – Scott Harrington
Mississauga – Brett Foy
Niagara – Mark Visentin
Oshawa – Kevin Bailie
Ottawa – Shane Prince
Owen Sound – Jay Gilbert
Peterborough – Andrew D’Agostini
Plymouth – Colin MacDonald
Saginaw – Eric Locke
Sarnia – Nathan Chiarlitti**
Sault Ste. Marie – Brandon Alderson
Sudbury – Nathan Pancel
Windsor – John Cullen

*repeat nominee
** three-time nominee

Toronto, ON – The Ontario Hockey League announced on Wednesday that forward Ryan Hayes of the Plymouth Whalers is the Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy Winner presented to the OHL’s humanitarian of the year for the 2009-10 season.

Hayes, a 20-year-old from Syracuse, New York, led the Whalers’ organization in his third OHL season with 54 official community appearances, representing participation in nearly a quarter of the team’s total community events.  Hayes follows Chris Terry as the second straight member of the Whalers to receive this award.

“I had a great role model last year working with Chris (Terry) in the community,” said Hayes.  “It really is a huge honour for me to win this award.  It means a lot to be able to give back to the community as a hockey player.  I remember when I was younger how much it meant to me to see older guys at appearances, and hopefully the kids we reach out to give back when they get older.”

This season, Hayes took on a leadership role for the Whalers in the “Friends of Jaclyn” program, which supports the non-profit charitable organization that improves the quality of life for children with pediatric brain tumors.  The Whalers were paired up with 7-year-old Johnny Muller and his 5 year-old brother Aidan.  Johnny has had a brain tumor since the age of 2.  Hayes took over the project by explaining to the rest of the players what the program was and the importance of helping out.

“Our whole team was involved in the program,” said Hayes.  “The boys always put a smile on our faces even after losses.  They are a great family and the boys are just like little brothers to me.”

After learning of the boys’ interest in becoming hockey players, Hayes organized a private postgame skate and stayed on the ice for nearly two hours providing individual lessons.  He has been a constant role-model and friend to both Johnny and Aidan and keeps close contact with the Mullers to learn the latest news about Johnny’s condition and provide the necessary support.  He even drove an hour and a half on an off day to the boys’ school to take part in a “show and tell” class presentation.

“Ryan not only made Johnny and Aidan feel welcome every weekend, before and after the games, but he went above and beyond to show my boys how much they meant to him,” said Krissy Muller.  “The boys had never skated before and it was a very scary idea for Johnny considering his tumor sits on the area of his brain that controls balance.  Ryan talked him into coming out on the ice with him and made it a night Johnny would later call the best day of his life.”

Serving as an assistant captain and captain throughout the season, Hayes took on a leadership role off the ice in a variety of team initiatives, including regular “March is Reading Month” appearances at area schools stressing the importance of education to the students, and the Whalers’ annual “Pink Out” for Breast Cancer Awareness that again featured the entire hockey club dyeing their hair pink to promote the cause.  He also showed extensive participation with Special Olympics Michigan at their annual hockey tournament cheering on the participants, passing out the medals, and staying afterwards to pose for pictures and sign autographs.

“Just having a Plymouth Whaler at the event was enough for our athletes,” said Special Olympics Michigan Development Manager Ashley Diersch. “Ryan’s involvement and the true connection he seemed to have with everyone made it one of the best experiences they have had.”

Hayes’ commitment to the community was also evident during the summer, when the Whalers’ Learn to Skate Program was almost cancelled due to a lack of instructors.  Hayes informed the Whalers front office that he would be willing to teach the classes and promptly moved back to Plymouth for the entire summer to help out.

Each year the OHL awards a player that has demonstrated outstanding qualities as a positive role model in the community with the Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy.  The Ontario Hockey League Board of Governors announced in 2004 that the OHL humanitarian of the year award would be renamed in recognition of Snyder the former Owen Sound Platers captain, who was twice named his team’s humanitarian of the year in recognition of his tremendous efforts in supporting community activities.

Hayes will officially be presented with the Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy at the OHL Awards Ceremony June 9 at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.  He will also be the OHL’s nominee for humanitarian of the year at the Annual CHL Awards.

2009-10 Dan Snyder Memorial Trophy Nominees:

Barrie – Stefan Della Rovere

Belleville – Adam Payerl

Brampton – Brad Albert

Erie – Matthew Paton

Guelph – Tyler Carroll

Kingston – John Cullen

Kitchener – John Moore

London – Leigh Salters

Mississauga – Dustin Ekelman

Niagara – Dylan MacEachern

Oshawa – Andrew Wilson

Ottawa – Corey Cowick

Owen Sound – Marcus Carroll

Peterborough – Jack Walchessen

Plymouth – Ryan Hayes

Saginaw – Tyler Murovich

Sarnia – Nathan Chiarlitti

Sault Ste. Marie – Robin Lehner

Sudbury – John Kurtz

Windsor – Adam Wallace

- From OHL news release