By: Mackenzie Larson, HWS Athletic Communications
Two members of the Hobart College hockey team were recognized by the American Hockey Coaches Association as finalists for the organization’s year-end awards. Head Coach Mark Taylor is a finalist for the Edward Jeremiah Award and sophomore forward Luke Aquaro was named a finalist for the Sid Watson Award.
The Edward Jeremiah Award is given annually to the College Division Men’s Ice Hockey Coach of the Year. Named in honor of the former Dartmouth head coach and sponsored by CCM, the Jeremiah Award will be announced on Thursday, March 23, in the lead-up to this weekend’s national semifinals in Beverly, Massachusetts. This is the ninth time that Taylor has been a finalist for the award.
The Sid Watson Award is given annually to the country’s best NCAA Division II-III men’s ice hockey player. The recipient of this year’s Sid Watson Award will also be announced on Thursday. Sponsored by the AHCA, the Watson Award honors the memory of former Bowdoin College head coach and athletic director Sid Watson. A three-time AHCA Coach of the Year, Watson served Bowdoin for more than 30 years. Aquaro is Hobart’s first finalist for the Sid Watson Award since Mac Olson ’16 was nominated during his senior season.
Taylor, the 2023 New England Hockey Conference Coach of the Year, guided the Statesmen to a 27-2-0 record entering the national semifinals. The 27 wins are the most in a single season in program history. The Statesmen went 19-0-0 on home ice this season. Hobart captured its second consecutive NEHC regular season title with a 16-2-0 mark in conference play. The Statesmen then defeated Babson 5-1 to claim the NEHC tournament title. Hobart earned the league’s automatic bid, marking its eighth consecutive selection to the NCAA tournament. The Statesmen defeated Curry 5-1 in the quarterfinals, securing their fourth trip to the national semifinals.
Now in his 23rd year in charge of Hobart, Taylor has a 376-174-54 overall record. He is just the fourth man to lead the Statesmen and has more wins than all of his predecessors combined. Taylor has been named the conference coach of the year eight times, he has been named the NEHC Coach of the Year twice and the ECAC West Coach of the Year six times. All 16 of Hobart’s All-Americans have come during Taylor’s tenure.
The 2023 NEHC Player of the Year, Aquaro has played in 25 games this season. He leads the Statesmen with 19 goals and 36 points. Aquaro is third on the team with 17 assists. He has recorded at least one point in nine of Hobart’s last ten games including two goals in the NEHC championship game. Aquaro has a program record seven game-winning goals. Entering the NCAA tournament, Aquaro led the nation in game-winning goals, was fourth in the nation in goals per game (0.79) and 12th in the nation in points per game (1.46).
The 2022 NEHC Rookie of the Year, Aquaro has played in 51 career games. He has 35 goals, 33 assists and 68 points. Among active skaters in Division III, Aqaro is fifth in the nation in goals per game (0.70) and ninth in points per game (1.34).
