The last four years of UVM hockey have had a few constant figures helping along the way. One of the constants has undoubtedly been forward Peter Lenes.The senior assistant captain originally from Shelburne, Vt. has brought speed, scoring and raw intensity to the team, while adding some local flavor to the roster.”Growing up down the road, I experienced UVM as a fan and now as a player.” Lenes said. “It’s exciting growing up and going to the games, and now I see the little kids there and I know that was me.”Though Vermont was always a geographically close option for a college choice, Lenes wasn’t always completely sure about coming to UVM.”It was always in the back of my mind,” Lenes said. “[The team] was really good when I was younger. They went through a tough stretch with the hazing scandal, so I went away for a few years to prep school and junior hockey.”Now in his final season as a Catamount, Lenes is second on the team in scoring with 11 goals and 14 assists. He has 133 career games under his belt and with 41 goals and 85 points during his time at Vermont. Recently, Lenes was named a semi -finalist for the Walter Brown award – an annual award given to the best American-born hockey player in the New England area. The finalists and the winners will be announced in March. Lenes will be competing against 11 other players from Hockey East and five players from other hockey conferences.He has also been selected as one of 68 players under consideration for the NCAA Frozen Four Skills Challenge, to be held at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. Fans are able to vote online to decide who will be on the final team.As far as helping him to get to the point he is now, Lenes cited a few different influences. “I would say the coaching staff and my classmates,” he said. “Definitely those guys, we’ve been pretty close from the beginning here.”Now having the position of assistant captain on the team, Lenes is in a position of leadership for younger players who are experiencing their first year of college hockey.”I think Pete’s a big part of our senior leadership,” freshman goalie Rob Madore said. “That’s something I’ve definitely drawn from this year. He works really hard at practice and pushes me and the guys around us to excel.”Leaderhship from Lenes as well as senior captain Dean Strong has been instumental in getting the Cats to where they are this season – ranked No. 3 in Hockey East and No. 5 in the nation.”It goes back to competitiveness and the fact that Pete and Dean hold everyone to a very high standard,” Madore said. “They understand what this team has to do to be successful and they demand nothing less than that.”Though Lenes will be leaving UVM in just a few months, he plans to continue playing hockey in another capacity.