Head Coach Derek Schooley joins Tim Benz and Josh Taylor to preview game vs. Army, win and the Colonials move on the the Finals and a chance to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
Robert Morris University men’s hockey senior forward Zac Lynch has been named a top 10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, the highest honor awarded in men’s NCAA hockey.
Lynch presently leads all active players in career scoring with 153 career points (tied with two others), averaging 1.02 points per game of the course of his career (66 G – 87 A – 153 P). The Pittsburgh native is tied for second in the NCAA in scoring with 52 points on 24 goals and 28 assists, and is the Atlantic Hockey scoring champion.
Lynch broke the Robert Morris program scoring record with his 151st career point. Lynch has scored eight shorthanded goals this season, most by any current player, and holds the Robert Morris program record with 14 shorthanded goals in his career. Lynch scored a shorthanded goal in four consecutive games this season (11/20 & 11/21 vs. Army and 11/27 & 11/28 vs. Sacred Heart.
Lynch has skated in every game this season as the right winger on the Colonials top line. There have been just three games during the 2015-16 season in which Lynch did not record a point. Lynch has tallied 13 multi-point games this season and has posted three-points games five times. Lynch was named Three Rivers Classic tournament MVP after scoring three goals, helping the Colonials beat No. 14 Penn State and No. 8 UMass-Lowell. Lynch is part of the Colonials power play, ranked number one in the nation throughout much of the season and currently fourth in the NCAA, converting at a 28.8 percent clip.
Lynch is among the best career performers active in college hockey. Zac is among the top ten nationally in four categories: Points (153 points, 1st), Goals (66 Goals, 4th), Assists (87 Assists, 4th), Shorthanded Goals (14 SHG, 1st). Lynch is also 11th in power play goals with 18 and tied for 30th in game-winning goals with eight.
Lynch is the second Robert Morris hockey player to be a top ten finalist for the Hobey Baker, following Cody Wydo ’15 who was in the top ten last season. Lynch’s fellow seniors Greg Gibson and Brandon Denham were also nominees this year.
Lynch is the first Pittsburgh area native to be named a top ten finalist since Plum’s R.J. Umberger, now with the Philadelphia Flyers, was a finalist for Ohio State in 2003.
The second phase of fan balloting will run March 17-27 (top ten candidates only).The Hobey Hat Trick (three finalists) will be announced on March 31, 2016 and the Hobey Baker Award winner will be announced Friday, April 8, 2016 from Tampa, FL during the NCAA Frozen Four. The award announcement will take place at the historic Tampa Theatre, built in 1926 as one of America’s most elaborate movie palaces. The announcement will be televised live on the NHL Network and can be followed on the Hobey Baker website at 6:00 p.m. ET.
Complete list of top ten finalists: JT Compher, Michigan, Kyle Connor, Michigan, Thatcher Demko, Boston College, Zac Lynch, Robert Morris, Alex Lyon, Yale, Tyler Motte, Michigan, Alex Petan, Michigan Tech, Andrew Poturalski, New Hampshire, Ethan Prow, St. Cloud State, Jimmy Vesey, Harvard.