Beniers, Power on All-Big Ten First Team; Hughes Shares Top Freshman Award
3/15/2022 12:00:00 PM | Ice Hockey
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Luke Hughes of the University of Michigan ice hockey team was named the Big Ten co-Freshman of the Year when the all-conference awards were announced Tuesday (March 14). Matty Beniers claimed the B1G scoring champion crown and was named a unanimous selection for the All-Big Ten first team. Owen Power joins Beniers on the first team.
Hughes, Brendan Brisson and Erik Portillo captured second-team honors, while Nick Blankenburg, Thomas Bordeleau and Kent Johnson earned honorable mention nods. Hughes and Mackie Samoskevich took spots on the all-freshman team, and Blankenburg is Michigan's recipient of the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.
Hughes led the league in goals scored with 13 tallies in conference play. He added nine assists for 22 points, the second most in the league behind Beniers. Hughes leads the nation's defensemen in scoring with 17 goals and 19 assists for 36 points in 37 games and is a +25. This season he rewrote the Michigan record book. His 17 goals surpassed Dean Turner's freshman defenseman record of 13 from 1975-76, and he pushed past Jack Johnson's 32 points (as well as brother Quinn's 29) with the most points by a Michigan freshman defenseman. The No. 4 overall pick by the New Jersey Devils in the 2021 NHL Draft, Hughes is the fifth Wolverine to be named B1G Freshman of the Year, joining Bordeleau (2021), Kyle Connor (2016), Dylan Larkin (2015) and JT Compher (2014).
A finalist for the Player of the Year, Beniers won the scoring title with 26 points in 18 games, averaging 1.44 points per game. He had 10 multiple-point conference games, four more than the next best player. The No. 2 overall pick by the Seattle Kraken in the 2021 NHL Draft, Beniers leads Michigan in scoring with 40 points on 33 goals and 19 assists. He missed games for both the Olympics and the World Juniors. The league's leader in on-ice rating at +29, Beniers has scored 10 power-play goals this season, the fourth most in the nation. Beniers is the third scoring champion in Michigan B1G history, joining Kyle Connor (2016) and Cooper Marody (2018).
A finalist for Defensive Player of the Year, Power has 27 points in 29 games. Prior to leaving for the Olympics, he led the nation's defenseman in points per game. The 2021 NHL Draft's No. 1 overall pick by the Buffalo Sabres, Power has three goals and 24 assists, is a +21, and has a team-best 44 blocked shots. Along with the Olympics, Power missed time away at the World Juniors. Thirteen of his 27 points have come on the power play.
Brisson is third on the team in scoring with 35 points on 18 goals and 17 assists, averaging 1.03 points per game. He ranks second in the nation in game-winning goals with six and has scored the first goal in a game seven times this season. A first-round pick of the Vegas Golden Knights, Brisson missed four games due to the Olympics.
A finalist for Goaltender of the Year, Portillo is in his first season as the starting goaltender for Michigan. A top-10 finalist for the Mike Richter Award, Portillo has a 28-9-1 record, the second most wins in the nation. He is also credited with three shutouts. A draft pick of the Buffalo Sabres, Portillo ranks fourth in then nation in saves and has a .929 save percentage. Sporting a 2.03 goals-against average, Portillo adds four assists this season.
The team captain, Blankenburg has played in 34 games and has 28 points on 14 goals and 14 assists. He has scored six power-play goals and three game-winners. Blankenburg ranks second on the team in blocked shots with 40. He tied the record for goals by a senior defenseman in Michigan history, currently sitting in first place along with Alex Roberts from 1989-90.
Bordeleau ranks fifth on the team in scoring with 31 points on 10 goals and 21 assists in 33 games. He has tallied three game-winning goals as well as one power-play and one short-handed goal each. A San Jose Sharks draft pick, Bordeleau is the team's faceoff leader, winning over 300 this season for 56.5 percent.
The league leader in assists, Johnson has 27 helpers to sit 10th nationally. He adds seven goals for 34 points in 28 games. He missed 10 games due to competing at both the Olympics and the World Juniors. The 2021 NHL Draft's No. 5 overall pick by the Columbus Blue Jackets, Johnson is a +23 and has scored three game-winners, three power-play goals and a short-handed goal.
Samoskevich has 26 points on the season with nine goals and 17 assists. Two of his goals were unassisted goals, capitalizing on turnovers, while four goals came on the power play. The Florida Panthers draft pick also added two game-winning goals.
Michigan is ranked No. 4 in both national polls and will compete for the Big Ten Tournament championship on Saturday (March 19) at Minnesota.
2021-22 All-Big Ten Team and Individual Awards
As selected by Big Ten coaches and media voting panel
Unanimous selection in ALL CAPS
FIRST TEAM
Matty Beniers, F, Michigan
BEN MEYERS, F, MINNESOTA
Georgii Merkulov, F, Ohio State
Owen Power, D, Michigan
Brock Faber, D, Minnesota
Jakub Dobes, G, Ohio State
SECOND TEAM
Brendan Brisson, F, Michigan
Matthew Knies, F, Minnesota
Max Ellis, F, Notre Dame
Luke Hughes, D, Michigan
Jackson Lacombe, D, Minnesota
Erik Portillo, G, Michigan
HONORABLE MENTION
Thomas Bordeleau, F, Michigan
Kent Johnson, F, Michigan
Blake McLaughlin, F, Minnesota
Sammy Walker, F, Minnesota
Landon Slaggert, F, Notre Dame
Kevin Wall, F, Penn State
Nick Blankenburg, D, Michigan
Spencer Stastney, D, Notre Dame
Mason Lohrei, D, Ohio State
Drew DeRidder, G, Michigan State
Justen Close, G, Minnesota
Matthew Galajda, G, Notre Dame
ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Mackie Samoskevich, F, Michigan
MATTHEW KNIES, F, MINNESOTA
GEORGII MERKULOV, F, OHIO STATE
Luke Hughes, D, Michigan
Mason Lohrei, D, Ohio State
JAKUB DOBES, G, OHIO STATE
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Ben Meyers, F, Minnesota
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR (Defenseman or Forward)
Brock Faber, D, Minnesota
GOALTENDER OF THE YEAR
Jakub Dobes, G, Ohio State
CO-FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Luke Hughes, D, Michigan
Jakub Dobes, G, Ohio State
COACH OF THE YEAR
Bob Motzko, Minnesota
SCORING CHAMPION
Matty Beniers, F, Michigan
BIG TEN SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD
Nick Blankenburg, Michigan; Adam Goodsir, Michigan State; Sammy Walker, Minnesota; Graham Slaggert, Notre Dame; Grant Gabriele, Ohio State; Adam Pilewicz, Penn State; Sam Stange, Wisconsin
