(Rochester, NY)… The Rochester Americans are proud to announce that Nick Petrecki has been named the team’s winner of the IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year award for his outstanding contributions to the Rochester community during the 2014-15 season.
A prior winner of the AHL’s Yanick Dupre Memorial Award in 2011-12, Petrecki has made an instant impact in the Rochester community during his first full season with the Amerks. Not only has he been actively involved in a variety of causes, he has also encouraged teammates to become even more active in the community as he led several initiatives throughout the season.
Petrecki’s primary focus throughout the course of the season has been volunteering his time with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Rochester, an organization that provides youth with development programs that enable young people to acquire the skills and qualities needed to become responsible citizens and leaders. His involvement with the group began when he and several teammates served Thanksgiving dinner to hundreds of kids in November, but it quickly grew deeper. Whether on his own or with teammates, Petrecki made regular visits to the Club, working with their accelerated reading program, bringing the Amerks reading program to the Club, and simply participating in games with the kids. He also hosted groups from the Boys & Girls Club at Amerks games once a month throughout the year and always took time to meet with them afterwards.
Looking to provide more for the Boys & Girls Clubs, Petrecki spearheaded two initiatives. First, he coordinated a Hat, Coat and Mitten Drive in December, partnering with a local youth hockey player who operates his own coat collection organization called Warm Hearts Warm Bodies by Colin, to collect hundreds of items that were delivered to the Boys & Girls Clubs just before Christmas. Petrecki and several teammates also purchased books off of the Club’s reading list to donate to the accelerated reading program.
During the holidays, Petrecki was sure to assist as many children as possible. In addition to the Hat, Coat and Mitten Drive he led, he and his teammates personally purchased a wide variety of toys and gifts for three different entities: the Golisano Children’s Hospital, the Pirate Toy Fund and an underprivileged family sponsored by the Amerks Booster Club.
Petrecki is now one of 30 finalists for the AHL’s 2014-15 Yanick Dupre Memorial Award, honoring the overall IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year. The league award is named after the former Hershey Bears forward and AHL All-Star who died in 1997 following a 16-month battle with leukemia. The winner of the Yanick Dupre Memorial Award will be announced by the American Hockey League later this month.
