Blankenburg Named Senior CLASS Award Finalist
3/7/2022 5:14:00 PM | Ice Hockey
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. -- Senior captain Nick Blankenburg of the University of Michigan hockey team has been named one of ten finalists for the 2021-22 Senior CLASS Award.
Blankenburg has played in 33 games for the Wolverines, sitting second in the pairwise with a 27-9-1 record. He is second in the nation in goals scored by a defenseman -- just behind teammate Luke Hughes --with 14 and adds 14 assists for 28 points. Against Michigan State in the B1G Tournament quarterfinals, Blankenburg tied the Michigan program record for goals scored by a senior defenseman, joining Alex Roberts from 1989-90 season. Blankenburg leads the team in blocks with 40 and is a +19.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their athletic platforms to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. To be eligible student-athletes must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior or graduate student and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character, and competition.
Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to help select the winner, and fans are encouraged to submit votes online through March 28. Fan votes will be combined with those of the media and Division I head coaches to determine the winners.
An international studies major, Blankenburg has been a Big Ten Scholar-Athlete in each of his first three seasons. He captains a team with seven underclassmen selected in the first round of the NHL Draft and is relied on by his teammates for leadership and guidance. He was instrumental as an alternate captain last season when the season ended the day the team was scheduled to play in the NCAA Regional semifinal. His positive energy, encouragement and thoughtfulness were unmatched during the difficult time and earned him the utmost respect amongst his teammates.
Blankenburg has been heavily involved in the Ann Arbor community since arriving at Michigan. He created a GoFundMe account to raise money for the COVID relief for the Ronald McDonald House of Ann Arbor; took the lead in the team's effort with Team Impact as they adopted 16-year-old Kellen who lives with cerebral palsy; he volunteers at Grace Bible Church and at Motts Children's Hospital.
Michigan has had two other finalists for the award since it began in 2007, Kevin Porter (2008) and Sam Piazza (2018).
The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2022 NCAA Men's Frozen Four in April.
