GRANITE CITY – Junior hockey forward Hunter Parker had a banner season for the Granite City High School hockey team in 2019-20 in the Mississippi Valley Club Hockey Association.
Parker led the Warriors in scoring with 49 goals and 59 assists for 108 points, and in the playoffs, scored eight goals and had 10 assists for 18 points in helping the Warriors sweep both Belleville in the semifinals, and Freeburg/Waterloo in the final to win the MVCHA Class 2A championship, the first MVCHA title for Granite since 2011, and their fifth overall.
For those efforts, Parker has been named the Riverbender.com Male Athlete of the Month at Granite City High for March, 2020.
Parker, who plays for head coach Darin Kimble, a former St. Louis Blues and National Hockey League player, was one of the MVCHA’s most prolific players during the past season. In the second game of the final series against Freeburg/Waterloo, Parker scored once and had five assists, the 14th time this season he had a multi-assist game. Parker had five assists in a game twice, the first time being on Nov. 19 against O’Fallon in a 14-0 win over the Panthers. He had six assists against Highland on Jan. 20.
The Warriors ended the season on a 20-game winning streak, finishing the year 21-1-2, their only loss coming on Nov. 14 to Freeburg/Waterloo 4-2. Their only ties were against St. John Vianney Catholic 3-3 on opening night Nov. 4, and again 3-3 against Collinsville on Dec. 2. And Parker was one of the biggest reasons why Granite ended the season on their winning streak, recording two hat tricks along the way, against Alton on Dec.12 and against Triad two weeks later. He also had a four-goal game against Edwardsville on Jan. 13, also recording four assists for an eight-point night in a 9-0 win over the Tigers. Parker matched the four-goal effort in the playoffs, reaching the feat in the second game against Belleville in an 8-2 win on Feb. 18.
During the 20-game winning streak, Parker scored 39 goals and also had 44 assists for 83 points, and during the season, only had 16 minutes in penalties.
Parker is expected to be one of the MVCHA’s best players when he returns for his senior season in 2020-21.
Riverbender.com’s Athlete of the Month program is made possible by the generosity of our sponsors and the cooperation of our area high schools. This is a great accomplishment, and one to be very proud of. Please join us in congratulating this young athlete. We at Riverbender.com wish you continued success in your future!
