To borrow a line from head coach Mike Glawson not too many MVPs score one goal in a year, but this guy did.
Then again there was nothing usual about Bantam AA netminder Gage Alexander who walked away as one of the big winners at the Okotoks Oilers Athletic Association Awards Gala May 2 at the Foothills Centennial Centre.
“There is so much you can say about this guy,” Glawson said. “He garnered a lot of attention this year. Not just because of his height, but what he did on the ice.”
The 6-foot-5 Okotokian’s meteoric rise saw him walk away as the South Central Alberta Hockey League’s (SCAHL) Top Goaltender and MVP of the Bantam AA Oilers while leading his squad to the league and provincial championship along with the Alberta Cup title.
Alexander, who capped off the week by being selected in the WHL Bantam Draft in the seventh round by the Kootenay Ice, finished the season with an 11-1-4 mark while posting a .930 save percentage.
He wasn’t the only one to take home some league hardware.
Okotoks Peewee AA captain Liam Watkins earned acclaim not only for prodigious point production, but for his decorum.
Watkins, who potted 57 goals in 31 games, earned the SCAHL’s Most Exemplary Player honour as voted on by coaches in the Peewee division.
Elsewhere, Rocky Mountain Bantam AAA Raiders captain Anson McMaster earned the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League’s Top Defenceman honour in the South Division.
McMaster, selected 23rd overall by the Ice in the Dub draft, was named the Raiders MVP and Top Defenceman.
Rearguard award winners would be a major theme all night.
Okotoks Midget AA Black blueliner Kale Hawryluk was the MVP of his squad as was defenceman Cole Haberlack of Okotoks Midget AA Green and Ryan Conroy from the Rockyview Raiders.
Coaches from the Rocky Mountain Midget AAA Raiders had a near impossible task selecting one standout from the provincial host and silver medallists.
Okotoks workhorse centre Breanne Trotter earned the honour while graduating captain Kennedy Brown deservedly took the Oiler Award.
The first-season of the Rocky Mountain Midget Elite squad saw the team select versatile forward Lindsay Aitken as its first team MVP.
Likewise for Bantam Elite forward Kaia Borbandy, the first MVP in the history of the squad.
All told, the association sent nine of ten teams to the post-season while picking up one league and one provincial championship.
The association also celebrated the addition of an Okotoks based Midget AAA squad to add to the fold for the 2017-18 season.
The full list of winners will be attached to the web article at westernwheel.com
Award Winners
Midget AAA Female Raiders
MVP – Breanne Trotter
Top Scorer – Nicole Fry
Top Defenceman – Catherine Longchamps
Most Improved – Stephanie Gross
Oiler Award – Kennedy Brown
Midget Female Elite Raiders
MVP – Lindsay Aitken
Top Scorer – Bryana Sharkey
Top Defenceman – Quinan Stang
Most Improved – Morgan Vandergaag
Oiler Award – Mckenna Eagleton
Bantam Female Elite Raiders
MVP/Top Scorer – Kaia Borbandy
Top Defenceman – Sydney Trotter
Most Improved – Kristin LeDuc
Oiler Award – Ainsley Olson
Midget AA Oilers Black
MVP/Top Defenceman – Kale Hawryluk
Top Scorer – Jackson Kobelka, Ryan Partaker
Most Improved – Cade Blindkilde
Oiler Award – Ryan Bedard
Midget AA Oilers Green
MVP – Cole Haberlack
Top Scorer – Brandt Black
Top Defenceman – Jayson McCarthy
Most Improved – Evan Woods
Oiler Award – Shawn Grobowsky
Midget AAA Rockyview Raiders
MVP/Top Defenceman – Ryan Conroy
Top Scorer – Jaevon Buschlen
Most Improved – Benjamin Kruse
Oiler Award – Joel Dawson
Bantam AAA Raiders
MVP/Top Scorer/Top Defenceman – Anson McMaster
Most Improved – Daxton Budd
Oiler Award – Nathan Fox
Bantam AA Oilers
MVP – Gage Alexander
Top Scorer – Kai Uchacz
Top Defenceman – Caden Scott
Most Improved – Nathan Sager
Oiler Award – Calder Eagleton
Peewee AA Oilers Green
MVP – Jaden Yue
Top Scorer – Conyr Hellyer, Gavin Schmidt
Top Defenceman – Avery Greig
Most Improved – Conyr Hellyer
Oiler Award – Kaleb Brown
Peewee AA Oilers Black
MVP/Top Scorer – Liam Watkins
Top Defenceman – Trevor Bonham
Most Improved – Owen McFarlane
Oiler Award – Aidan McArthur
Graduating Players – Isaiah Betinol, Brandt Black, Brendon Borbely, Ty Budai, Carter Harris, Kale Hawryluk, Dakota Krebs, Jack McArdle, Michael Lang, Ryan Partaker; Kennedy Brown, Kate Lloyd, Catherine Longchamps, Hailey McCallum, Ashley Sutherland, Ava Thiessen.
Markus Lavallee Award – Benjamin Kruse, Daniel Walsh
Craig Kletzel Award – Lucas Watkins
Volunteer of the Year – Dean Trotter
Ralph Brown Award – Brad Beebe