COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – After pacing each of their teams in scoring during the month of November, Denver sophomore forward Henrik Borgström has been named the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Player of the Month, while Minnesota Duluth freshman defenseman Scott Perunovich was selected the NCHC Rookie of the Month for the month of November, the NCHC announced Wednesday. This is Borgström’s second career NCHC monthly honor, previously earning NCHC Rookie of the Month for October 2016.
NCHC PLAYER OF THE MONTH
Henrik Borgström, Denver
Sophomore Forward
Helsinki, Finland
Borgström continued his torrid start to the 2017-18 campaign in the season’s second month, logging a point in all six games he played in November, including three games with at least three points, to run his point streak to 11 games (every game this season). The Florida Panthers draft pick led all NCHC skaters and tied for the NCAA lead with 14 points in November, while his 1.33 goals per game and 2.33 points per game during the month were both best in the nation. Borgström scored eight goals in his six games, which tied for the NCHC lead and tied for third nationally in November, scoring three on the power play and adding one short-handed. He also chipped in six assists, good for one per game, as he helped DU go 3-3-0 during the month.
Borgström opened November with a five-point weekend in a pair of losses at Western Michigan Nov. 3-4. In the series opener, he tallied a career-high four points, including his first career hat trick, and posted a +3 plus-minus, while earning the game’s Third Star. The next night he added another goal for a four-goal series. The following weekend, Nov. 10-11, Borgström compiled four points in a sweep of then-No. 1 St. Cloud State. In the opener on Nov. 10, the Finn scored two goals to book-end the 4-2 victory, while assisting on the game-winning goal as well. He then chipped in an assist on a power play goal in a 5-1 win to cap the sweep a night later.
Borgström rounded out his November with another five-point weekend in a split against then-No. 3 North Dakota Nov. 17-18. After handing out a helper in the series-opening loss on Friday, he matched his career high with four points, having a hand in each goal in Saturday’s 4-1 victory, scoring two goals and adding two assists, including setting up the game-winner. Both goals came on the power play, while he was named First Star of the Game Nov. 18 and earned NCHC Offensive Player of the Week honors for his efforts. During the month, Borgström fired 27 shots on goal (4.50 shots per game), finished with a +3 plus-minus and won 34 faceoffs in six contests.
On the season, Borgström leads the NCAA with 13 goals and is third nationally with 22 points, while his 1.18 goals per game and 2.00 points per game are both tops in the country, as are his 11 power play points.
Borgström is now a candidate for Hockey Commissioners’ Association (HCA) National Player of the Month for November, which will be announced next Wednesday, Dec. 6. The other nominee for NCHC Player of the Month was Western Michigan sophomore forward Wade Allison.
NCHC ROOKIE OF THE MONTH
Scott Perunovich, Minnesota Duluth
Freshman Defenseman
Hibbing, Minn.
Perunovich paced the Bulldogs with six points in seven games in November, as UMD went 3-4-0 during the month. His six points ranked second among NCHC rookies during the month, scoring a goal and adding five assists, while he posted a +3 plus-minus and blocked 10 shots in November, both of which also ranked second among NCHC freshmen. The draft-eligible free agent notched a point in five of his seven outings, with one multi-point game, as his only scoreless contests came when UMD was shut out.
Perunovich opened his November with an assist in a loss at St. Cloud State Nov. 3. The following weekend the former Cedar Rapids Roughrider handed out another helper in UMD’s series-opening shutout win over Western Michigan Nov. 10, when he was +2.
Perunovich tallied three points in a split at Miami Nov. 17-18 and was +2 each night to earn NCHC Defenseman of the Week accolades. In Friday’s 3-1 win, he set up UMD’s first goal and capped the win with his second career goal to earn Second Star of the Game. The following night he added an assist in a 3-2 defeat. Perunovich then capped November with another assist on UMD’s third goal in a 3-1 win over then-No. 8 Minnesota State on Nov. 25 to stretch his point streak to three games, while again logging a +2 plus-minus. The Hibbing, Minn. native fired six shots on goal during the month while committing three minor penalties.
On the season, Perunovich leads the Bulldogs with 12 points on two goals and 10 assists in 15 games, while his 12 points also lead all NCHC rookies.
Perunovich is now a candidate for Hockey Commissioners’ Association (HCA) National Rookie of the Month for November, which will be announced next Wednesday, Dec. 6. The other nominees for NCHC Rookie of the Month were Denver defenseman Ian Mitchell and St. Cloud State forward Easton Brodzinski.
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