TROY, N.Y. – Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) student-athlete Chase Polacek has been named the Player of the Year in ECAC Hockey, it has been announced. This is the second straight year Polacek, a senior forward, has earned the league's highest honor.

An assistant captain from Edina, Minn., Polacek is just the third player in the league's 50-year history to earn the Player of the Year Award twice. Rensselaer's Bob Brinkworth won the award following the 1962-63 and 1963-64 seasons and Harvard's Scott Fusco was recognized after the 1984-85 and 1985-86 campaigns.

This season Polacek has played in all 37 games, tallying 21 goals and 27 assists for 48 points. He is first on the team in goals, assists, points, power play goals (11), shorthanded goals (2) and game-winning goals (9). He has helped the Engineers to a 20-12-5 record and a national ranking for much of the season. RPI remains under consideration for selection to the NCAA Tournament.

Polacek, who registered multiple points in 16 games, had two separate seven-game point scoring streaks and a stretch of four straight contests with the game-winning goal. He was held without a point in consecutive games just twice all year long.

He is first in the nation in game-winning goals – one shy of the national single season record – and sixth in power play goals. He also ranks in the top 20 in points per game (13th; 1.30), shorthanded goals (14th) and goals per game (18th; 0.57).

Among league skaters, Polacek is first in points, power play points (25) and game-winning goals, second in goals, power play goals (11) and shorthanded goals (2) and fourth in assists.

In 22 ECAC Hockey games, he had 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 points. He was first in points, power play points (14) and game-winning goals (5), second in assists and third in goals. His five power play goals ranked fourth.

In a school record 153 career games, Polacek has 65 goals and 95 assists for 160 points. He had 28 points (7 goals, 21 assists) in 38 games as a freshman and 32 points (11 goals, 21 assists) as a sophomore. Last season, the former Academy of Holy Angels standout had 52 points on 26 goals and 26 assists on his way to earning not only the Player of the Year Award but also All-America and Hobey Baker Award finalist honors.