Dartmouth men's hockey senior center Mike Ouellette '06 has been chosen to participate in the first-ever NCAA Skills Challenge on Friday, April 7, at the Frozen Four in Milwaukee.
Ouellette will be one of six players competing for the East team against the West squad. Each outfit is comprised of six male position players, six female position players, two male goalies and two female goalies.
The clubs will compete in contests that include puck control relay, fastest skater, hardest shot, rapid-fire shooting and a penalty shot competition, which will be useful for NHL-bound collegiate skaters.
In order to be eligible to compete in the skills challenge, players must be finished with their collegiate eligibility and be tapped by their head coach.
Representatives from the American College Hockey Coaches Association, the NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Committee and the National Youth Sports Corporation selected the players.
Ouellette ended the 2005-06 campaign as the Big Green's leading scorer with 37 points. He helped the Dartmouth to a 19-12-2 record and the club's first-ever ECACHL regular season title.
Head coach Bob Gaudet, already the ECACHL Coach of the Year, has been named as one of the 11 finalists for the Spencer Penrose Award as National Coach of the Year.
To be a finalist for this prestigious honor, a head coach must either be selected Coach of the Year in his conference, as was Gaudet, or bring his outfit to the NCAA Frozen Four.
It will be given out at the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA) Coach of the Year Banquet on Saturday, April 29, in Naples, Fla.
The other 10 finalists consist of Enrico Blasi (Miami), Dave Burkholder (Niagara), Mike Eaves (Wisconsin), Dave Hakstol (North Dakota), Don Lucia (Minnesota), Bob Motzko (St. Cloud State), Jack Parker (Boston University), Brian Riley (Army),Tim Whitehead (Maine) and Jerry York (Boston College).
Finally, senior sparkplug Eric Przepiorka was signed and released by the Florida Everblades of the "AA" Eastern College Hockey League.
Przepiorka was signed on March 21 and released eight days later on March 29 after failing to tally a point in five games with the professional squad.
The 24-year-old Przepiorka was signed after he completed the collegiate season with the Big Green where he notched a career high 32 points on nine goals and 23 assists in 33 games.
