For the fourth time in his nine-year American Hockey League career, Manitoba Moose defenceman Jimmy Oligny has been named as his club's AHL Man of the Year.
The annual award goes to the player who best represents his team within the community. Oligny is certainly that player for the Moose.
His outstanding contributions within the city of Winnipeg extend much further than that of Canada Life Centre and his role as team captain of the Moose.
Having joined the team in 2019, this is second-straight year that the 30-year-old has been named as Manitoba's Man of the Year.
Oligny's Off-Ice Bio - Courtesy of the Manitoba Moose:
Oligny created a new program in conjunction with the Kinship and Foster Family Network of Manitoba. Kinship and Foster Family Network of Manitoba provides kinship and foster parents with training, guidance and assistance to enhance their capacities, knowledge and skills to provide quality care. As part of the program, Oligny hosted foster families at Moose home games. The foster children and their caregivers received Moose merchandise, tickets to the game and met with Oligny post-game.
Oligny is a frequent supporter of the True North Youth Foundation (TNYF). He spoke at the annual Jets Gala, an event that raised nearly $300,000 to support underserved youth in Manitoba. The St. Michel, Que. native worked with TNYF's Project 11, fielding students' mental wellness questions in both English and French, for the Moose Project 11 School Day Game. Oligny also traveled to Ecole Heritage Immersion to speak with students about mental health.
The Moose captain opened the season speaking to fans at Winnipeg Jets Fan Fast. He went on to spend time at a St.Amant autism early learning classroom, served breakfast at Siloam Mission and read to elementary students at Balmoral Hall School. The father of three helped raise funds for Camp Quality Manitoba by signing Moose mystery pucks to be sold at the team's annual Hockey Fights Cancer game. He also visited Assiniboine Park Zoo, along with teammates in January, to interact with fans. Finally, Oligny met with the puck drop participants from Manitoba's Pride Game to learn about their individual programs and how they're making a difference in the 2SLGBTQ+ community.
Now, as one of the 32 winners, Oligny will go up against the other nominees as a finalist for the 2023 Yanick Dupre Memorial Award. Named after the former Hershey Bears forward and AHL All-Star who passed away in 1997 after 16 months battling leukemia. That recognition will announced on Thursday, May 4.
Next up for the Moose is Game 3 of the best-of-five opening round Calder Cup Playoff series with the Milwaukee Admirals. Having split the two games at Canada Life Centre this past weekend, the series has shifted to Milwaukee for three-straight games. Puck drop is set for 7:00 PM central time on the road. Fans can tune in via CJOB or AHL TV.