Theo Hembre, left, the winner of this year’s Travis Roy award, shows off his trophy to his Falmouth teammates after the awards dinner at the Ramada Inn in Lewiston on Sunday afternoon. On the right are Marcus Cady and Louis Mainella. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)
LEWISTON — Theo Hembre was a confident player from end-to-end on the ice, and that confidence was still there while giving a speech for being a finalist for the Travis Roy Award.
What he wasn’t confident about was whether or not he would win the award.
Yet, like when he was for playing for Falmouth, Hembre proved hard to stop, and he in fact was named the winner of the 23rd Travis Roy Award on Sunday at Ramada Inn.
The award is presented by the Maine Class A High School Hockey Coaches Association and given to the top Class A senior boys’ hockey player in the state. Hembre was the only forward among the four finalists, with defensemen Ryan Bossie of Lewiston, Mike Hatch of Cheverus and Cam King of Portland/Deering also in the running.
“I know all three guys were amazing hockey players,” Hembre said. “We all had an equal chance to get it, and I was just thrilled to get it.”
Hembre led Class A in scoring with 46 points during the regular season, with 27 goals and 19 assists, and added another assist in Falmouth’s lone playoff game. He said during his speech that a public speaking class earlier this school year gave him confidence as he stood up in front of Sunday’s crowd. He certainly stood out from the crowd during his career.
“I think it was a tough pick. The vote was probably the tightest it’s been since I’ve been here. A lot of other really, really deserving, good hockey players,” Falmouth coach Deron Barton said. “Theo, I think he’s a prolific player, he’s a prolific scorer. And I think a lot of it has to do with, too, he performed his best against the best competition. He performed his best against the toughest teams. So I think that’s probably one of the things that just set him apart, maybe, if anything, was that.”
Hembre is the third winner for Falmouth, following Peter Gustavson in 2005 and Isac Nordstrom in 2015. Hembre was a freshman when Nordstrom won the award.
“I just learned that he was a hard worker, he was a good captain. I was only there for a year when he was there, so I just was able to see what he was doing,” Hembre said.
Barton said the two forwards were two different players, but Hembre might have learned the commitment to playing in the defensive end from Nordstrom, which is a key part of Falmouth’s system.
“We have a saying that, ‘We don’t know why, but the better you play in your own end the more scoring opportunities you get,’ and I think he benefited from that the most,” Barton said.
Hembre said the key to succeeding against the likes of Bossie, Hatch and King was to avoid them whenever possible. That often meant good things for the Yachtsmen, who went 5-1 against the other finalists’ teams, with Hembre amassing 17 points (nine goals, eight assists).
In one of the lighter moments of Hembre’s speech, he said, directed toward his dad, “I’m sorry for all the broken sticks.” But Hembre said with the metal and wood trophy in his hands that they were “definitely” worth it.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
