Offensive Player of the Week
Craig Smith - Sophomore, Forward
University of Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin center iceman Craig Smith, who led all league players with three goals and six points while helping the host Badgers to a two-game sweep over Canisius last weekend, has been named the Red Baron® WCHA Offensive Player of the Week for Jan. 11, 2011.
A 6-0, 196-pound sophomore from Madison, Wis., Smith posted six points, six shots on goal and was a +3 in the two wins vs Canisius, including a team season-high four points in last Saturday's (Jan. 8) 6-5 (ot) victory. In the series opener Friday (Jan. 7), Smith scored UW's second goal in a 3-0 victory at 9:43 of the third period. He then assisted on UW's final goal late in the third to seal the victory and finished with two shots and a +2 rating. Last Saturday, Smith tallied two goals and added two assists for four points to pace the Badgers to their seventh straight win. He scored his 12th of the season in highlight-reel fashion, stick-handling down the slot around three Canisius players to put UW up 3-0 just shy of the midpoint of the second. Then with his team trailing 5-4 with less than 4:00 remaining in the third, Smith scored to tie the game at 16:26 to force overtime and then assisted on the game-winner in the extra session.
A draftee of the NHL's Nashville Predators, Smith's six-point weekend elevated him into the Wisconsin scoring lead with 31 points. His 13 goals are tied for the team lead.
Also nominated this week: Matt Read, F, BSU; Corban Knight, F, UND; Drew LeBlanc, F, SCSU
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