BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Western New York native Andrew Poturalski has added an MVP trophy to a mantle that already includes two Calder Cup championships and three scoring titles in the American Hockey League.
Poturalski, a 31-year-old from Williamsville who attended Nichols School, has been voted the winner of the Les Cunningham Award as the most valuable player in the AHL this past season.
In his first year playing for the San Jose Barracuda, the center led the league and set franchise record with 73 points in 59 games. The Barracuda went 24-10-4-3 (.671) in games that Poturalski played and 5-8-0-0 (.385) without him, making the Calder Cup playoffs for the first time in six seasons.
Poturalski played in three NHL games this season on a two-year, two-way contract with the San Jose Sharks. He has nine NHL appearances in his career with the Sharks, Kraken and Hurricanes. His illustrious AHL career includes time with Coachella Valley, Chicago, San Diego and Charlotte.
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Jonah Bronstein joined the WIVB squad in 2022 as a digital sports reporter. The Buffalonian has covered the Bills, Sabres, Bandits, Bisons, colleges, high schools and other notable sporting events in Western New York since 2005, for publications including The Associated Press, The Buffalo News, and Niagara Gazette. Read more of his work here.