Hobey Baker Award to be presented Friday

Apr 6, 2007 - 8:01 PM ST. LOUIS (Ticker) -- Ryan Duncan of North Dakota will not win an NCAA Hockey championship. But he can still claim the Hobey Baker Award, which is given to college hockey's best player.

The award will be announced on Friday night at the site of the Frozen Four.

Duncan, Air Force forward Eric Ehn and Notre Dame goaltender David Brown are the finalists for the honor.

Duncan and North Dakota fell to Boston College, 6-4, in the semifinals of the NCAA Frozen Four on Thursday at Scottrade Center.

A 21-year-old sophomore, Duncan has recorded 31 goals and 26 assists in 42 games for North Dakota this season. Named the Western Collegiate Hockey Association Player of the Year after leading the conference in points, goals, power-play tallies and game-winners, he is second in the nation in goals and fourth in points.

The 5-8, 155-pound Duncan also is second in the country with 17 power-play tallies. He is looking to follow Tony Hrkac (1987) as the only members of the Fighting Sioux to win the Hobey Baker Award.

Ehn, 23, is second in the nation in assists (40) and points (64) in 40 games. The junior led the Atlantic Hockey Association in goals, assists and points, a category in which he set a conference record.

The AHA Player of the Year, Ehn helped lead the Falcons to their first NCAA tournament appearance this season. He won an impressive 63 percent of his faceoffs and is the first service academy player to be named one of the three finalists for the Hobey Baker Award.

A 22-year-old senior, Brown posted a 30-6-3 record with a nation-leading 1.58 goals-against average and .931 save percentage in 39 contests this campaign.

An eighth-round pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2004, Brown guided the Fighting Irish to the Central Collegiate Hockey Association regular-season championship and playoff title - both firsts in school history.

The CCHA Player of the Year, Brown also helped Notre Dame to its first NCAA tournament victory. He leaves the Fighting Irish as the school's all-time leader in GAA (2.32), save percentage (.916) and shutouts (12), while placing second with 55 victories.