E.H.C. European Hockey Awards announced
17 Jun 2023 | Alliance of European Hockey Clubs
The 2023 Fenix Outdoor European Hockey Awards were announced by the Alliance of European Hockey Clubs (E.H.C.). This is the seventh year the E.H.C. is recognizing the best accomplishments in European clubs and leagues
The
winners:
Young Player of the Year – presented by Fjällräven
William Wallinder (Rögle BK, SWE/SHL) – In just his second full SHL
season, the 20-year-old established himself as Rögle’s top defenceman. A big,
smooth-skating, puck-carrying rearguard, his average ice time of 21:27 led his
team and was 10th in the whole league. Offensively, Wallinder’s
26 points in 50 games was 13th in the league among defencemen
and tied him for tops among all players 20 and under at any position. In the
playoffs, he added three more points in 9 games and in the Champions Hockey
League he was even more prolific with 8 points in 9 games.
Other nominees: Leo Carlsson (Örebro Hockey, SWE), Leevi
Meriläinen (Kärpät Oulu, FIN), Aku Räty (Ilves
Tampere, FIN), David Reinbacher (EHC Kloten, SUI)
Coach
of the Year – presented by Globetrotter
Jussi Tapola (Tappara
Tampere, FIN/Liiga) – When Tapola came on board in 2012, Tappara had missed the playoffs twice
in a row and hadn’t won a title since 2003. The team
promptly made the Liiga finals five years in a row under his guidance, winning
twice. After a three-year absence, Tapola returned to the bench in 2020. This season was the second straight
in which Tappara finished first in the regular season and won the playoffs, and
this year they added a CHL title to make it a “treble”. All of this has made
Tapola a highly sought-after coach, and next season he begins a new challenge
behind the bench of SC Bern.
Other
nominees: Jan
Cadieux (Genève-Servette, SUI), Jörgen Jönsson (Växjö
Lakers, SWE), Tommi Niemelä (Pelicans Lahti, FIN), Antti Törmänen(EHC Biel-Bienne, SUI)
Club
of the Year – presented by Hanwag
Tappara
Tampere (FIN/Liiga)
– Over the past 11 seasons, Tappara has dominated Finnish hockey with four
Liiga titles, eight finals appearances and never finishing worse than 4th in
the regular season. The
team has been especially dominant in the past two seasons in the new
state-of-the-art Nokia Arena. Last year, a domestic double and lost in the CHL
final. This year, they took care of unfinished business by taking the “treble”.
They became the second Finnish club to win the CHL with a 3-2 road win over
Luleå, then edged local rival Ilves to top the standings before going 12-2 in
the playoffs.
Other
nominated clubs: Belfast
Giants (GBR), Genève-Servette (SUI), Oceláři Třinec(CZE), Växjö Lakers (SWE)
Warrior Career
Excellence Award
The
Warrior of the Year is awarded to the player who best exemplifies the qualities
of sportsmanship, dedication and career excellence, combined with community service and a high standard of playing ability.
Patrick
Reimer (Nürnberg Ice Tigers, GER/DEL) – Just call him Herr DEL. He’s the German league’s
all-time leader in goals (349) and points (768). Reimer was the league’s Rookie of the Year in 2004/05 when he broke in
with Düsseldorf . He won the MVP three times
in 2014, 2016 and 2017, leading the league in points each of the last two. For
the past 11 seasons, he was captain
of the Nürnburg Ice Tigers, retiring this spring
after 43 points in
49 games. Internationally, he
represented Germany at
five World Championships and was part of the
2018 Olympic silver medal team.
Other nominees: Roman Červenka (R-Jona
Lakers, SUI), Valtteri Filppula (Genève-Servette, SUI),
Joakim
Lindström (Skellefteå
AIK, SWE), Tomáš Plekanec (Rytíři Kladno, CZE)
E.H.C. Leadership Award
To be awarded to a distinguished leader in European club ice hockey for
their outstanding commercial and social accomplishments within their club and
their community.
Robert Fitzpatrick (Belfast Giants, EIHL) – The CEO of
the Belfast Giants took over the ownership of the EIHL club some ten years at a
critical time for the Giants as their immediate future was at risk. But seeing
the bigger picture – the enormous impact that the “neutral” sport of ice hockey
had within the adverse communities of Northern Ireland – Robert Fitzpatrick
didn’t blink at taking control despite that the team was losing money at that
time. Under his leadership, the Giants have become the best night out in
Belfast, while asserting themselves as the top hockey club in Great Britain, and
with European ambitions.
Kånken Youth
Retention Award
To be awarded annually to an ice hockey youth program which emphasizes
sustainability through social responsibility and high retention rates among its
participants.
Kárpáti Farkasok (HUN) – Only in its fourth season of activity, the
club from the outskirts of the capital Budapest have 300 young players and they receive the award along with a €10,000
cheque for their social approach, for
creating different and customized practice and competition levels and the
ambition to maintain a high retention rate among its club members.
Other finalists: Academy Rudi Hiti Bled (SLO), Barani Banská
Bystrica (SVK), DHC Icecats Linz (AUT), EC Red Bull Salzburg (AUT)