The Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) has announced the 2022-23 All-Rookie Team and six student-athletes from four different programs have been recognized. Forwards Kyle Kukkonen (Michigan Tech), Joey Larson (Northern Michigan) and Lleyton Roed (Bemidji State) were joined by defensemen Dalton Norris (Bowling Green) and Josh Zinger (Northern Michigan), as well as goaltender Beni Halasz (Northern Michigan). All year-end awards were voted on by the league’s eight head coaches.
Notable Links:
Kukkonen (Maple Grove, Minn.) played in all 26 CCHA games for the Huskies and lead all rookies with 14 goals and was third with 18 points. Notching four assists, he led all skaters in game-winning goals (4) and ranked fourth in goals and goals per game (0.54), sixth in shots (82) and seventh in shots per game (3.15). He recorded five multiple-point games in conference play and was a –1 with five power play tallies and one shorthanded marker. He also blocked 12 shots at the defensive end.
Larson (Brighton, Mich.) played in 26 conference games this season, recording 10 goals and 10 assists for 20 points. Ranking fifth among all CCHA skaters with six multi-point games, he was sixth in shots per game (3.17) and eighth in shots (76). He was a –1 with four power play tallies and was second among rookies in points and points per game (0.83). He blocked 15 shots at the defensive end of the ice and had four power play tallies and one game-winner.
Roed (White Bear Lake, Minn.) was third in the league in scoring with 26 points on 12 goals and 14 assists, while playing in all 26 games. He was a +3 with three power play goals and one game-winner, ranking fourth in multi-point games with six. His 0.46 goals per game was second among rookies, while his 2.96 shots per contest was third.
Norris (Oxford, Mich.) played in all 26 CCHA contests for the Falcons, scoring one goal with seven assists for eight points. He was a +4 with 31 shots on goal, one power play tally and 19 blocked shots. He had one multi-point game and helped Bowling Green finish third in the conference standings and a home series in the opening round of the Mason Cup Playoffs. The team was fourth in the league in team goals against average (2.92).
Zinger (Red Deer, Alb.) recorded two goals and eight assists for 10 points while playing in all 26 conference games. He was a –4 with 20 blocked shots at the defensive end of the ice. Helping Northern Michigan to a 2.96 team goals against average, the Wildcats finished fourth in the league and earned a home series in the Mason Cup Playoffs.
Halasz (Budapest, Hungary) went 13-10-0 with a 2.53 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage in 24 conference games this season. Leading all CCHA rookie goalies in goals-against average, save percentage and shutouts (2), he made a total of 554 save over 1302:41 minutes of action. Overall, he was fifth in the league in GAA and sixth in SV%, helping Northern Michigan to fourth place finish.
2022-23 CCHA All-Rookie Team
|
Position
Forward
Forward
Forward
Defenseman
Defenseman
Goaltender
|
Name
Kyle Kukkonen*
Joey Larson
Lleyton Roed
Dalton Norris
Josh Zinger*
Beni Halasz
|
Year
Fr.
Fr.
Fr.
Fr.
Fr.
Fr.
|
School
Michigan Tech
Northern Michigan
Bemidji State
Bowling Green
Northern Michigan
Northern Michigan
|
* - Unanimous selection
More conference awards will be announced throughout the week, including the All-CCHA Second Team and All-CCHA First Team, tomorrow at 11am ET/10am CT and 1pm ET/12pm CT, respectively.
The 2023 Mason Cup Championship Game is scheduled for Saturday night in Mankato, Minn. (6:07pm CT), where top-seed Minnesota State (24-12-1) hosts fourth-seed Northern Michigan (21-16-0) with an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Championship on the line.
Saturday’s title game can be seen on FloHockey by using the FloSports App and Live Stats will also be available here.
The FloSports App can be accessed on all screens and streaming devices by downloading the FloSports app on Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Apple TV, the App Store and Google Play Store. Additionally, FloSports can be accessed on any smart device browser by visiting FloHockey.tv.
For more information, contact:
Perry Laskaris
Director of Strategic Communications & Brand Advancement
Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA)
Laskaris@ccha.com
(651) 308-1065