Bigos Banks Tournament MVP:

This is in todays Morning Star Newspaper:

Bigos banks tournament MVP

By Kevin Mitchell - Vernon Morning Star

Published: May 12, 2009

Most Valuable Player. Top Defenceman. Assistant captain of the Royal Bank Cup champion Vernon Vipers.
Geez, Kyle Bigos. Has Jessica Simpson dialed your cell yet?
“She’s not returning my calls,” smiled Bigos, as he was greeted by fans outside the Viper bus at Wesbild Centre Monday morning.
The B.C. Hockey League champions were the class of the five-team national junior A tournament in Victoria, and Bigos led the ultra-talented group with some all-planet play.
“It (Roland Mercier MVP award) came way out of left field,” said Bigos, who was expecting teammate Mike Collins (tourney top scorer with 10 points) to collect the hardware at Saturday night’s banquet. “Any of our guys could have won that MVP. I was actually looking at Collins when they went to make the announcement.”
Sunday’s victory capped a fantasy-type week for the friendly California giant, whose year will get even sweeter when he is chosen in the NHL entry draft next month in Montreal.
His folks, Walt and Bev, surprised their son by showing up in Victoria at the start of the tournament. He delivered a clutch goal to mark Mother’s Day, and the end of the tourney.
“I was walking downtown with Pimmer (Braden Pimm) and his parents, and we bumped into them,” said Bigos. “I couldn’t believe it. I told my mom on Mother’s Day, ‘Thank you so much.’ She said, ‘You’re so welcome, you’ve turned out to be such a good hockey player and a good person.’ She’s my momma bear and I’m her little cub.”
Bigos, who will enjoy the Canadian title glory for a while before deciding on his future, said the Vipers never lost focus of their quest for the RBC.
“We set a goal at the beginning of the year: RBC, RBC, and we started to believe early. With every win and every series, we got a little stronger.”
Asked if he’s ready to replace graduating Chris Crowell as captain, Bigos, who may wait a year before joining the NCAA Merrimack Warriors, replied: “He’s the best captain I’ve ever seen. It would be big shoes to fill. I would be calling him every night for advice.”
Crowell believes Bigos is a worthy candidate to wear the ultimate letter for Vernon next season.
“He was unreal,” said Crowell. “Good players find a way to elevate their game when they need to and he was able to do that. Leaders like Biggie stepped it up (when Crowell was ejected for a check from behind in the first period). That’s what’s so special about this team. We have so many guys who could have been captains.”
Added head coach/GM Mark Ferner, on Bigos: “He was the best player there. He just kept getting better and better.”
Bigos recorded four goals and seven assists in six RBC games. His Bobby Orr-like move from the left point and juke-and-jive drive to net for Vernon’s second goal in the championship game, even surprised Bigos.
“I don’t think I’ll ever score a better goal than that,” he said Monday.
The Vipers’ Connor Jones collected the Top Forward award for his 5-3-8 performance over five games.
Snakes’ smooth-skating forward Ryan Santana pocketed the Tubby Smaltz Trophy as the Most Sportsmanlike Player. Santana, who ironically was tossed for a checking–from-behind penalty Sunday, fired 1-3-4 in six RBC games.
The Top Goaltender award went to Victoria Grizzlies’ Anthony Grieco.
Vipers’ no-nonsense defenceman Mike Leidl received a $500 RBC Cup Legacy Scholarship.
Ferner said the Vipers, who are already receiving calls from players looking for a place to play next season, will wait a few weeks before announcing the names of some major recruits.