AUBURN — He didn’t have the easiest high school career, but Owen Drummey learned and grew from adversity, and made playing hockey look easy.

Drummey, Falmouth High’s do-it-all player and natural forward, closed out his four-year career by winning the Travis Roy Award on Sunday during a small ceremony at Norway Savings Bank Arena.

“It feels great. It’s a true honor, with everybody that has won this trophy in the past … it’s just a complete honor to win it,” Drummey said.

Drummey is the first to win the award since the death of its namesake, Travis Roy, in October. The award is presented by the Class A Coaches Association to the state’s most outstanding Class A senior boys’ hockey player.

Three years ago, after his freshman season, Drummey watched teammate Theo Hembre receive the prestigious award. Drummey said he looked up to and wanted to be like Hembre, and since that day he wanted to win the award himself.

Hembre was the Yachtsmen’s leading point-getter that season, and Drummey achieved the same thing the following two seasons. The team, though, struggled. Drummey noted in his speech Sunday that the 4-14 record his sophomore season was the worst in program history, but he said it taught him to deal with adversity and enjoy every second of the hockey season. That lesson served him well this year.

“I know that I had to come in every day and work hard, I couldn’t take a day off,” Drummey said. “And it didn’t matter just on the ice, but off the ice, going to the gym, getting my school work done, and just being a good person on and off the ice.”

Drummey’s further ascension was apparent to Edward Little Coach Norm Gagne – the president of the coaches association who presented the trophy to Drummey – during a game this season at Norway Savings Bank Arena.

“Owen is a special, special, special kid,” Gagne said. “And I told Owen, I said, ‘After our game with you this year, I went home and when I walked in the door and I saw my wife, she said, ‘How’d you do?’ I said, ‘We won, but I got to tell you, I’ve seen a kid play tonight that I saw last year and the year before, but he’s 10 times better this year than I ever thought he would be.’ I said, ‘I haven’t seen a kid like this in a long time.’”

One of Gagne’s players, Red Eddies defenseman Will Cassidy, was also a finalist for the award, as was Lewiston goalie Keegan McLaughlin. McLaughlin said during his speech that he will always remember a goal that Drummey scored against him last year, when Drummey skated through the defense before beating him.

Gagne said the three finalists are all great role models.

“I think that it was important for us to honor Travis and what he expects. He said, ‘I just didn’t want the best senior hockey player, I want them to have the characteristics that I (believe in).’ And all three of them had that, and (the coaches) all knew that,” Gagne said.

“We thought that it was going to be a tough choice, but when it comes down to the end, (Owen) is probably, with his athletic ability and what he’s done, the right choice for this award.”

Drummey is the record-tying fourth Falmouth player to win the award – Lewiston also has had four winners – following Peter Gustavson (2005), Isac Nordstrom (2015) and Hembre (2018). His win also continues a trend of a Falmouth player receiving the award the year after a Lewiston player. Nordstrom followed Lewiston’s Kyle Lemelin, Hembre won after Jeromey Rancourt, and Lewiston’s Ryan Pomerleau was last year’s winner.

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