YHH chose not to award a Wiz Wyatt Player of the Year Award at the Bantam level, rather just a Player of the Year Award. Making the award all about hockey ability and less about all around athletic skill, leadership and academics. However we did find our most serious contenders for this award did meet the Wiz Wyatt criteria. 

Our final four candidates each bring something unique to the rink, they are Luke Manning (Sharp Shooter) from Stillwater, Casey Mittelstadt (Clutch Performer) from Eden Prairie, Jax Murray (Tenacious Worker) from Elk River, and Scott Perunovich (Playmaker) from Hibbing.

Luke Manning burst onto the scene this year in the first Bantam game of the season. Showing YHH why he was a serious contender in a 6-5 OT loss to EP. Manning, with his team down by three, literally took over the game for the Ponies. A few weeks later on the same rink in Eden Prairie he willed the Ponies to tourney championship in the EP Tourney. 

Notching 59 Goals and 38 Assists in 54 games is a pretty good sign of what type of player Manning is. What makes him stand out more than his great skill is his ability to hold the puck for that extra second to free himself for a shot or a great pass.

Stillwater Coach, John Hartman said of Manning, "Luke has great vision and skates well, but what is grossly underrated about Luke is his ability to shoot the puck. He gets his shot off unbelievably quick for a player."

Being a 1999 birth year player, Manning looks to be a strong contender for a high finish in the Select 15 process coming up this Spring/Summer.

Eden Prairie has had so many great players in their program the last 10 years. One name synonomous with Eden Prairie Hockey is Rau (Matt, Chad, Kyle and Curt). A new name on the Eagle's horizon is Mitteldstadt (Casey, Jonny, and Luke). Casey, the oldest, netted an incredible 84 goals in 65 games for the Eagles. An impressive record only Kyle Rau could say he equaled. Within this total, the number of hat tricks were too many to count and the number of game winners borders on amazing. One such game winner versus Centennial is documented below in video. Another couple worth noting were one to win the the Spirit of Duluth championship game versus Stillwater and to win the South Regional title over Prior Lake, both in overtime.

The number one rated Eagles are a great team filled with more than just Mittelstadt (Lieverman, Sullivan, Johannes to name just a few), but it is without question that they wouldn't be where they are - state tourney, #1 in state - without number 11. 

Tom Gerdes, long time Eden Prairie head coach said of Casey, "Casey is a true leader on and off the ice. His explosive speed and high-end skills make Casey a threat to score every shift. He truly does make each of his teammates a better hockey player. His play making ability and vision on the ice far exceed his years."

One of many GWG scored by Mittelstadt this year.

One of the most prolific players at the Bantam level is Jax Murray from Elk River. It is no surprise he had over 70 goals and 70 assist for the Elks after watching him lead his team to the Blue Ox title in November. He was our runaway tournament MVP. 

The Elks have been rated in the top three all season long as they head into the state tournament this weekend in Rogers. If they are to hoist the championship trophy on Sunday, Murray will likely be the center (or should I say wing) of attention. A tremendous skater, with great tenacity and grit, Murray leads by example more with his actions than with his words.

Jasper Kozak-Miller from Over the Boards said of Murray, "...(Murray) seemed like the heart and soul of this Elk River team at times - sharp, poised playmaker makes his teammates better." At times during the season, the second year winger was in a league of his own.

Elk River Coach Adam Sharratt said of Murray. "He is a joy to coach. He is the type of kid who is the first one on the ice and the last one to leave. In all my years of coaching, I've never had a more coachable player on my teams than Jax."

Probably the latest arrival to our list was Scott Perunovich from Hibbing. Believe it or not, Perunovich didn't even make our coveted POTY Watch list. But when he landed on our radar, he did it in a big way. Perunovich lead the Blue Jackets to an incredible season. Hibbing, a program with a "A" high school opted up to AA. And they made a great impact on the AA level all season long, going 37-10-5 finishing #9 in YHH's NOW Rankings. 

The diminutive Perunovich made a great impression on YHH during the Roseau Tournament taking on the state's best taking Eden Prairie to the limit in the semifinals. They also came to the Twin Cities for two showings and Perunovice shined again. See below for a highlight reel goal that #7 had versus Wayzata. The superlatives were non-stop for "Scoring Scott" after those trips. 

Hibbing coach Shane Holman showered even higher praises on the Blue Jacket, "Scott is the best playmaker I've ever coached...he reminds me of Hibbing's Adam Johnson who is headed to UMD next fall. He is one of those players who is impossible to hit or steal the puck from..."

My broadcast partner thought out loud that he had the look of a young Nick Leddy. To which later in the broadcast I likened him to another Scott, Hall of Fame D-Man, Scott Niedermeyer. Jasper Kozak-Miller of Over the Boards said this of number 7, "One of the best skating defensemen out of the Minnesota '98s, sees the ice well, thinks it quick and possesses terrific speed.