Falmouth goalie Brandon White protects the puck after a shot by Lewiston’s Aizyk Laliberte during a Jan. 8 game in Lewiston. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal

Falmouth boys hockey coach Hogan Tracy had an inkling a few years ago that the 2025 Travis Roy Award finalists may have a defensive flair.

Tracy’s intuition was correct. This year’s five finalists include two goalies and a defenseman. The two goalies are Brandon White of Falmouth and Drew Johnson of Thornton Academy, while the defenseman is Wyatt Labonte of Biddeford/Old Orchard Beach/Massabesic.

“We had a lot of really good defensemen in the state and a lot of really good goalies that were here and were playing early and getting experiences as freshmen and sophomores,” Tracy said. “I kind of put that in my head. I’m like, maybe in a couple of years, Brandon and some of these other guys, like Drew Johnson at TA and Wyatt Labonte, got a bit of a run. I’m like, OK, maybe there’s time for a defenseman because I was trying to think back to the last time there was really a serious defenseman that had a shot at Travis Roy.”

The other two finalists are forwards, Marc-Andre Perron of Bangor and Sam Foley of Windham.

The Travis Roy Award winner will be announced at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Class A Hockey Banquet at the St. John’s Community Center in Brunswick. Later, there will be a senior all-star round-robin tournament between Class A, Class B South, and Class B North at The Colisee in Lewiston, starting at 5 p.m.

The last goalie to win the Travis Roy — given to the top senior boys hockey player in Class A — was Lewiston’s Cam Poussard in 2011. There have not been two goalie finalists in the same year since 2008 — when Tony Dube of Biddeford won the award and Derek Kump of Falmouth was a runner-up.

“They’re two great goalies,” Bangor coach Quinn Paradis said of Johnson and White. “It’s tough for, you know, to have two goalies in it, let alone have one try to win it. But they’re both very deserving of the award as well.”

Johnson helped the Golden Trojans win the Class A state championship earlier this month. He went 15-2-1 with a 1.77 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage. White had a 10-2-2 record with a 1.92 GAA and a .923 save percentage.

“I think it certainly showed in any game you watched us play in — I know (Thornton Academy coach) Jamie (Gagnon) would say the same thing about his goalie … about Drew — we built from the back out,” Tracy said. “Knowing that we had another all-world goalie back there — it really helped us win a lot of games, and when we both were a little shaky to start games, it really helped us stabilize again. I think it’s an interesting case to share where it was just a really good goaltending play, especially out of those two, but across the league in general.”

Falmouth has had five Travis Roy winners, while Johnson is trying to be Thornton Academy’s second along with C.J. Maksut (2012).

The last defensemen to earn the award was Richard Paradis of St. Dominic Academy in 2009. The most recent finalist was Lucas Hubbard of Thornton Academy in 2023.

Labonte scored a goal and had nine assists this season. His 10 points tied him with Connor Parent and Marcus Soucy for the most on the Biddeford co-op.

“His play is both elegant and fierce, and he consistently makes great plays with precision and grace at critical moments without hesitation or reservation,” Marsh Gray, Labonte’s coach said. “He was the quarterback of our power play, the backbone of our defense, and a true professional with instinctive brilliance.”

Gray also said Labonte is a well-rounded individual who embodies the values of leadership, excellence and selflessness that the Travis Roy Award honors.

Labonte, a Biddeford student, would be the fourth Biddeford player to win the award.

Forward finalists

Foley is the first finalist from any of the schools in the Windham/Westbrook/Bonny Eagle co-op.

He led all Class A skaters with 44 points (26 goals and 18 assists). Coach Bobby Fothergill said Foley was a dominant and influential force for the Trail Blazers.

“He was able to change our locker room culture the last two years,” Fothergill said. “I know it wasn’t as a captain last year, but he was a captain this year and really got the guys to buy into the family aspect of being a team. That’s why we’ve had really good success, …winning 11 games (each of) the last two years — so he was a big part of that.”

Perron was one of two Bangor players to with double digits goals this season, scoring 14 in 17 games. He finished with 31 points.

“When we needed a goal or needed a point, he was that guy that we were always looking to,” Paradis said. “Like, he was the guy (who) could find a way to put the puck in the back of the net or get an assist with his linemates, and he really controlled the play.”

Perron looks to join Parker Sanderson, who won in 2013, as the only Bangor players to receive the Travis Roy Award.

Gray said each of the five finalists played a pivotal role in their team’s success this season.

“Whether they’re contributing on offense, playing crucial defense, or delivering in high-pressure moments, all four candidates rise to the occasion with ease,” Gray said. “Their leadership on and off the ice has been instrumental in their team’s success, as they consistently set the tone with their hard work and professionalism.”