Clarkson’s Élizabeth Giguère named 2020 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winner

Giguère is the second-straight Golden Knight to win the Patty Kaz

Élizabeth Giguère is the winner of the 2020 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, USA Hockey announced via live stream on Friday afternoon.

Giguère, a junior forward out of Clarkson, had a banner season for the Golden Knights. She led the nation in goals with 37 in 37 games and finished second in points with 66. She also led with 10 game-winning goals, 245 shots on goal, and 6.62 shots on goal per game.

Simply put, she was a monster this year, and her performance is made all the more impressive when you think about how impossibly high she’s raised the bar for herself. Giguère has always been an incredible player who puts up incredible numbers and makes an incredible impact for her team (hello, national-championship-winning overtime goal scored as a freshman). Last season as a sophomore, she led the NCAA in points and assists; she also played on a line with 40-goal scorer and 2019 Patty Kazmaier winner Loren Gabel.

It was probably fair to expect Giguère to regress a little bit, knowing that, but nope. She was  somehow even better, becoming an even fiercer scoring threat herself while still showing next-level play-making abilities. Clarkson grappled with injuries all season, leaving them shorthanded in practically every game they played. Giguère was still a dominant force up front despite that and helped the Golden Knights secure another NCAA Tournament bid as the last at-large seed.

With 66 points, she contributed to about 59% of the Golden Knights’ offense, and recorded a primary point on 50% of Clarkson’s goals this season. Giguère also led the country with 30 goals scored at even strength.

A few of Giguère’s best performances of the season: a four-goal game against Harvard...

...And two goals in a 2-1 win over then-No. 5 Princeton, in which she also recorded her 200th career point.

Hats off as well to Northeastern sophomore forward Alina Müller and Wisconsin senior forward Abby Roque, the two other finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Award.