MANUEL WIEDERER NAMED SAN JOSE BARRACUDA 2019-20 IOA/AMERICAN SPECIALTY AHL MAN OF THE YEAR
Apr 6, 2020
The San Jose Barracuda (@sjbarracuda) are proud to announce that Manuel Wiederer (@Wieds21) has been named the team's winner of the IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year award for his outstanding contributions to the San Jose community during the 2019-20 season.
One of the most well-liked and respected players in the Barracuda's five-year history, Manny attended over a third of the team's 60-plus player appearances in 2019-20, far surpassing any of his teammates. Every time the Barracuda held a team event for the general public, community group, or season ticket holders, Manny was always the first to volunteer and took extra time to interact with fans.
In October, the Barracuda planned a team community service day where they partnered with Together We Rise, an organization that serves children in the foster care system. Though Manny was injured at the time of the event, he still attended and stayed longer than any other player. On multiple occasions, he was the one that reached out to the Barracuda staff to see how he could be involved. In fact, during the league-mandated holiday break he asked if there were any children or families in the local hospitals that he could visit and spend time with on Christmas Eve, an idea that he volunteered without any previous conversations or team involvement. While he was alone for the holidays, instead of just enjoying a well-deserved break, his instinctual thought was to see if he could serve those in the community who may be alone or facing difficult circumstances during what can be a lonely time of the year, a true sign of his character.
Manuel Wiederer is now one of 31 finalists for the AHL's 2019-20 Yanick Dupre Memorial Award, honoring the overall IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year. The league award is named after the former Hershey Bears forward and AHL All-Star who died in 1997 following a 16-month battle with leukemia. The winner of the Yanick Dupre Memorial Award will be announced by the American Hockey League at a later date.