Verona goaltender Kaden Grant (31) deflects the shot of Hudson forward Carson Strapon (17) during the first period of a WIAA Division 1 state boys hockey championship game between the teams at the South Wood County Recreation Center in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Verona goaltender Kaden Grant (31) blocks the shot of Hudson forward Zach Kochendorfer (8) during the first period of a WIAA Division 1 state boys hockey championship game between the teams at the South Wood County Recreation Center in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Verona goaltender Kaden Grant (31) and head coach Joel Marshall share a moment following the team's 4-0 WIAA Division 1 state boys hockey championship loss to Hudson at the South Wood County Recreation Center in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Verona senior goaltender Kaden Grant was named the winner of the Kirk Daubenspeck Award – Wisconsin Prep Hockey’s end-of-season award for the state’s top goaltender, according to an announcement on wisconsinprephockey.net.
Verona advanced to the WIAA Division 1 state title game, falling to Hudson 4-0 Saturday in Wisconsin Rapids.
Grant was 9-4 with a 2.06 goals average in the regular season, 3-0 (1.33) in the first three postseason games and 1-1 (2.00) at the state tournament, according to wisconsinprephockey.net stats.
Other award winners were Brady Welsch, Fond du Lac St. Mary’s Springs, Joe Pavelski Award; Max Giblin, Hudson, Davis Drewiske Award; Blake Raddatz, Wausau East/Merrill, Adam Burish Award.
The winners of the four boys Wisconsin Prep Hockey end-of-season awards were announced Friday at the virtual Wisconsin Hockey Coaches Association state tournament banquet.
Jeff Sauer Award announced
Zoe Uihlein, a senior from University School of Milwaukee, was named the recipient of the 2021 Jeff Sauer Humanitarian Award, according to a release from the Coach Sauer Foundation.
The Jeff Sauer Award was presented Friday at the Wisconsin High School Coaches Association virtual banquet.
The annual award hopes to encourage community service among girls and boys high school hockey players in Wisconsin.
It is named after former University of Wisconsin coach and hockey ambassador Jeff Sauer, who died in February, 2017.
The Jeff Sauer Award’s goal is to recognize good high school hockey players being great people, according to the release.
Zoe is a volunteer with the Wisconsin Adaptive Sports Association, a nonprofit organization that promotes community collaboration on sports and recreational opportunities for individuals with mobility and visual impairments in wheelchair basketball, lacrosse, softball, tennis and bowling, and the WASA Admirals Sled Hockey Programs in Milwaukee.
Uihlein was one of four finalists. The others were Alyssa Knauf, a senior forward from the Rock County Fury (Beloit Memorial co-op) and Albany High School; Luke Hessenauer, a senior defenseman from Milton; and Braden Kloida, a senior defenseman from the Brookfield Stars and Brookfield East;
Madison Ice Arena displays a replica of the Jeff Sauer Award in its lobby to honor Uihlein and the three past winners – Shane Ryan of Madison Edgewood, Parker Esswein of Wauwatosa East and the Brookfield Stars and Ava Jambor of the Middleton Lynx. University School also will receive a plaque to display to commemorate Uihlein’s achievements.
Jon Masson | Wisconsin State Journal
Jon Masson covers high school sports for the Wisconsin State Journal. He has covered a variety of sports — including the Green Bay Packers and Wisconsin men's and women's basketball and volleyball — since he first came to the State Journal in 1999.
