Leafs prospect Matthew Knies is a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award

The Hobey Baker voting is a fairly long process, going from a field of seemingly half the NCAA down to a top 10 list, and now finally there are three finalists left standing:

Knies shares the finalist standing with his linemate Logan Cooley, and fellow B1G 10 player Adam Fantilli of the University of Michigan. Cooley went in the top three of the draft last year and the same is likely true of Fantilli this season. Of the trio, only Matthew Knies isn’t a freshman, and seniority is something we have seen factor into the Hobey Baker decision making process before.

Both Logan Cooley and Adam Fantilli are superior offensive players, but there is certainly an appreciation for Knies total game, what he does away from the puck, as well as who doesn’t love a traditional power forward?

In the event that Knies wins, he’d be the second player in the Leafs system to pick up the award in the past two seasons. Dryden McKay, who is on an AHL contract and largely playing in Newfoundland picked up the Hobey Baker last year. Prior to that the winner was Cole Caufield, so the Hobey Baker winners vary significantly when it comes to their career trajectory, but it certainly doesn’t hurt to win it or even be considered one of the top contenders for it.

The announcement of the winner will come during the Frozen Four weekend (April 6-8) where Matthew Knies will be playing for the National Championship with the University of Minnesota.