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North Stars captain Young wins MVP and player of year

Mar 5, 2018 | 8:33 AM

It has been a season for the record books for Battlefords North Stars captain Layne Young, and yet, the season isn’t even over.

The Frenchman Butte native has recorded 35 goals and 70 assists in 55 games thus far, in his last year of junior, and because of that he was named Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League most valuable player (MVP) and player of the year.

Young currently has a 20-point lead for top scorer in the SJHL with 105 points and has 251 points in his three-year SJHL career, which is top-20 all-time.

This is not the first league award the 20-year-old has won, as he was named rookie of the year two seasons ago.

Award nominations for 2017-18 went out in the third week of February for the five league awards, with Young going up against Nipawin Hawks defenceman Josh McDougall and Estevan Bruins forward Zach Goberis for MVP, and against Goberis and Melfort’s Loch Morrison for player of the year.

Although McDougall lost to Young for MVP, he did take home top defenceman, beating out North Stars D-man Levi Kleiboer and Melville’s Clayton Eisler.

There was a tie for the other two league awards, with goaltender of the year being split between Kindersley Klippers netminder Justen Close and Nipawin Hawks goalie Declan Hobbs.

Weyburn’s Cade Kowalski also tied with Humboldt’s Jacob Wassermann for rookie of the year.

The final league award was only voted on by the head coaches, as Nipawin’s Doug Johnson was named coach of the year for the second straight season.

 

cjnbsports@jpbg.ca

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