Outlaws update
Published on May 3, 2007 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
North Iowa Outlaws News Release
The North American Hockey League's Robertson Cup Tournament begins today, and league awards were dished out last night. The Outlaws ended up empty after several players had a great season. Team Awards were also passed out a few weeks ago, which are in this issue. Watch for news about special ticket packages for the 2007-08 season, coming soon.
The emails will keep coming during the summer as new news becomes available. I will try and get one out each month to keep you up-to-date and help build the excitement for next season. After all, the players will be arriving in little over three months from now, and the puck drops in four. We look forward to next season, it will be here before we know it.
Outlaws Team Awards
The North Iowa Outlaws announced their team awards at their banquet held at the end of the regular season. The awards are voted on by their teammates are the recipients are as followed:
MVP: Mike Wallgren Mike Wallgren was a two year veteran of the Outlaws, and huge part to the success of the team. Mike was chosen as an Assistant Captain for the entire season, and was selected by the coaches to wear the Captain's C to finish the season. The Oakdale, MN native finished the year with forth in points on the team with 40 (13g, 27a). Next season he plans to attend St. John's and play NCAA Division III hockey.
Offensive Player of the Year: Steve Mcleod Steve led the Outlaws in points for the second year in a row, becoming the first player in North Iowa Outlaws history to eclipse 100 points for a career. The forward from Atikoken, Ontario CA led the league in shorthanded goals with eight on the year. He led the team in goals with 25 and assists with 37, finishing with 62 points. Mcleod set team records for single season goals, assists, points, and holds the career marks in those categories as well. In March, Mcleod committed to American International College to play Division I Hockey.
Defensive Player of the Year: Daryl Dee Daryl was instrumental in the success of the Outlaws, anchoring an inexperienced blue line. After the departure of Alex Breeden and Casey Dion, Dee was the only remaining veteran defensemen, later joined back there by Matt Morin who moved back to defense late in the season. Dee finished the season with 3 goals and 16 assists, while being one of four players to see action in every game this season.
Outlaws Award: Mike Wallgren This award is given to the player who best represents the Outlaws. When you think of the North Iowa Outlaws, who do you think of? This season, the team chose Mike Wallgren. Wally was a leader on and off the ice, a hard working individual and an example of what the coaches want an Outlaws to be. In his second season, Wally wore the assistant captain and captain's letters throughout the season. He is very deserving of this award for his work, and two years of dedication to the team.
Most Improved: Jon Crouse Jon was voted most improved player on this year's squad after sitting out the entire first half of the season. Crouse started the season on the sidelines with mono, and shortly after getting back on the ice in practice, the Alexandria native headed to Dubuque for a weekend of rehab, seeing his first game action with the Jr. B Thunderbirds. At the CSHL Showcase, Crouse suffered a concussion which sidelined him again for a week from practice but he battled back. Every day in practice, the defensemen kept working hard, and improved. He saw his first action as an Outlaws when North Iowa headed to Fairbault to play Shattuck-St. Mary's in an exhibition game and performed well. Around Christmas, the Outlaws suffered some injuries on the blue line and Jon took advantage. He played in his first NAHL game and from there, was in the line-up on a regular bases. He made great strides this season and should be strong for the Outlaws next season.
Congratulations to all players who were honored at the Team Banquet early this season.
NAHL League Awards
Brian McDonough DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS The North American Hockey League announced today its individual awards winners for the 2006-07 season, as well the All-NAHL First Team, Second Team and All-Rookie Team, as voted on by the league's coaches.
St. Louis Bandits forward Pat Maroon (pictured left) was named the NAHL/Sherwood Most Valuable Player. The 19-year-old from St. Louis led the NAHL in scoring this season with 40 goals for 95 points. Maroon, a Ferris State University recruit, is also on the NHL's Central Scouting Bureau's final rankings for 2007 draft-eligibles. Maroon was also named to the All-NAHL First Team.
Bandits goaltender Pat Nagle was voted the NAHL Rookie of the Year. In 24 appearances, the 19-year- old Ferris State recruit from Bloomfield, Mich., fashioned a 24-8-4 record to compliment a 2.28 goals- against average and a .920 save percentage. Nagle was also named to the All-NAHL Second Team.
Mahoning Valley head coach Bob Mainhardt was named NAHL Coach of the Year. He guided the Phantoms to a league-best 47-14-1 record and a berth to the Robertson Cup Championship. The Phantoms also boast nine Division I college commitments, tied for the most in the NAHL with St. Louis.
General Manager of the Year honors went to Alpena IceDiggers head coach and general manager Kenny Miller. After winning all of 13 games last year, Miller was the architect behind a 24-win turnaround this season, leading the IceDiggers to a second-place finish in the North Division. In addition, four of his players have made commitments to Division I programs.
Alexandria Blizzard forward Eric Borre, 20, was honored with the league's Community Service Award. Borre, from Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., initiated the team's "Neighborhood Table" project, a nonprofit community meal program.
The Academic Achievement Award was presented to Traverse City North Stars forward Kory Kaunisto. Holding a perfect 4.0 GPA, Kaunisto is in the top 1 percent of his class at Traverse City Central High School. With a full scholarship to Northern Michigan University in hand, Kaunisto is also a longstanding member of the National Honor Society. "The entire North American Hockey League family congratulates all of the deserving award winners," said NAHL commissioner Mark Frankenfeld. "These individuals make our league the best in North America."
ALL-NAHL FIRST TEAM G - Ryan Zapolski, Mahoning Valley Phantoms D - Jeff Dimmen, St. Louis Bandits D - Jeff Carlson, Southern Minnesota Express F - Pat Maroon, St. Louis Bandits F - Kyle Schmidt, Fairbanks Ice Dogs F - Dustin Cloutier, Mahoning Valley Phantoms ALL-NAHL SECOND TEAM G - Pat Nagle, St. Louis Bandits D - Nick Von Bokern, Traverse City North Stars D - Scooter Vaughan, St. Louis Bandits F - Jesse Echternach, Fargo-Moorhead Jets F - Todd Rudasill, Alpena IceDiggers F - Tibor Kutalek, Santa Fe RoadRunners ALL-ROOKIE TEAM G - Pat Nagle, St. Louis Bandits D - Scooter Vaughan, St. Louis Bandits D - Tom Kleidon, Santa Fe RoadRunners F - Ryan Kretzer, Springfield Jr. Blues F - Andy Inderieden, Southern Minnesota Express F - Derek Graham, Mahoning Valley Phantoms F - Andy McCabe, Fairbanks Ice Dogs Sherwood MVP: Pat Maroon, St. Louis Bandits Rookie of the Year: Pat Nagle, St. Louis Bandits Coach of the Year: Bob Mainhardt, Mahoning Valley Phantoms General Manager of the Year: Kenny Miller, Alpena IceDiggers Community Service Award: Eric Borre, Alexandria Blizzard Academic Achievement Award: Kory Kaunisto, Traverse City North Stars
NAHL Robertson Cup on B2 network
The National Tournament will be available to watch on the B2 internet video network. Log onto www.robertsoncup.com and follow the links to watch all the live action. Visit individual team websites to catch audio broadcast of the games for that selected team. www.robertsoncup.com for all information regarding the tournament.
North American Hockey League Stories from May 3, 2007
- Four Phantoms grab league honors - Mahoning Valley Phantoms
- Stars' ownership shakes out; Gardiner not coming back - Traverse City North Stars
- Outlaws update - North Iowa Outlaws
- Stars' Scovill to Wisconsin-Stout - Traverse City North Stars
- Stars' Kaunisto is NAHL's top scholar - Traverse City North Stars
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
