Morin named MVP at Redmen awards gala

MONTREAL – Team captain Ken Morin (pictured bottom right) of St. Prosper, Que., won the Bobby Bell memorial trophy as most valuable player as the McGill Redmen officially wrapped up their 133rd season Friday, with their 30th annual Friends of McGill Hockey awards gala at Molson’s Brewery.

Centre Alexander Picard-Hooper of Boucherville, Que., captured two awards, winning the FMH trophy as rookie of the year and the Molson Cup as the players with the most three-star selections.

Forward Maxime Langelier-Parent of Léry, Que., received the Albert Fyon trophy as most improved player.

Morin, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound defenceman, was a solidifying influence on a team replete with 14 rookies as the Redmen rebounded from an 0-4-1 start and finished second in the OUA Far East division with an 18-8-2 record and captured the OUA Eastern Conference title.

A 24-year-old industrial relations senior who logged 30-40 minutes of ice time on a regular basis, Morin led all Redmen rearguards with 16 points, including four goals, in 44 games overall. Although he still has another year of eligibility remaining, Morin is expected to graduate with a 13-56-69 record in 159 career contests.

Picard-Hooper, a 21-year-old finance freshman, earned OUA rookie-of-the-year and CIS all-rookie honours. The 5-foot-9, 185-pound centre was the top scoring rookie in the 16-team Ontario league and finished ninth overall, with 10 goals and 36 points in 28 regular season games. It equaled the second-best single-season points output ever by a McGill freshman. He also led all OUA scorers in the playoffs with a 5-6-11 record in eight contests was tops on the Redmen with 17 goals and 55 points in 44 games overall.

Langelier-Parent, a 6-foot-1, 213-pound centre, had a slow start and a strong finish. A solid defensive forward, he was +3 in the plus-minus stats, scored nine points in 25 league games. The 21-year-old physical education freshman also tied for the team lead as the top faceoff man, winning 63 per cent of his draws.

The soirée, which featured more than 100 alumni, parents and guests, was capped off by a presentation of a pewter mug, school tie, framed photo and game-worn jersey to each of the seven graduating players. Joining Ken Morin on the list of departing seniors was co-captain Eric L’Italien of Ste. Foy, Que., forwards Sam Bloom of Toronto, Vincent Lambert of Ste. Therese, Que., and Marko Kovacevic of Belgrade, Serbia, plus defenceman Erik Stilling of Calgary and goaltender Jake Jarvis of Toronto.