With McKay, MSU still considered WCHA's best

Dryden McKay

Gone are Marc Michaelis, Parker Tuomie and Charlie Gerard. Nick Rivera and Josh French. Ian Scheid and Edwin Hookenson. Connor Mackey, too.

Yet, this week, the Minnesota State men's hockey team was overwhelmingly picked to finish first in the WCHA by the league's coaches and media who cover the conference (Puckato excluded ... geez, I wonder if they have my other email address?).

The Mavericks were the unanimous pick of the media and received six first-place votes from the coaches (coaches could not vote for their own teams).

With all of those losses, why MSU? Why not Bemidji State (second in both polls) or Bowling Green (third in both)? Is it just deference to the team that's won three straight MacNaughton Cups and five (four outright) in the last six years? 

Perhaps.

Akito Hirose

Or it might be because of one particular player who is returning, junior goaltender Dryden McKay. McKay was tabbed as the media's preseason player of the year and shared that honor in the coaches' vote. McKay, who was an All-American, a top 10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award and a top five finalist for the Mike Richter Award last season, was 30-4-2 with a .942 save percentage and a 1.31 goals-against average.

In two seasons, he's got 54 wins, a .934 save percentage and a 1.53 GAA, so it's easy to see why so many people have faith in him. 

"He deserves being recognized as somebody who could be player of the year," coach Mike Hastings said in Tuesday's Mankato Free Press. "The competition he has within himself to play at an elite level is what separates him."

McKay, who was named to the all-preseason team in both polls, shared the player of the year honor with Bowling Green senior forward Brandon Kruse. 

The coaches also tabbed Mavericks sophomore forward Lucas Sowder to their all-preseason team and named MSU freshman defenseman Akito Hirose as preseason rookie of the year.

WCHA Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Minnesota State (6 first-place votes) 86 points
2. Bemidji State (1) 79
3. Bowling Green (3) 78
4. Michigan Tech 64
5. Northern Michigan 63
6. Lake Superior State 49
7. Alaska 40
8. Ferris State 35
9. Alaska Anchorage 28
10. Alabama Huntsville 18

Player of the Year: Brandon Kruse, F, Bowling Green; Dryden McKay, G, Minnesota State

Rookie of the Year: Akito Hirose, D, Minnesota State

All-Preseason Team: Forwards—Griffin Loughran, Northern Michigan; Brandon Kruse, Bowling Green; Connor Ford, Bowling Green; Lucas Sowder, Minnesota State. Defensemen—Elias Rosen, Bemidji State; Chris Jandric, Alaska. Goaltender Dryden McKay, Minnesota State.

WCHA Preseason Media Poll
1. Minnesota State (10 first-place votes) 100 points
2. Bemidji State 89
3. Bowling Green 76
4. Northern Michigan 68

5. Michigan Tech 67
6. Lake Superior State 44
7. Alaska 40
8. Ferris State 33
9. Alaska Anchorage 21
10. Alabama Huntsville 12

Player of the Year: Dryden McKay, G, Minnesota State

Rookie of the Year: Carson Bantle, F, Michigan Tech

All-Preseason Team: Forwards—Griffin Loughran, Northern Michigan; Connor Ford, Bowling Green; Owen Sillinger. Bemidji State. Defensemen—Elias Rosen, Bemidji State; Jake Willets, Ferris State. Goaltender Dryden McKay, Minnesota State.

To see other vote-getters, click on the links in the second paragraph of this post.