Minnesota Duluth did not have the chance to win its third consecutive NCAA men's hockey championship because of the coronavirus pandemic, but the Bulldogs still ended up with a nice consolation prize.
They have the best player in all the land.
Bulldogs defenseman Scott Perunovich was named the 2020 Hobey Baker Award winner as the nation's top college hockey player on Saturday night, beating out North Dakota forward Jordan Kawaguchi and Maine goalie Jeremy Swayman for the sport's equivalent of the Heisman Trophy.
Perunovich, a junior from Hibbing, Minn., becomes the sixth Minnesota Duluth player to win the Hobey, two more than any other school. He joins defenseman Tom Kurvers (1984), right winger Bill Watson (1985), left winger Chris Marinucci (1994), right winger Junior Lessard (2004) and center Jack Connolly (2012).
"I'm extremely honored and humbled to be this year's Hobey Baker Award recipient,'' Perunovich said on ESPN. "Five other Bulldogs have won this coveted award before me, so it's just a privilege to join them."
A 2018 second-round draft pick of the St. Louis Blues who signed with the NHL team on March 27, Perunovich is a three-time All-America selection who was a key player in the Bulldogs' back-to-back NCAA championships in 2018 and '19. He led UMD in scoring this season with 40 points on six goals and 34 assists, helping the team to a second-place finish in the NCHC and status as the No. 4 team in the final PairWise Ratings. Perunovich was named player of the year in the NCHC and national player of the year by College Hockey News.
"With Scott Sandelin running that program, he does a great job and we recruit a lot of good players," Perunovich said of UMD's coach. "The expectation is always a national championship, and I was fortunate enough to be a part of two of them.''
Perunovich ranked second among NCAA defensemen with 40 points, while his 22-power-play points led all skaters and his 34 assists ranked second nationally. He burst upon the college hockey scene in 2017-18, amassing 11 goals and 25 assists on the way to winning the Tim Taylor Award as the nation's top freshman. As a sophomore, he battled a back injury but still contributed three goals and 26 assists. He finished his Bulldogs career with a plus-50 rating.
