MacEwan Athletics
In a new world of social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are announcing all 2019-20 Griffins award winners online over the next few days. Here is our schedule:
March 25: Most Improved winners for each team (Find the story here)
March 26: Most Outstanding winners for each team (Find the story here)
March 27: Team of the Year (Find the story here)
March 28: Academic Team of the Year (Find the story here)
Monday: Female Rookie of the Year (Find the story here)
Today: Male Rookie of the Year
Wednesday: Female Athlete of the Year
Thursday: Male Athlete of the Year
Our Male Rookie of the Year goes to the men's student-athlete (in good academic standing) who had the greatest impact in their first year with the Griffins.
The 2019-20 winner (as voted on by MacEwan Athletics' coaches and staff) is men's hockey player Jordan Taupert.
Producing at a point-per-game clip (11 goals and 28 points in 28 games) for the Griffins during a spectacular rookie season, Taupert finished third in rookie scoring in Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference.
It was welcome production for a Griffins team that lost a good chunk of their 2018-19 championship roster. Taupert was one of the reasons MacEwan didn't miss a beat, finishing with a 20-7-1-0 record and advancing to the ACAC semifinal before the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Being able to step in right away and be an impact guy like that at this level is something you don't see very often," said Griffins head coach Mike Ringrose.
"With all the scoring we moved on last year, we needed someone in their first year to step up to the plate and take some of that on and he certainly did."
Taupert's ability to play in all situations for the Griffins was huge as he was a key member of the powerplay and earned plenty of minutes in late-game situations – an impressive vote of confidence for the rookie.
"He goes out there and he competes hard every night," said assistant coach Sean Ringrose in a January feature about Taupert. "He's not afraid to engage in battles and let's his play speak for itself. He's a high character guy who goes out there and works hard and he's just the type of player you need on your team to be successful."
In the community, Taupert has helped out with mental health initiatives, Skate with the Griffins and has done reading at schools.
Taupert is the second Griffins men's hockey player to win the male rookie of the year award, following Brett Smythe (2018).
