DANBURY, Conn. – After a three-point outing on Tuesday night, sophomore forward Stephen Gaul (Downers Grove, Ill./Springfield Pics (USPHL)) of the Manhattanville College men’s hockey team was named the ECAC West Conference Player of the Week for the first time this season, the conference office announced on Monday afternoon.
Gaul is the sixth Valiant to be honored by the ECAC West Conference this season and the third to be named the conference’s Player of the Week. It is the first career Player of the Week honor for Gaul, who was twice named the ECAC West Rookie of the Week last season on the way to ECAC West All-Rookie recognition.
Gaul led Manhattanville to a 5-2 win over Elmira and the second seed in the ECAC West Conference Tournament on Tuesday night with two goals and an assist for three points. The sophomore scored twice in 57 seconds to put the Valiants ahead and then assisted on the final goal of the game as the squad completed the season sweep of the Soaring Eagles.
On the season, Gaul leads the Valiants and ranks fourth in the ECAC West Conference with 14 goals to go with nine assists for 23 points. His 14 goals are the most by a Valiant underclassman since Jason Murfitt ’08 potted 16 in 2005-06 and are the sixth-most scored by a Valiant freshman or sophomore in program history.
In less than two full seasons with Manhattanville, Gaul already ranks second among active Valiants in career scoring with 22 goals and 16 assists for 38 points in 51 games in a Valiant uniform. His six game-winning goals already tie him for eighth place on the school career list, helped by his conference-best four game-winners so far this season.
Gaul will lead Manhattanville (12-12-1, 8-7-0 ECAC West) into the ECAC West Tournament semifinals on Saturday, when the Valiants will host the highest remaining seed from Wednesday’s first-round games at 7 p.m. at Playland Ice Casino. Check back to GoValiants.com later this week for a full postseason preview.
