Team MVPs

With our current physical distancing rules in place, the annual Brown and Gold Awards where the best University of Manitoba Bisons athletes are honoured for their seasons and careers was cancelled. Again, I fully support this move in an effort to reduce interactions among people when it comes to curbing the spread of the coronavirus, but it does suck for the athletes who deserve a little kudos for their efforts. The university did move the announcements of the various winners online, but it's just not the same when it comes to the celebration they deserve so I'm going to celebrate the two hockey MVPs a little more here.

We'll start with the Bisons men's hockey team where the following video introduces the 2020 Bisons men's hockey team MVP, defenceman Adam Henry.

Henry played five seasons in the WHL with the Lethbridge Hurricanes, Seattle Thunderbirds, Saskatoon Blades, and Portland Winterhawks where he refined his game into a defenceman who could play at both ends of the ice. He scored 27 goals and 88 assists in his career with half of those goals scored in his final season in the WHL. He went undrafted, but one team pursued him aggressively in the recruiting market - his hometown Manitoba Bisons.

It was in Canada West where Henry showed off that evolution of his game, never posting less than 14 points in any season while hitting double-digits in goals with 11 in his final season. It wasn't that Henry was good for the Bisons. No, what should be stressed is that he played in every situation, was most often the first over the boards for head coach Mike Sirant, and became one of the most reliable defenders in all of Canada West.

Named as captain this season of the Bisons, Henry's efforts this season in leading the conference defencemen in scoring while being an effective player in his own end earned him the Canada West Defenceman of the Year award while he was named both a U SPORTS Second Team All-Canadian and a Canada West First Team All-Star.

Perhaps more important, as I made clear when discussing the U SPORTS award winners, Henry's volunteerism and community-involvement was top-notch as he visited schools to do a little reading to elementary kids as part of Bisons Book Buddies, led the fundraising efforts for the Bisons' Movember work, delivered holiday hampers to deserving families, and spent countless hours coaching hockey to youths. For his efforts away from the rink, Henry was also awarded the Canada West Community Service award this season - an award I hold in the highest esteem.

While there were certainly other Bisons who had great seasons, the above accomplishments and accolades make it pretty easy to see why Adam Henry is the Bisons men's hockey team MVP. And, prior to the hockey shutdown, Adam had accepted a contract with the ECHL's Fort Wayne Komets where he played seven games for the club, so it seems there will be some interest in Henry's services at the professional level once hockey resumes!

Congratulations, Adam, on an amazing season in the brown-and-gold!

We now move to the Bisons women's hockey team, and we'll head back to video for the introduction of team MVP Jordyn Zacharias.

Jordy's pretty much done everything that one can do in U SPORTS hockey, including playing in the NCAA before coming home. The one thing she hadn't done is captained a U SPORTS team until this year, and her experiences across the hockey spectrum was vitally important to a team that brought aboard ten rookies this season. Without Jordy's leadership and talents this season, the Bisons women's program likely would have been in real trouble from the season-opening puck drop.

While her goal total of seven this season was the lowest of any season in her Bisons career, four of the goals she did score were game-winners as she once again showed the conference that she wants the puck on her stick with the game on the line. Her 16 game-winning goals in her four-year career with the Bisons tied her for fifth-most all-time in Canada West history - evidence of how clutch she was in the big moments. As the video mentioned, she was part of the fastest two goals in program history this season against Saskatchewan, but those two goals seven seconds apart are the second-fastest ever in Canada West history as well.

Throughout Jordy's entire career, she's always been an on-ice leader as she allowed her play to a lot of the talking while helping linemates succeed. As captain this year, several of the rookies stated that she was an important factor in them finding their transition into university hockey easier, and that's the kind of leadership that these rookies can emulate themselves as they become veterans. Jordy's off-ice work can't be overlooked as well, and she was at the forefront of the holiday hamper collection and deliveries for deserving families, was one of the Bell Let's Talk ambassadors for the team, and spent time as an assistant coach for the U12 Junior Bisons hockey program.

While the Bisons took a step back in the women's hockey standings, there were some exceptional performances by a handful of players this season. Jordyn Zacharias was one of those players whose on-ice performances were great while her off-ice work was exceptional. Together, it's easy to see why Jordy was named as the Bisons women's hockey team MVP for this season.

Congratulations, Jordy, on an amazing season in the brown-and-gold!

If there are additional awards won by the Bisons hockey programs this season, expect more articles like this. Being that we cover the Bisons on The Hockey Show a lot and I do a little weekend work covering the women's team, I'm always happy to talk about the exceptional athletes we cover in our great province!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!