BOSTON – Brian Brooks of the Suffolk men's hockey team has been named one of the nation's top players of the week as the sophomore forward garnered a spot on D3hockey.com's Men's Team of the Week, the organization announced Wednesday afternoon.
Each week since Nov. 9, 2015, D3Hockey.com shifts through school and league nominations and conference weekly releases to decipher an elite group of three forwards, two defensemen and one goaltender to be the top performers on the ice at each position over the last week. Raw numbers are not the only factor, however, as players that contributed to pivotal moments, season defining wins and stunning upsets play a crucial role in the deciding factor.
Brooks is the first-ever Ram to be recognized on the weekly top team and accomplished the feat after helping Suffolk in a crucial three-point week that wrapped up the regular season.
After assisting on the game-tying goal Feb. 8 at Johnson & Wales, that capped off a Suffolk comeback, the Canton, Massachusetts, native put away the game-winner two days later to help the Rams secure a 6-3 victory over the Wildcats. In the win, Suffolk's ninth of the season, he produced a career-high two strikes, including his first collegiate short-handed goal. The triumph helped Suffolk cement the seventh seed in the Commonwealth Coast Conference postseason.
In his second season in Suffolk blue-and-gold, Brooks has been instrumental to the Rams' success leading the offense with 25 points on a team-best 15 handouts and 10 goals. He has notched at least one point in 18 of the 24 games he has appeared with seven multi-point efforts. From Nov. 11-Dec. 9, Brooks put together a nine-game point streak, which featured four goals and seven assists.
Brooks and the Rams will make their CCC postseason debut in the quarterfinals Saturday, Feb. 17 when they venture to No. 11 Endicott for a 3 p.m. puck drop.