SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League announced today that Syracuse Crunch forward Boris Katchouk, Manitoba Moose forward Cole Perfetti and Bakersfield Condors goaltender Stuart Skinner have been selected as the league’s award winners for April.
Katchouk, the CCM/AHL Player of the Month, totaled seven goals and 14 assists for 21 points in 12 games for Syracuse last month.
Katchouk found the scoresheet in each of the Crunch’s first 11 contests of the month, including eight multiple-point efforts. He notched a goal and an assist in a 6-2 win at Rochester on Apr. 2, and helped Syracuse to a 4-3 overtime win with a pair of assists at Rochester on Apr. 7. Katchouk picked up a goal and an assist in a 5-1 victory over Utica on Apr. 10, and recorded back-to-back three-point games with three assists in a 6-2 win over Utica on Apr. 19 followed by a goal and two assists in a come-from-behind 7-6 victory in Rochester on Apr. 21.
A second-round selection by Tampa Bay in the 2016 NHL Draft, Katchouk has registered 11 goals and 18 assists for 29 points in 26 games for Syracuse this season, tied for eighth in the AHL in scoring. He is also tied for fourth in plus/minus rating (+18), and his 14-game scoring streak from Mar. 19 to Apr. 25 (10-14-24) matched the longest in the league this season. The 22-year-old native of Waterloo, Ont., has appeared in 161 career contests in the AHL over three pro seasons, tallying 36 goals and 48 assists for 84 points.
Perfetti, the CCM/AHL Rookie of the Month, tallied four goals and nine assists for 13 points in nine games for Manitoba last month, including a seven-game scoring streak.
Perfetti had the first multiple-point game of his pro career on Apr. 8, picking up two assists in an 8-5 win over Belleville. He recorded two more assists in a 3-2 overtime win over the Senators on Apr. 10, then posted two goals and an assist while earning first-star honors in a 5-1 victory over Belleville on Apr. 12. Perfetti kicked off a five-game series with Stockton by scoring a goal in a 5-2 win on Apr. 22, and notched a goal and two assists in a 3-0 decision on Apr. 24.
A first-round choice (10th overall) by Winnipeg in the 2020 NHL Draft, Perfetti has eight goals and 15 assists for 23 points in 29 games with the Moose this season, good for sixth in the league in rookie scoring. The 19-year-old native of Whitby, Ont., won a silver medal with Canada at the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship, and totaled 185 points in 124 junior games with Saginaw (OHL) over the previous two seasons.
Skinner, the CCM/AHL Goaltender of the Month, was 7-2-0 in nine starts during April, allowing a total of 16 goals on 217 shots (1.93, .926).
With Bakersfield chasing the top spot in the Pacific Division, Skinner was 4-0-0 against first-place Henderson last month, beginning with a 28-save effort in a 5-3 win on Apr. 9. He made 21 saves in a 4-1 victory over San Jose on Apr. 10 and turned aside 26 shots as the Condors defeated Colorado, 6-2, on Apr. 13. Skinner had 22 saves in a 5-1 win over San Diego on Apr. 17 before allowing a total of two goals on 39 shots in consecutive 4-1 victories at Henderson on Apr. 20 and Apr. 22. Skinner finished the month with 33 saves in a 6-2 win over the Silver Knights on Apr. 28.
Skinner, 22, was a third-round pick by Edmonton in the 2017 NHL Draft and currently leads the AHL in wins (17) and minutes played (1,506), going 17-7-1 with a 2.27 goals-against average, a .916 save percentage and two shutouts in 26 appearances with Bakersfield. Skinner, who made his NHL debut with the Oilers on Jan. 31, 2021, has played 73 games in the AHL over three pro seasons and has a record of 37-26-7 with a 2.90 GAA, an .899 save percentage and three shutouts.
Each monthly award winner will receive an etched crystal award from CCM in recognition of his achievement.
