Michigan Tech goaltender Blake Pietila prepare for an incoming shot during a game against St. Thomas Saturday at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena. Pietila has been named a candidate for the Hobey Baker Award this season. (David Archambeau/For the Gazette)

HOUGHTON — Michigan Tech senior goaltender Blake Pietila is a candidate for the 2023 Hobey Baker Award, given annually to college hockey’s top player. The Hobey Baker’s tremendously popular fan-voting will run from now until Sunday, March 5, at hobeybaker.com/vote. Pietila is on the ballot for the third straight season.

Pietila is a senior from Howell, Michigan, and has started 23 of Tech’s 25 games this season. He leads the nation with five shutouts, is sixth nationally with 14 wins, sixth in minutes played, 11th in save percentage (.924), 14th in winning percentage (.652), and 14th in goals-against average (2.12). A mechanical engineering major, Pietila had a 4.0 grade-point average in the fall and holds a 3.2 cumulative GPA.

Pietila was named the CCHA Goaltender of the Month for October, the CCHA Goaltender of the Week three times, and the Most Valuable Player of the Desert Hockey Classic. For his career, he has been a two-time finalist for the Mike Richter Award and is on the 2023 Mike Richter Award Watch List again this season. He has been named to the CCHA and WCHA All-Academic Teams over the past two seasons.

Pietila was an All-CCHA Second Team selection as a junior and holds the Michigan Tech record for shutouts in a career (15) and season (7). As a sophomore, he broke the school records for the best save percentage (.934) and goals-against average (1.81) for a season.

After the preliminary round of fan voting, the Top 10 nominees will advance through a second round of voting set for March 17-26 in hopes of being selected for the “Hobey Hat Trick,” which narrows the field to its final three candidates announced on March 30. The Hobey Baker Memorial Award winner will then be revealed on April 7 at the 2023 Frozen Four in Tampa, Fla. 

Award criteria include candidates exhibiting the exceptional character traits of the award’s namesake, Hobey Baker. A legendary American hero, Baker was a World War I fighter pilot and was known as America’s greatest amateur athlete in his day, excelling at hockey and football at Princeton University. Award candidates must demonstrate strength of character both on and off the ice, contribute to the integrity of his team and display outstanding skills in all phases of the game. Consideration should be given to scholastic achievement and sportsmanship.