The Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) has announced its Players of the Month for January and four student-athletes from four different programs have been recognized. Austen Swankler (Bowling Green) earned Forward of the Month for the second time in a row, while Akito Hirose (Minnesota State) was the Defenseman of the Month. Blake Pietila (Michigan Tech) collected his second Goaltender of the Month honor this season and Lleyton Roed (Bemidji State) was the Rookie of the Month.
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CCHA Forward of the Month: Austen Swankler, So., Bowling Green (North Huntingdon, Pa.)
Swankler posted a CCHA-best 1.67 points per game in January, registering 10 points on two goals and eight assists over six league contests. Notching at least one point in each of Bowling Green’s games, he extended his nation-leading point streak to 18, which included a four-point outburst (1 goal, 3 assists) against Lake Superior State on January 7. The reigning HCA National Player of the Month was a conference-best +9, while also leading the league in assists per game (1.33). He totaled 18 shots and blocked two at the defensive end, while winning 53.1% (51-of-96) of his face-offs.
CCHA Defenseman of the Month: Akito Hirose, Jr., Minnesota State (Calgary, Alb.)
Hirose helped No. 13 Minnesota State to a perfect 8-0-0 January, leading the team in points (10), assists (7), game-winning goals (2) and plus/minus (+9). Finishing the month on a six-game point streak, he scored all three of his goals on the season in consecutive games (Jan. 14-21), leading the Mavericks to a win at Arizona State and a sweep of Lake Superior State. He recorded 15 shots on goal and blocked eight defensively, while propelling the Minnesota penalty kill to a 91.3% (21-of-23) success rate and quarterbacking the power play to a league-high 29.6% (8-of-27) in January.
CCHA Goaltender of the Month: Blake Pietila, Sr., Michigan Tech (Howell, Mich.)
Pietila led the No. 12 Huskies to a 6-1-1 month of January, posting NCAA-bests in a goals-against average (1.37), save percentage (.947) and shutouts (3) among netminders who played at least five games. Making 25+ saves in four of his eight starts, he turned away 27, 21 and 20 in his three shutouts, helping Michigan Tech to victories over St. Thomas, Ferris State and rival Northern Michigan, respectively. The month was highlighted by a 31-save outing against then-No. 6 Boston University in the Desert Hockey Classic Championship, handing the Terriers their only loss in their last 10 games to date.
CCHA Rookie of the Week: Lleyton Roed, Fr., Bemidji State (White Bear Lake, Minn.)
A three-time CCHA Rookie of the Week honoree in January, Roed paced all CCHA freshmen with eight points on two goals and six assists in eight January contests, ranking second on the Beavers in overall scoring. During the month he had a four-game point streak, while notching at least one point in six games, with a team-best 29 shots. He assisted on the game-winning goal on January 27 at Lake Superior State and produced a two-point game (1 goal, 1 assist) in a home victory over Northern Michigan on January 20.
For more information, contact:
Perry Laskaris
Director of Strategic Communications & Brand Advancement
Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA)
Laskaris@ccha.com
(651) 308-1065
2022-23 CCHA Monthly Awards
Forward:
January 2023: Austen Swankler (BGSU)**
December 2022: Austen Swankler (BGSU)
November, 2022: David Silye (MSU)
October, 2022: AJ Vanderbeck (NMU)
Defenseman:
January 2023: Akito Hirose (MSU)
December 2022: Will Zmolek (BSU)
November, 2022: Brett Thorne (MTU)
October, 2022: Jake Livingstone (MSU)
Goaltender:
January 2023: Blake Pietila (MTU)
December 2022: Mattias Sholl (BSU)
November, 2022: Christian Stoever (BGSU)
October, 2022: Blake Pietila (MTU)
Rookie:
January 2023: Lleyton Roed (BSU)
December 2022: Christian Fitzgerald (MSU)
November, 2022: Beni Halasz (NMU)**
October, 2022: Beni Halasz (NMU)
* = Times earned award this year