Providence Bruins Goalie Wins Les Cunningham Award For 2025-26 Season
Providence Bruins goalie Michael DiPietro has won the AHL’s Les Cunningham Award.
ON TOP OF THE AHL‼️
— Providence Bruins (@AHLBruins) April 24, 2026
Michael DiPietro has won the Les Cunningham Award as the AHL’s Most Valuable Player👏 pic.twitter.com/jMeJuioKYt
The award is handed out to the league’s Most Valuable Player annually at the end of the regular season and is voted on by coaches, media, and players.
The Windsor, Ontario, Canada native earned the honor for his performance with Providence this season.
During Providence’s 2025-26 campaign, DiPietro played in 45 games, boasted a 34-8-1 record, put up a 1.91 goals against average, and made 1,202 saves. He was also credited with three shutouts.
He led the AHL in wins, save percentage (.930), and had the lowest goals against average as well as ranked fifth in saves.
“It’s an incredible accomplishment and addition to his resume,” said Providence Bruins head coach Ryan Mougenel in the official press release. “Michael has been an invaluable factor for the team during his time in Providence. We’re excited to celebrate this honor with him and feel very lucky to have not just Michael the goaltender, but the person as well in our locker room.”
The 26-year-old was selected by the Vancouver Canucks as the No. 64 overall pick (third round) in the 2017 NHL Draft.
In 2022, he was traded to the Bruins by the Canucks and has spent a majority of his time with the organization in Providence.
DiPietro has played in one game for the Boston Bruins which was this season on Feb. 26 against the Columbus Blue Jackets. He made two saves in six minutes and three seconds on the ice. Boston defeated Columbus 4-2.
In total, DiPietro has played in four regular season games in the NHL. The other three were during his time in Vancouver, one in the 2018-19 against San Jose, one in the 2019-20 season against Vegas, and the other in the 2021-22 season against St. Louis.
He has tallied a career 5.01 goals against average, a .780 save percentage, and made 50 saves in those four games.
DiPietro also won the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Memorial Award which is given to the AHL’s best goaltender each season. He won the award for the second consecutive season.
During the regular season, Providence went 54-16-2 overall and earned the No. 1 seed in the Atlantic Division. The Bruins are awaiting their opponent for the Division Semifinals which will be a Best-of-5 series.
They will play either the No. 3 Charlotte Checkers or the No. 6 Springfield Thunderbirds.
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Kim Rankin is one of the lead writers for Boston Bruins on SI and Boston College On SI. A 2020 graduate of the University of Alabama. she joined Alabama Crimson Tide On SI in February 2024 covering baseball, softball, football, men’s basketball, and more for BamaCentral, but has also contributed to Missouri Tigers On SI. She previously worked as the brand manager at Tide 100.9 FM in Tuscaloosa, Ala. She has covered a wide variety of events including SEC Championships, NCAA Regionals, and bowl games.