Two members of the Estevan Bruins are finalists for this year’s Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) awards.
Devan Harrison, who is in his second year with the club, has been named as the Viterra Division’s nominee for SJHL’s best defenceman, and forward Griffin Asham-Moroz is the division’s finalist for the top rookie.
Harrison has five goals and 34 points in 55 games played this year. According to a news release from the Bruins, Harrison has been playing top minutes in all situations against the opposition’s top line.
Matthew Fletcher of the Battlefords North Stars and Alex Rondeau of the Melfort Mustangs were also nominated.
Asham-Moroz has had one of the most productive rookie seasons for a Bruin in recent memory with 17 goals and 44 points in 55 games.
He has made an immediate impact with the Bruins and has consistently produced offensively scoring just under a point-per-game pace while garnering top minutes at the centre position.
He’ll be up against Karter McNarland of the Humboldt Broncos, who has 10 goals and 43 points in 54 games, and Tristan Lemyre of the Flin Flon Bombers, who has 26 goals and 57 points in 40 games played.
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The Bruins also held their annual skills competition Sunday afternoon at Affinity Place.
Players were divided into two teams: Team Gold and Team Grey. There were seven different competitions: hardest shot, most accurate shooter, fastest skater, fastest backwards skater, team relay, the shootout, and a trick-move shootout where style was recognized over actually scoring.
Points were distributed to the top four finishers and their teams in each category. Five points were awarded for the team relay winner, and one point was awarded to each team for every goal or save in the shootout.
Team Gold won the competition over Team Grey 85-58.
Harrison and Austin King-Cunningham tied for the hardest shot at 96 miles per hour. Brady Nicholas won the most accurate shot competition by hitting all four targets in the quickest time.
Cody Davis successfully defended his fastest skater title by completing a lap in 13.73 seconds, Kade McMillen was the fastest backwards skater in a time of 15.75 seconds, and Davis and Isaiah Thomas won the trick move shootout with a score of 10.
Tema Grey took the shootout 14-8, while Team Gold won the relay with a time of two minutes and five seconds.
After the skills competition, fans flocked to the ice for the RBC Community Skate, which was hosted by defenceman Kade McMillen, who was selected as the Bruins community ambassador this season for his leadership and contributions off the ice.
