Phantom Alums Clean Up Division I Postseason Awards
March 25, 2009 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Mahoning Valley Phantoms News Release
YOUNGSTOWN, OH (Wednesday, March 25th, 2009) - While the Mahoning Valley Phantoms have been battling for North Division supremacy in the North American Hockey League, former Phantoms have been pulling in some impressive hardware at the collegiate level.
In all, seven Mahoning Valley alums in all took home various conference honors following the 2008-2009 NCAA Division I season including all-conference and all-academic nominations in addition to individual awards.
Forward Owen Meyer, who played in the Valley from 2004-2006, was named first-team All-Atlantic Hockey after posting 19 goals and 14 assists for the Army Black Knights.
Joining Meyer on the AHA All-Conference honor roll is former Phantoms and current Mercyhurst Lakers netminder Ryan Zapolski, a second-team All-Atlantic Hockey honoree, following a 18-5-3 season with a 2.22 goals against average and a .934 save percentage.
Zapolski backstopped the Lakers to the AHA conference finals, where Mercyhurst eventually fell to top-seeded Air Force 2-0.
Former Phantoms captain Anthony Canzoneri, who plays his college hockey at Bentley College, rounds out the program's Atlantic Hockey honorees: the Homer Glen, IL, native won both the Defensive Forward of the Year and the Individual Sportsmanship awards given out by the conference.
In College Hockey America, two former Phantoms and current Robert Morris Colonials played their way to first-team All-CHA honors as Nathan Longpre tallied 12-29-41 to be a first-team forward while Denny Urban (4-23-27) picked up the nod as a first-team defenseman.
Urban was also named to the CHA's All-Academic Team, joining Phantom alum Chris Fairbanks at the University of Alabama-Huntsville on the All-Academic list.
In the WCHA, ex-Phantom Jeremy Smith, now at the University of Alaska-Anchorage, was one of a record 107 student athletes named to the conference's All-Academic Team.
In order to make a conference's All-Academic Team, a player must: be at their respective institution for longer than one scholastic year; maintain at least a 3.00 grade-point average over their past two semesters or three quarters; or an overall GPA of at least 3.00 for all terms at their present school.
In six seasons of operation, the Phantoms have sent 60 players on to play Division I collegiate hockey, one of the highest per-season averages in the NAHL.
North American Hockey League Stories from March 25, 2009
- Phantom Alums Clean Up Division I Postseason Awards - Mahoning Valley Phantoms
- Teams Focus on Playoff Position as Phantoms Close Season - Mahoning Valley Phantoms
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