CALGARY – The University of Calgary Dinos men's hockey team, fresh off its best regular season since 1997, earned three major awards and placed four players on the conference all-star team as Canada West announced its men's hockey honours Tuesday.

Forward Chris Collins was a three-time honouree, earning the conference rookie of the year award, a spot on the first all-star team, and a selection to the all-rookie team. Goaltender Jacob DeSerres is the conference's top netminder as well as a first team all-star, while head coach Mark Howell was named Canada West coach of the year for the second time in his career.

Collins and DeSerres were joined as first team all-stars by defenceman Kodie Curran, while forward Taylor Stefishen was named a second team all-star. Collins and defenceman Drydn Dow landed on the conference all-rookie team.

The third-ranked Dinos head to Edmonton this weekend for the best-of-three Canada West final against the No. 1 Alberta Golden Bears, with the winner advancing to the PotashCopr CIS University Cup later this month in Saskatoon. The series kicks off Friday night at Clare Drake Arena with a 7 p.m. start, with Game 2 Saturday at 6 p.m. If necessary, Game 3 will be played Sunday night at 6 p.m. All three games can be seen live on http://cgy.CanadaWest.tv.

UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA ALUMNI TROPHY (Rookie of the Year): CHRIS COLLINS, CALGARY
First-year Arts student Chris Collins of the University of Calgary Dinos is the winner of the University of Alberta Alumni Trophy as the Rookie of the Year.
 
Collins, a 6-1, 207-pound forward from Calgary, joined the Dinos after a five-year WHL career in Chilliwack and Saskatoon followed by a stint in the Alberta Junior Hockey League with the Okotoks Oilers. His impact with the Dinos was immediate: he scored 14 points in the month of October alone, helping the Dinos jump out to their best start in recent memory. He finished the season as the conference's top goal scorer with 19 in 28 games – fifth-best in the nation – and added 17 assists to finish with 36 points, good enough for second in the Canada West scoring race. He led all freshmen in the conference in scoring by 11 points, and he scored five game-winning goals – tops in Canada West and third-best in CIS.
 
For his efforts, Collins was honoured as the Canada West-WHL Graduate of the Month for October 2013 and also landed a spot as a First Team conference All Star.
 
"From day one, Chris Collins has had a significant impact on our team," said Dinos head coach Mark Howell. "He was a key contributor offensively for us in all situations, he scored some huge goals, and led our conference in goal scoring as a rookie. He was a key reason for our team's success this season."
 
GOALTENDER OF THE YEAR: JACOB DeSERRES, CALGARY
Third-year netminder Jacob DeSerres of the Calgary Dinos is Canada West's nominee for the CIS Goaltender of the Year award.
 
DeSerres, a third-year arts student from Calgary, played 17 games for the Dinos, allowing just 35 goals for a 2.15 goals-against average. He finished the year with a sparkling 13-2-2 record, a .914 save percentage, and a trio of shutouts.
 
The 6-2, 190-point goalie, who backstopped Saint John to the 2011 Memorial Cup title, was the Canada West-WHL Graduate of the Month for November 2013 when he went 5-0-1 with a 0.67 goals-against average and three shutouts.
 
"Jake is very deserving of this award," said Howell. "He has been consistent from start to finish this year, has played tremendous hockey and helped us win games. He has been a leader and one of the best goaltenders in the league, and it's fitting that he receives this recognition."

COACH OF THE YEAR: MARK HOWELL, CALGARY
For the second time in his CIS career, Dinos bench boss Mark Howell is Canada West Coach of the Year.
 
Howell, who won the conference and national award in 2011, led the Dinos to their best record since 1997 at 21-4-3, good for second place in the conference. The Dinos have been in the top four nationally all year and were ranked No. 1 in the nation for five weeks during the regular season. The team went through the first 22 games of the season without a regulation loss, two of Howell's players landed on the conference all-star teams, and both Chris Collins and Jacob DeSerres earned WHL Graduate of the Month honours. The season marked just the seventh 20-win season in school history.
 
"This is a well-deserved honour for Mark and the team," said University of Calgary Director of Athletics Ron Wuotila. "He has been committed to moving the program forward in every respect since his arrival on campus and his hard work is paying off. The beneficiaries are the young men he leads each day and all of the proud alumni. We look forward to cheering the Dinos on down the stretch."

AWARDS (*unanimous)
Most Valuable Player (Sullivan Trophy nominee as CIS Player of the Year): Derek Hulak, Saskatchewan
Dave "Sweeney" Schriner Scoring Trophy: Derek Hulak, Saskatchewan
Mervyn "Red" Dutton Trophy (Outstanding defenceman): Jordan Rowley, Alberta
University of Alberta Hockey Alumni Trophy (Outstanding Freshman): *Chris Collins, CALGARY
UBC Hockey Alumni Trophy (Sportsmanship & Ability): Sean Ringrose, Alberta
Dr. Randy Gregg Award (Athletic ability, Academics & Citizenship): Ben Lindemulder, Alberta
Coach of the Year: Mark Howell, CALGARY
Goaltender of the Year: Jacob DeSerres, CALGARY
Adam Kryczka Memorial Trophy (CW only, best team GAA): Kurtis Mucha & Luke Siemens, Alberta
Fair Play Trophy (Canada West only, fewest team penalty minutes): Regina (387 minutes)
 
ALL-STARS (alphabetical by position)
First Team
G  Jacob DeSerres, CALGARY
D   Kodie Curran, CALGARY
D   Jordan Rowley, Alberta
F   Chris Collins, CALGARY
F   Derek Hulak, Saskatchewan
F   Sean Ringrose, Alberta

Second Team
G  Kurtis Mucha, Alberta
D  Jesse Craige, Alberta
D  Neil Manning, UBC
F  Ian Duval, Manitoba
F  Taylor Stefishen, CALGARY
F  Cole Wilson, UBC
 
ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
G  Luke Siemens, Alberta
D  Drydn Dow, CALGARY
D  Kendall McFaull, Saskatchewan
F  Chris Collins, CALGARY
F  Jamie Crooks, Alberta
F  TJ Foster, Alberta

-UC-