Keen was a 2016-17 Canada West First Team All-Star after she finished the 2016-17 conference regular season with points in nine of last 11 games and ended up with nine goals and 25 assists while playing in all 28 conference games.
Keen on History
Bisons forward Lauryn Keen named the Canada West women’s hockey outstanding player of the year; head coach Jon Rempel selected as coach of the year
For the first time in program history, the University of Manitoba Bisons can claim the conference’s top player as their own.
Bisons forward Lauryn Keen was named the Canada West Women’s Hockey Outstanding Player of the Year Thursday, becoming the first Manitoba player in the two-decade history of Canada West women’s hockey to earn the title.
Keen registered a Canada West-leading 34 points this season, which was good for fifth nationally and was seven points clear of UBC’s Casandra Vilgrain for the conference lead.
Along with Keen, U of M head coach Jon Rempel was also honoured by the conference as this year’s best, being named 2016-17 Coach of the Year.
Keen also captured the Canada West conference women’s hockey scoring title with 34 points (nine goals, 25 assists)
The Agricultural and Food Sciences student now moves forward as the Canada West nominee for the U SPORTS Brodrick Trophy as the nation’s top player.
“Lauryn had a fantastic year and was perhaps our most consistent performer game in and game out the entire season,” said Rempel. “She has incredible hockey intellect, an amazing ability around the net and is very creative and supportive of her teammates and line mates. Being named the Outstanding Player is a huge accomplishment in a conference that boasts a lot of really talented, hard-working players. Our team and program are very happy for Lauryn as she rightly deserves this award.”
Now 13 seasons into his tenure as the head coach of the Bisons women’s hockey squad, Rempel has emerged as one of the top coaches in the country. With 173 career regular season wins to his name, Rempel has built Manitoba into a perennial contender for the Canada West title and guided the Herd to a 16-7-3-2 record in 2016-17.
The win marks Rempel’s fourth conference Coach of the Year title. He now moves forward as the Canada West nominee for the U SPORTS Coach of the Year award, where he will be looking to claim the national award for the first time in his career.
“The selection of Jon Rempel as Canada West Women’s Hockey Coach of the Year is an honour for Bison Sports, and deserved recognition of his contribution,” said U of M director of athletics and recreation, Gene Muller.
“He is a dedicated and passionate coach and a true servant of our women’s hockey program. His impact is especially noticeable in the number of Bison athletes selected for the Canada West all-star teams. We are proud of his achievement.”