Bannister is February FBB Player of the Month

Excel Hull Stingrays defenceman and assistant coach Drew Bannister has won the FBB Player of the Month award for February after claiming the first star award in games against Coventry and Dundee in the middle of the month.

The award comes after a number of standout months in East Yorkshire in which he has solidified the club's blueline, helping to turn the club into one that can win any night they step onto the ice.

As a result of his play the former NHLer came close to winning FBB Player of the Month accolades in each of his two full months at the club, losing out to Andrew Coburn and Jereme Tendler.

However, this month Bannister has finally and deservedly claimed the award with 40 points - handed to him in two man of the match performances against the Stars and Blaze on the 12th and 19th - ten points ahead of club captain Kurtis Dulle, and a further 15 points in front of top scorer Tendler and a resurgent Konstantin Kalmikov.

With just one month remaining in the regular season, the race is now on to see who will claim the 10/11 FBB Player of the Year award - the first year the award has been based on a game-by-game ratings system.

36 year old Bannister becomes the first defenceman to claim the award and he joins fellow imports Jereme Tendler, Jason Silverthorn and Andrew Coburn as a winner of the monthly award.

Coburn nets second FBB Player of the Month award

24 year old rookie forward Andrew Coburn has become the first Excel Hull Stingrays player to claim the F Block Blog Player of the Month award twice, after adding the January's title to his earlier November award.

The Ontario native was once again the Rays standout player in an outstanding month personally, putting in man of the match performances against Nottingham on the 9th, Dundee on the 12th and Sheffield on the final weekend of the month.

He fairly comfortably beat defenceman Drew Bannister - who has now finished as second star in both months he has spent in Hull - by 25 points with the assistant coach having claimed a first star against Cardiff on the 23rd, second star against Sheffield on the 30th and third star against Nottingham on the 9th.

British forward Lee Esders - who was last night named Hull and East Yorkshire 2010 Sports Personality of the Year beating the likes of Hull City's Nick Barmby - ended the month in third having bagged a first star in the emphatic win over Edinburgh on the 16th.

On the same night Esders received his award, Stingrays captain Kurtis Dulle was given a special award for his tireless work within the community and local schools in an event held at the KC Stadium.

Tendler is December FBB Player of the Month

Jereme Tendler, the Excel Hull Stingrays leading goal and point scorer, has been named the F Block Blog Player of the Month for December, deservedly claiming  the award on count back just ahead of new signing Drew Bannister, after the pair both ended the month on 30 points.

In a very tight month, Tendler, who leads the club in goals and points, scooped a first star in the month's first game, an emphatic win 7-4 win over Sheffield in which he bagged a hat-trick, adding a crucial game tying shorthanded goal and a second star two weeks later in a 4-2 win against Braehead. He claims the award on count back, given his higher score in November.

Player-assistant coach Bannister, who missed out due to Tendler's 10 point haul in November, has helped transform the Stingrays form in December, recording one goal and five assists while bringing out the very best in the club's once shaky defence. The veteran was awarded the FBB first star in the Rays 3-2 overtime loss to Newcastle on the 28th, having shown his class at the back end, before claiming the second star with an assist 24 hours later in the 6-1 win over Dundee at the Hull Arena.

In joint third place for the month came Konstantin Kalmikov and Trevor Read, who both thoroughly improved their play in the last month of the year having started the season out of form. Surprisingly, the previously out of favour pair sit second in scoring their respective positions.

Coburn scoops FBB Player of the Month

Excel Hull Stingrays forward Andrew Coburn has today picked up the F Block Blog Player of the Month award for November after stepping up his consistent play in just his second month as a professional.

The 24 year old, who joined the Stingrays from NCAA college the University of Alabama-Huntsville in the summer, picked up first star awards in the win over Braehead and tight home loss to Coventry and that was enough to fire him to the top of the monthly leader board with 40 points, 20 points ahead of netminder Christian Boucher, who once again finished in second place.

Coburn, although not a regular contributor to the scoresheet, has proven to be a great asset to the club, putting in consistent, hardworking performances game after game. Goals and points from the Canadian are largely seen as a bonus to coach Sylvain Cloutier, who primarily wants the rookie to play a solid two-way game on the Rays forward lines, but he has bagged 12 points in 22 games so far this year including the crucial game winning goal over Newcastle in Whitley Bay on the 20th.

Despite a roller coaster month for the club, Coburn showed signs that he is beginning to acclimatise to the professional game and is starting to go from strength to strength in the Elite League. Needless to say Cloutier will be hoping his consistent performances catch on.

Silver claims first FBB Player of the Month

Excel Hull Stingrays forward Jason Silverthorn has claimed F Block Blog's first ever player of the month award after putting in a string of team leading performances in October.

Despite arriving late for his second year with the club, the Canadian forward lead the club with points (13) last month, registered six goals and seven assists in 13 games along the way. Although the opportunistic Jereme Tendler currently leads the club in goals and also has 13 points on the year, Silverthorn has lead by example offensively, helping the club into seventh place in the Elite League.

Silverthorn pipped Christian Boucher to the post, claiming FBB's first star in the home and home double header against Belfast and Newcastle last weekend after the Rays netminder had claimed the opening two awards in standout performances against Cardiff and Nottingham.

Despite missing much of the month with a knee injury, Lee Mitchell finished in joint third, after being awarded second star in his goalscoring return to action against Cardiff weekend, alongside Finn Matti Uusivirta, who impressed in his first month in the UK.