LOWELL, Mass. – Junior defenseman Mattias Göransson (Slottsbron, Sweden) was named the 2018-19 Most Valuable Player at the UMass Lowell Hockey annual team banquet on Thursday evening at the Establishment Restaurant in Chelmsford, Mass.
Göransson also earned the Best Defensive Player Award for his efforts this season. The veteran defenseman recorded four-goals and 20-points playing in all of the team's 37 games.
Göransson was the team's highest scoring defenseman and an outstanding mentor to the very young River Hawk defense corps which skated four freshmen on the back line most nights. Göransson, who played on the power play and as a penalty killer in addition to taking a regular shift, also led the team with 55 blocked shots.
Five other players and one member of the hockey staff were also honored.
Sophomore forward
Connor Sodergren (Tewksbury, Mass.) also earned multiple awards. Sodergren was honored as the Most Improved Player after scoring five-goals and 21-points after posting just four-goals and ten points during his freshman campaign.
The center iceman was also named the recipient of the Billy Riley Unsung Hero Award. The award is named for the former long time coach who took the program from practices on a frozen over tennis court to three Division II National Championships and raised the program to Division I and NCAA Tournament berth. Sodergren was recognized for his hard work and battles in the "dirty areas" of the ice.
Forward
Reid Stefanson (Winnipeg, Manitoba) was named the Rookie of the Year. Stefanson led UMass Lowell freshman in scoring with eight-goals and twenty-points. Among Hockey East freshmen Stefanson ranked ninth in goals and 11th in scoring.
Senior captain
Connor Wilson (Calgary, Alberta) was named the winner of the Gus Coutu award, given annually to the player who best exemplifies the spirit of the hockey program. He was praised for his leadership and never says die approach to each and every game. Wilson had seven-goals and 15-points during his final campaign.
The Coaches' Perseverance Award was a shared by a pair of seniors, goalie
Christoffer Hernberg (Espoo, Finland) and defenseman
Avni Berisha (Lake Ariel, Penn.) Berisha a hard working stay at home defenseman played in a career high 34 games during the 2018-19 season. Lauded for his work ethic and mentoring of younger players, Berisha picked up four-points during the season. Hernberg shared the goaltending responsibilities during the season and finished the year with an 8-6-2 record and three shutouts. Hernberg recorded a 2.35 goals against average and a .915 save percentage.
Junior forward
Ryan Lohin (Chadds Ford, Pa.) packed up the G. Harvey Chandler Award, presented annually to the team leading scorer. Lohin notched 27 points (12g,15a) playing in 33 of the River Hawks 37 contests.
Director of Hockey Operations
Ryan Blair earned the Marc Connelly Award, which is given annually to a non-player who makes a positive significant impact on the program.
