Spartans' Augustine Named Semifinalist for Two Major Awards
Michigan State sophomore goaltender Trey Augustine has put together an impressive season between the pipes for one of the top programs in the country.
This week, he received a pair of well-deserved semifinalist nominations for two of the biggest awards in the sport.
On Thursday, the Hockey Commissioners Association announced Augustine as a Top-10 semifinalist for the Mike Richter Award, given to the best goaltender in the country, while the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) revealed him to be a Top-10 semifinalist for the AAU James E. Sullivan Award, honoring the top amateur athlete in the country.
There are few awards that hold more weight than the two that Augustine received nominations for this week. It marks the second year that Augustine has been selected as a Richter Award semifinalist. The winner is decided based on votes from a select group of coaches, scouts, and media members.
The South Lyon, Michigan native is the youngest starting goaltender in college hockey this season and has played as one of the best. Not even 20 years old yet, Augustine has helped the Spartans to a 22-5-3 record, with 18 of those wins coming with him in net.
Through 32 games this season, Augustine is just one of three college goaltenders to play over 67% of their team's season, along with facing a Top-10 strength of schedule this year. He currently holds a .928 save percentage, which ranks 13th in the nation, and a goals-against average of 2.07 (12th).
The sophomore netminder had to miss four games earlier this season for the IIHF World Junior Championships, representing Team USA. He became the all-time winningest goalie in his country's history with 12 and became the first goaltender to ever lead Team USA to back-to-back gold medals.
We will have to wait until April to see who is named the winner of each award, but what Augustine has done so far this season has given him a fair chance to win each one. The Spartans have just four regular season games left as they seek to seal a second-straight Big Ten title with Augustine in net.
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