DAVID EMMA WINS HOBEY David Emma, the all-time Boston College leader in goals (112), assists (127), and points (239), won the 1991 Hobey Baker Award. However, there was quite a bit of uproar in Boston over the way the announcement was done this year. The committee had decided to announce the winner immediately following the national championship game, "in case the winner was playing in the game." But somehow the news was leaked, and Bostonians knew that Emma had won the award Friday, more than a day before the announcement was planned. Channel 5 announced it on their 11 pm newscast. Still, the committee kept Emma in a closed room at the St Paul Civic Center, without any way for Emma to even see the game, until after the game ended. He wasn't even allowed to leave the room to go to the bathroom because it was feared someone would spot him and deduce that Emma was the winner. ESPN made the announcement before the third overtime because it had decided not to wait around for interviews after the game; after all, people were waiting to see that hour-long SportsCenter from the NCAA Hoop Final Four. But Emma was still kept locked away. Finally, the official announcement came after the game, but at that point reporters were more interested in meeting their deadline after the incredible game. The Hobey winner was shoved aside. What's wrong with this picture? AMONTE SIGNS BU's Tony Amonte, from Hingham, Mass., has signed with the New York Rangers. He will be available for their opening round playoff series. I expect that this means that Saturday's championship was the very last we have seen of the Amonte-McEachern combination. I thought they would go to the Olympics together, but now that looks doubtful. Too bad. Last night channel 5 in Boston broke the Amonte signing news (a press conference was to be held in NY today) and showed Amonte's mom dragging him to a store to buy a suit. LOWELL TO CHANGE NAME With the consolidation of Massachusetts higher education underway, the University of Lowell will apparently be changing its name to the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, or UMass-Lowell. No word on when this will take effect. Two other Mass. state colleges are also affected, including Southeastern Massachusetts University (ECAC North), which will apparently become something like UMass-Dartmouth. Athletic programs at the three schools should not be affected at all. - mike