Aurora native having breakout NCAA season

February 1, 2017 · 0 Comments

By Jake Courtepatte

An ex-Tiger and Aurora native may just be named the best play in NCAA hockey this season.
Dylan Sikura has been turning heads as of late while playing for the Northeastern Huskies, one of the most prestigious teams in the Boston area.
Named on Sunday as a finalist for the winner of the Hobey Baker Award, handed out to the NCAA’s MVP at the end of each college season, Sikura recently took over the team lead in scoring following a tear of offense over the past month.
Registering a point in 20 of 24 games this season, he moved up to fifth in the nation in points over the weekend, enough to be nominated for college hockey’s most prestigious award.
Most recently, Sikura earned Warrior Player of the Week honours for a natural hat trick scored against UMass Lowell on Friday. With the Huskies trailing 3 – 1 with less than eight minutes left in the third period, Sikura single handedly won the game for Northeastern, including the game-winning goal with sixteen seconds left on the clock.
“Every chance I get, I try to score a goal,” said Sikura. “It was the biggest game of our year so far, so I’m pretty happy I could be a big part of it.”
Currently riding a nine-game point streak, it was the second week in a row Sikura has been the Warrior recipient.
Growing up in Aurora, Sikura joined the St. Andrew’s College’s Saints program from the AAA South Central Coyotes in 2010-11. After just two games with the varsity squad, he joined the OJHL’s Aurora Tigers, spending three seasons with the Junior A team. He was named team captain in his final season, amassing 110 points in 131 games with the Tigers.
Now in his third season with Northeastern, the centreman has racked up 41 points in 25 games this year. He said it was “such an honour” to receive the Hobey Baker nod.
A long list of Hobey Baker winners have gone on to make a big impact in the NHL, including the likes of Paul Kariya, Jack Eichel, and Johnny Gaudreau.
Sikura was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in the sixth round of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.