A new hockey award will be handed out on Sunday at the annual Ms. Hockey banquet, and one of the finalists for the award is a St. Cloud Crush player. The award highlights Minnesota's top defensive player, something that might get overlooked when selecting Ms. Hockey.

First Time At State, First Time Winner?

The St. Cloud Crush made the state hockey tournament for the first time this year, and a big part of the team's success on the ice was from Reese Ruska. Ruska has been named as one of the five finalists for the Senior Defensemen Award given out at the Ms. Hockey banquet on Sunday.

According to EliteProspects.com, Ruska, who shoots left-handed, has 25 goals and 19 assists on the season.

(Ruska is seated second from the left in the front row)

According to Let's Play Hockey, the organization that puts on the banquet and hands out the hardware, the Senior Defensemen Award is "to honor the state’s all-around top player at the defense position. This is a player who  possesses a strong defensive skill set that helps their team achieve success on both ends of the ice."

Other Players Up For The Award

The other finalists for the award are Katie Ball of Centennial/SLP, Mia Miller of Northfield, Katya Sander of Holy Family, and Alexa Van Straaten of Dodge County.

According to Let's Play Hockey, "Four of the five are currently committed to play hockey in college. Miller is slated to play at MSU-Mankato, Sander is committed to the University of Minnesota, Van Straaten to Assumption University, and Ball to the University of Wisconsin-River Falls."

How The Award Is Won

The winner will be decided by a panel of high school hockey coaches.

READ MORE FROM PAUL SHEA