BOSTON – February 12, 2009 – Gridiron Club of Greater Boston president Tim Whelan announced today that sixteen NCAA Division II/III players are semi-finalists for the eighth Joe Concannon Award, presented annually to the best American-born college hockey player in New England playing at the D-II/III level.

The list comprises eleven forwards, three defensemen and two goalies, including two nominees from the D-II ranks. The candidates include six players from ECAC Northeast including three repeat nominees. Returning nominee Jeff Hazelwood (Dublin, CA) from Curry College is joined by Stonehill senior forward Brendan O’Brien (Braintree, MA) and UMass-Dartmouth goaltender Jon Dryjowicz-Burek (Ludlow, MA) who all lead their teams in important statistical categories contributing to overall success this season.

The three remaining representatives from ECAC Northeast are all forwards whose accomplishments are a big part of their team’s strong results this season. High-scoring Nichols senior Ryan Gervais (Chicago, IL) has been a big reason that the Bison sit on top of the league standings and high in the national rankings. Suffolk’s Kyle Cook (Chino Hills, CA) leads his team in scoring and has been a catalyst for the Rams’ offense. Sophomore Dennis Zak (Dover, NJ) has flourished in Westfield State’s return to ECAC play this season with sixteen goals and twenty-two assists to date..

From the ECAC East, five different institutions have had players recognized for their great play and strong leadership on and off the ice. Senior Dan Gordon (Lynnfield, MA) leads the Southern Maine Huskies in scoring and has five game winning goals. Prolific scoring senior Ryan Mero (Peekskill, NY) leads the Purple Knights of St. Michael’s in their quest for a repeat title in the Northeast-10 tournament for D-II schools. Junior forward Brad Baldelli (Northboro, MA) provides his Babson squad with great leadership as well as consistent play in all situations. Senior Jared Lavender (Cleveland Heights, OH) from Castleton State College has provided outstanding defensive support to his Spartan team and is a leader in their battle for the league title. Norwich junior goaltender Ryan Kligensmith (Morton, PA) has posted terrific numbers including a 2.03 goals against average and .916 save percentage in backstopping the Cadets to the top of the league standings.

The final group of nominees hail from the hotly contested NESCAC conference. Senior defenseman Jeff Landers (Hanover, MA) is Amherst’s top scorer while and a mainstay of the Lord Jeffs’ defense, the country’s best thus far. Senior forward Jamie McKenna (Lake Placid, NY) leads Middlebury in scoring, clearing the 100-point career mark and notching five game- winning goals for the resurgent Panthers. Senior Chris Diozzi (Belmont, MA) leads the strong defense and power play unit for defending NESCAC champion Trinity College. Connecticut College junior forward Brett Moore (Medfield, MA) leads the Camels in scoring with 19 points. The conference’s final nominee is Tufts sophomore forward Tom DeRosa (Charlestown, MA), a transfer from Merrimack College who leads the Jumbos in scoring and has tallied four game-winning goals.

“This season more than any other has showcased great competition and individual talents throughout the leagues across New England. It seems that each and every season gets a bit tighter and the level of play continues to improve. That makes it ever more challenging to single out worthy nominees for the Concannon Award,” said Gridiron Club Hockey Awards Committee chairman Tim Costello. “Our committee believes this is a strong group of nominees, it’s going to take both remainder of the regular season and conference tournaments before we’ll be able to single out the most worthy nominee.”

The Gridiron Club plans to announce the finalists and winner of the 9th Joe Concannon Award in March, prior to the start of NCAA Frozen Four Tournament play and present the award during the New England Hockey Writers dinner in mid-April.


Joe Concannon Award Winners

2001 Keith Aucoin Norwich University
2002 Michael Carosi Bowdoin College
2003 Nick Stauder Salem State College
2004 Jim Pancyzkowski Wesleyan University
Michael O’Sullivan Curry College
2005 Brian Doherty Curry College
Joseph Ori Trinity College
2006 Adam Dann Bowdoin College
2007 Greg Osborne Colby College
2008 Tom Maldonado Middlebury College


The Joe Concannon Award
The Gridiron Club established the Joe Concannon Award in 2001 to honor Joe, a lifelong devotee of college hockey, former member of the Walter Brown Award Selection Committee and, as a journalist, a staunch advocate for the amateur athletes he knew and covered. A native of Litchfield, Connecticut, Joe graduated from Boston University in 1961. He served as sports information director (SID) at Holy Cross before joining the Boston Globe in the late 1960’s to cover college sports. Joe declined frequent invitations by his editors to write about Boston’s major professional sports teams, preferring to concentrate on the colleges, distance running and golf. He wrote the book Marathoning with Bill Rodgers and established the highly successful Litchfield Road Race in his hometown. Joe was a world traveler and was especially proud of his Irish heritage, frequently sojourning to the Emerald Isle. He passed away in 2000.

2008-2009 Gridiron Club of Greater Boston Officers: Tim Whelan, President; Steve Grogan, First Vice President; Fran Allen, Second Vice President; Ray Gallant, Third Vice President; Dick Lawrence, Secretary; Paul Costello, Treasurer; Edmund (Ned) Cully, Historian.

2008-2009 Gridiron Club Hockey Awards Selection Committee and Advisory Board: Tim Costello, Chairman; Joe Bertagna, Tom Burke, Paul Costello, Ned Cully, Bob DeGregorio, Kevin Fleming, Steve Hagwell, Dick Lawrence, Hon. Gordon A. Martin, Jr., Paul McNamara, Bob Norton, Paul Stewart, and William J. Stewart III.