The NCHC announced Monday that Minnesota Duluth junior forward Kobe Roth is the 2019-20 Sportsmanship Award winner, while North Dakota junior forward Jordan Kawaguchi and UMD junior defenseman Scott Perunovich split the NCHC’s Three Stars Award as co-winners.
In addition, Dave Starman of CBS Sports Network was named the conference’s third annual Media Excellence Award winner.
Roth played in all 34 games for the Bulldogs this season while not committing a single penalty. He has committed only three minor penalties in his 106-game career, two of which came as a freshman, and he has never committed a major penalty.
This season, Roth scored a career-high 13 goals, part of a career-best 21 points with a plus-6 plus/minus rating.
Kawaguchi and Perunovich both earned First Star of the Game four times in conference play and both totaled 30 points in Three Stars of the Game voting (using a 5-3-1 scale) in conference games.
Starman has become synonymous with the NCHC, as the CBS Sports Network color analyst has been a stalwart on league broadcasts since the conference began play. Starman was on the call for the NCHC’s first-ever conference game, which aired on CBS Sports Network from Oxford, Ohio, on Oct. 18, 2013.
A fan favorite and passionate advocate for the NCHC, Starman puts in hours of work during the week watching and analyzing games and preparing for broadcasts. Once on site, he interviews several players and coaches to complement his already vast knowledge. In addition, he has attended several NCHC Media Days, conducting interviews and gathering background information for the season.
Starman has been broadcasting college hockey games for a total of 16 seasons, dating back to CSTV (precursor to CBS Sports Network) in 2003-04, while also serving as a scout in the NHL for multiple teams over the years.
Along with play-by-play announcer Ben Holden and rinkside reporter Shireen Saski, Starman helps make up one of the best broadcast teams on television.
On Tuesday, the NCHC will announce both Offensive and Defensive Defenseman of the Year and Goaltender of the Year, while Wednesday the conference will award Forward, Defensive Forward and Rookie of the Year. Finally, on Thursday, NCHC Player of the Year, Herb Brooks Coach of the Year and Senior Scholar-Athlete will be named.
