Michigan State University Athletics
Miller, Lerg Win CCHA Honors
3/16/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
March 16, 2006
Detroit, Mich. - Michigan State junior captain Drew Miller (East Lansing, Mich.) and freshman goaltender Jeff Lerg (Livonia, Mich.) have been named major award winners at the CCHA Awards Banquet, held on Thursday, March 16, at the Fox Theatre in Detroit. Lerg was named the league's Rookie of the Year, while Miller earned both the Best Defensive Forward accolade as well as the Ilitch Humanitarian Award.
Miller is the fourth Spartan to be named the Best Defensive Forward recipient, joining Mike York (1999), Shawn Horcoff (2000) and John Nail (2001). While garnering much attention over the last week for his offensive exploits against Alaska Fairbanks in the CCHA quarterfinals (four goals, three assists), Miller is second on the team (and is tops among forwards with a plus/minus rating of +8, while leading the team in goals (17), assists (24), and points (41). He has taken just 15 minor penalties in 40 games, and skates in all situations for the Spartans. He has scored eight times on the power play, once shorthanded, and four of his goals on the season have stood as game-winners.
An excellent two-way player who is strong on the puck, Miller helps contribute to a Spartan defense which ranks ninth nationally in team defense, allowing just 2.34 goals per game.
In addition, Miller was named the recipient of the Ilitch Humanitarian Award. Miller was a driving force behind the creation of the Spartan Buddies Program, where MSU student-athletes are "buddies" with pediatric patients at Sparrow Hospital. He has also involved himself with countless other community and campus programs, including MSU's "Teams for Toys", Children's Miracle Network, Special Olympics, the Adaptive Sports Festival, and DARE. In addition to the Ilitch Award, the junior is one of seven finalists for the Hockey Humanitarian Award, one of the two premiere individual awards in college hockey. Miller is one of two CCHA players to make the cut; the winner will be announced on April 7 at the Frozen Four in Milwaukee.
Lerg has had an outstanding freshman campaign, and is one of just four Michigan State players to ever win the league's honor for first-year players (Bill Shibicky (1984), Joe Murphy (1986) and Rod Brind'Amour (1989). The backstop owns a season goals against average of 2.02 (sixth nationally) and a save percentage of .925, which ranks ninth in the country. His current goals against average ranks as the seventh-lowest in Michigan State history, while his save percentage ranks sixth. Since January 1, Lerg has played in 19 of Michigan State's 20 games, and he boasts a 1.82 GAA and .933 save percentage, boasting a 13-3-3 record.
Last week, Lerg was named a member of the CCHA All-Rookie Team, with classmates Tim Kennedy (Buffalo, NY), Justin Abdelkader (Muskegon, Mich.) and Tim Crowder (Victoria, BC) were honorable mention selections. Senior blueliner Corey Potter (Mason, Mich.) was named an Honorable Mention selection to the All-CCHA team, as was Lerg.
Michigan State continues its quest for the 2006 Mason Cup this weekend in Detroit, when it takes on archrival Michigan in the semifinals on Friday evening. Gametime is 8 p.m. for a game which will be televised on FSN Detroit. MSU is the winningest program in CCHA Tournament history, with 10 titles, 14 finals appearances, 21 semifinal appearances, and an overall record of 74-21 (.779) in tournament games.
