Gensler Named 60th Recipient of Walter Brown Award
WALTHAM, Mass. – The Gridiron Club of Greater Boston announced on Thursday that Bentley University sophomore forward Brett Gensler (St. Charles, Mo./Youngstown Phantoms) has been named the 60th recipient of the Walter Brown Award, which is given annually to the best American-born college hockey player in New England.
Gensler is the first player ever from an Atlantic Hockey school to win the award. He finished ahead of runner-up Barry Almeida of Boston College and Brian Flynn of Maine.
The Walter Brown Award has a rich history, as it is the oldest nationally recognized award given to individual players in college hockey. It's criteria for selection includes leadership, character, sportsmanship, ability and on-ice achievement. Its past winners include several prominent former, and current NHL players like Brian Leetch, Chris Drury and Brian Gionta.
"I'm honored to be the first Atlantic Hockey player ever to win such a prestigious award. There were a lot of other deserving players throughout New England that were nominated that I would like to congratulate for their successful seasons," said Gensler. "I want to thank Bentley University for giving me this opportunity, as well as acknowledge the support of my coaching staff, teammates and the Bentley community; without their support this achievement would not have been possible."
Gensler had an outstanding season for the Falcons, helping them improve by 10 points in the Atlantic Hockey standings from last season and up four places. He won the AHA regular season scoring title with 41 points in 34 games. He finished with 23 goals and 27 assists for 50 points overall, becoming just the second player in program history to have at least 50 points in a season. He's one of just eight Division I players that has at least 50 points, and he's currently tied for seventh nationally in both points and goals.
The sophomore also broke two program Division I single-season records this year for goals and points. Last week Gensler became the first Bentley player ever to earn first team All-Atlantic Hockey honors.
The Walter Brown Award will be presented at the New England College Hockey Writers' Dinner on April 10 in Saugus, Mass.