Goalkeeper of the Year:Donavan Ricketts

After finishing as a finalist but missing out on any awards in 2009, Los Angeles Galaxy shot-stopper Donovan Ricketts has earned his first Goalkeeper of the Year award with another impressive campaign for the 2010 Supporters’ Shield winners.

The 33-year-old Jamaican international becomes the first Galaxy ‘keeper to win the league award since Kevin Hartman in 1999. Ricketts matched several of Hartman’s marks from that year, setting a new club record for goals-against average (GAA) at 0.90 and tying the all-time team mark for shutouts with 11.

Although Ricketts has made it to the MLS All-Star Game in each of his two seasons in MLS, he is now on a mission to advance to his second consecutive MLS Cup final to avenge last year’s championship loss. In that final against Real Salt Lake, he was forced to leave the match due to a broken hand and watched his side lose on a penalty-kick shootout. This year, Ricketts was one of the league’s most durable ‘keepers, starting all but one regular-season match.

The Goalkeeper of the Year award has historically been dominated by Americans, and Ricketts is only the second international player to ever win it. Canadian Pat Onstad and Italian Walter Zenga have been the only non-American finalists in league history, with Onstad winning it on two occasions. He will now try to get another trophy: the MLS Cup.