Trio of Michigan State Hockey Players Nominated for Hobey Baker Award

On Wednesday, the Hobey Baker Memorial Award announced their midseason watch list, which is awarded to the most outstanding collegiate hockey player in the NCAA. This list narrows down potential candidates, and three Michigan State hockey players made the cut. For casual readers and listeners at home, in football terms, this is the “Hockey Heisman.”

Last season, then-junior Isaac Howard won the Hobey Baker Award for the Spartans, which he then parlayed into a trade-and-sign deal to now be playing professional hockey with the Edmonton Oilers. Michigan State’s candidacy towards winning the award for back-to-back seasons appears to be off to a good start.

Meet the nominees from Michigan State hockey

The first, and most obvious, name up for the award is junior goaltender Trey Augustine. The netminder for the Spartans has been lights out, with a 15-5 record while only allowing 1.75 goals against per game. His save percentage is a gaudy 93.7%, and he has three shutouts on the campaign. Augustine has the highest save percentage across the entire NCAA for players with more than 1000 minutes played this season.

Currently, his career save percentage is second place in Michigan State hockey history, behind Ryan Miller, the 2001 Hobey Baker Award winner. Augustine is currently a Detroit Red Wings prospect, and it is likely that he is spending his final semester in East Lansing.

Charlie Stramel carries the puck during a home matchup against Wisconsin.
Nolan Gerou, Spartan Shadows

The second name to appear on this list is a senior that has stepped it up for his last campaign, Minnesota Wild prospect Charlie Stramel. The Wisconsin transfer is leading the team in points, with 29. Recently, the assistant captain has been on a tear, with seven of his 13 goals occurring in the last six games.

Stramel recently won the Great Lakes Invitational Most Valuable Player in December, and is looking for another award in his final season of collegiate play. His plus/minus of +24 is also currently a team high. Stramel’s ability as a true power forward has shone through this season for the Spartans. Currently, his 29 points ranks 13^th across the NCAA.

Porter Martone stands ready before a faceoff against Wisconsin.
Nolan Gerou, Spartan Shadows

The final name on this list is freshman and Philadelphia Flyers prospect Porter Martone. Martone is second on the team with 27 points, and a team-high 14 goals, despite missing two games due to the World Juniors, where he was the captain for Team Canada.

Martone has been a sparkplug for the Spartans this season, whether it is with electrifying goals or a bit of instigating on the ice to fire his team up while drawing opponents’ ire. His speed and finesse wow Munn Ice Arena attendees on a regular basis, and the Spartans have needed the freshman’s presence in multiple games this season. Martone is in a tie for 17^th among points scored in the NCAA. His 14 goals is tied for eighth.

One Spartan snubbed

Daniel Russell was notably left off the list. The free agent and senior is third among leading Spartan scorers. His 23 points is currently within the top 50 for the entire NCAA, with his 16 assists being top 25. The senior recently hit 100 points in his Spartan career, and then added three goals in the most recent series against Wisconsin.

While unlikely to come close to reaching finalist status for the Hobey Baker Award, including the Traverse City (MI.) native would have been a nice touch with Michigan State’s 17-5 start.

Spartans have a rich history with the Hobey Baker Award

Michigan State hockey is searching for their fourth Hobey Baker Award winner, which would join Kip Miller (1980), Ryan Miller (2001), and Howard (2025). Additionally, the Spartans are likely to secure a player ranking top ten in the Hobey Award standings for the 19th time. The most recent Hobey Award top ten finishers were Isaac Howard last season and Taro Hirose in 2019.

What is next for Michigan State hockey?

The Spartans are back in action at Munn Ice Arena this weekend, hosting Minnesota on Friday and Saturday. Friday has a puck drop at 7 p.m. EST, while Saturday’s is at 6 p.m. EST, following a home basketball game against Maryland at noon EST.

It is an excellent opportunity to spend time watching two Spartan teams in the top ten in the country going at it. For coverage of this weekend’s events, I will be covering all three for Spartan Shadows, with Ben Schadel joining me for Saturday’s basketball game. Check out both my X page and Ben Schadel’s page for content involving the games.