Photo by: Rich Gagnon
Knight, Nesterenko and York Receive Major Hockey East Awards
March 16, 2021 | Men's Hockey
WAKEFIELD, Mass. – Sophomore goaltender Spencer Knight (Player of the Year), freshman forward Nikita Nesterenko (Co-Rookie of the Year) and Schiller Family Head Coach Jerry York (Coach of the Year) received major awards from Hockey East on Tuesday afternoon.
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Knight is the first goalie to win the Player of the Year Award since former Eagle Thatcher Demko in 2016. The sophomore owns a record of 16-2-1 in net this season to rank second nationally in winning percentage (.868) behind only Dryden McKay of Minnesota State. A unanimous Hockey East First Team All-Star and the league's Goaltender of the Year, he ranks third in the country in save percentage (.937) and 11th in goals against average (1.99).
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Nesterenko becomes the fourth Eagle in the last six years to be named Rookie of the Year, sharing the honor with Josh Lopina of UMass. The Coney Island native ranks ninth nationally in scoring among freshmen and led all league rookies in goals (7), assists (11) and points (18) during the regular season. The forward had the game-winning goal in his playoff debut on Sunday and was named the Hockey East Rookie of the Week on Monday.
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York earns Hockey East Coach of the Year honors for the fifth time in his career (2001, 2011, 2014, 2018). BC posted a 16-4-1 record during the regular season, clinching the No. 1 seed in the playoffs for the seventh time in the last 11 years. His Eagles rank third nationally in winning percentage (.795) and own the fifth-best scoring margin in college hockey (+1.68). With a 4-2 win at UConn on Jan. 23, York reached 1,100 career victories in his Division I career.
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No. 1 Boston College hosts 7-seed UMass Lowell on Wednesday (March 17) at 4:30 p.m. in the Hockey East Semifinal at Kelley Rink on NESN.
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Knight is the first goalie to win the Player of the Year Award since former Eagle Thatcher Demko in 2016. The sophomore owns a record of 16-2-1 in net this season to rank second nationally in winning percentage (.868) behind only Dryden McKay of Minnesota State. A unanimous Hockey East First Team All-Star and the league's Goaltender of the Year, he ranks third in the country in save percentage (.937) and 11th in goals against average (1.99).
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Nesterenko becomes the fourth Eagle in the last six years to be named Rookie of the Year, sharing the honor with Josh Lopina of UMass. The Coney Island native ranks ninth nationally in scoring among freshmen and led all league rookies in goals (7), assists (11) and points (18) during the regular season. The forward had the game-winning goal in his playoff debut on Sunday and was named the Hockey East Rookie of the Week on Monday.
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York earns Hockey East Coach of the Year honors for the fifth time in his career (2001, 2011, 2014, 2018). BC posted a 16-4-1 record during the regular season, clinching the No. 1 seed in the playoffs for the seventh time in the last 11 years. His Eagles rank third nationally in winning percentage (.795) and own the fifth-best scoring margin in college hockey (+1.68). With a 4-2 win at UConn on Jan. 23, York reached 1,100 career victories in his Division I career.
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No. 1 Boston College hosts 7-seed UMass Lowell on Wednesday (March 17) at 4:30 p.m. in the Hockey East Semifinal at Kelley Rink on NESN.
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Players Mentioned
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