2 Merrimack Men's Hockey Players On Long List Of Hobey Baker Nominees

NORTH ANDOVER, MA — Fan voting for college hockey's Hobey Baker Memorial Award opened on Friday, and two Merrimack men's players are on the list of 82 nominees.

The Hobey Baker is awarded annually to college hockey's top player and Warrior forwards Ben Brar, a senior, and Alex Jefferies, a junior, remain in the running for the honor.

Fans can cast their votes online at HobeyBaker.com through March 5. On March 15, a group of 10 finalists will be named, and a second round of fan voting will take place from March 17-26.

The Hobey Hat Trick (top 3) will be chosen on March 30, and the 2023 winner will be named on April 7, at the NCAA Frozen Four Championship in Tampa Bay, Florida.

Minnesota State goaltender Dryden McKay won the Hobey Baker Award in 2022.

In both rounds of voting, fan balloting will account for a percentage of the voting. The first phase of voting also will incorporate votes from all 59 Division I college hockey head coaches. The second phase of voting — and the ultimate decision on the winner — will include the votes from the 30-member selection committee.

According to the Hobey Baker committee, candidates for the award are expected to exhibit the exceptional character traits of Baker, a star hockey and football player at Princeton, who also was a WWI fighter pilot.

"Award candidates must demonstrate strength of character both on and off the ice, contribute to the integrity of his team and display outstanding skills in all phases of the game," the Hobey Baker committee said in a statement. "Consideration should be given to scholastic achievement and sportsmanship."

Merrimack (15-9-1 overall, 10-5-0 Hockey East) has struggled since returning from a holiday break, going just 2-5-1 since Dec. 30. But the Warriors were one of college hockey's surprise teams during the first half of the season and were ranked as high as No. 5 nationally in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine College Hockey Poll in December.

Jefferies, from Lunenburg, currently leads the team with 27 points (8 goals, 19 assists), while Brar, from Abbotsford, British Columbia, is third with 19 points (8 goals, 11 assists),

Jefferies was named the Hockey East Player of the Month for December when he finished with 8 points (1 goal, 7 assists) in five games as the Warriors went 4-1-0.

Merrimack looks to bounce back from two losses to Northeastern last weekend when it faces Vermont on Friday and Saturday in Burlington, Vermont. Both games begin at 7 p.m. at Gutterson Fieldhouse.