Five Men's Ice Hockey Players Named to New England Hockey Writers All-Star Team

BOSTON, Mass. – Five individuals representing four different NESCAC institutions have been selected to the New England Hockey Writers Division II/III All-Star team. Instead of splitting the squads into ECAC East/NESCAC and ECAC Northeast All-Stars, all Division II and III teams in New England were voted on as a whole. The honorees will be recognized on Wednesday, April 13 at the Prince Restaurant in Saugus, Mass.

Returning to the All-New England Writers' team from last year was Bowdoin senior defender Kyle Shearer-Hardy. He was joined from the Polar Bears by sophomore forward Daniel Weiniger. Tufts senior forward Tom Derosa garnered All-New England for the second time in his career after being named to the team following the 2008-09 season. Rounding out the NESCAC players on the squad were goaltenders Wesley Vesprini of Trinity and Ryan Purdy of Williams.

The only member from the 2010 All-NESCAC First Team to return on the 2011 edition, Shearer-Hardy garnered All-NESCAC accolades for the third consecutive year after being named to the Second Team in 2009. Shearer-Hardy had his finest season in a Polar Bear sweater, registering a career-high 38 points on nine goals and a league-leading 29 assists to pace all defenseman and rank second in the league overall. Half of the senior's points have come on the power play (5-14-19), as Bowdoin boasted the most efficient man-advantage unit in the country this season with a conversion rate of .314 percent. Shearer-Hardy and company won their first-ever NESCAC crown this year and also posted the program's first NCAA tournament win. He added All-America First Team East to his cabinet of recognition back in March, as he was recognized for the second-straight year.

A year after finishing second to Shearer-Hardy in scoring for Bowdoin with 13 goals and 13 assists, Weiniger lept past his senior teammate and finished atop the NESCAC in scoring with 45 points (1.61 per game), the most by a Polar Bear since Michael Carosi recorded 47 in 2001-02. His 20 goals ranked second in the conference, while his 25 power-play points are second to none (10-15-25). Recording 14 multi-point games to just four penalties in 28 appearances this season, Weiniger strung together a 10-game scoring streak (10-14-24) midway through the year during which the Polar Bears posted a record of 8-2-0. Weiniger garnered All-America Third Team honors for his play this year.

Derosa finished his final season fifth in NESCAC scoring with 11 goals and 21 assists for 32 points in 22 games. His 1.45 points per game scoring average ranked second in the league. The 21 assists were fourth ovrall in the conference, while his 0.95 assists per game average was also second. He netted 10 power-play points (3-7-10). For the third season in a row, the NESCAC men's ice hockey coaches selected Derosa as one of the top players in the league by virtue of his placement on the 2011 All-Conference Second Team.

An All-Conference Second Team selection in 2008 and again in 2010, Vesprini was a consistent presence in net for the Bantams over his four years, going 48-27-7 with a 2.37 goals against average, a .924 save percentage, eight shutouts, and leading Trinity to the 2008 NESCAC crown in his rookie season. He finished 2010-11 second in the conference in goals against average at 2.36 and first in save percentage with a .927 figure. Vesprini joined Bowdoin's Weiniger on the All-America Third Team this year.

Purdy earned All-NESCAC Second Team honors during his junior campaign with the Ephs, as he went 16-8-3 over 27 starts with a league-leading 2.24 goals against average and a .923 save percentage (2nd NESCAC). Purdy helped Williams, the second seed in this year's NESCAC Men's Ice Hockey Championship, reach the final for only the second time in tournament history. He was also a finalist for the Joe Concannon Award along with Bowdoin's Weiniger.