Rookie Walchuk Earns Team West Invite For Prospect Games:

This is in todays Morning Star Newspaper:

Rookie Walchuk earns Team West invite for Prospect Games

By Graeme Corbett - Vernon Morning Star

Published: December 03, 2009

Deceptively fast with great hands. That was how veteran forward Robbie Short described rookie linemate Dylan Walchuk before the Vernon Vipers practised Wednesday afternoon at Wesbild Centre.

Pretty high praise coming from one of the fastest straightaway skaters in the B.C. Hockey League.

“His puck control is just through the roof,” said Short, who plays on a line with Walchuk and Cole Ikkala. “He’s one of the only guys that, no matter what he does, he’ll always get the puck back. That gives him more time, more space to make plays. And he does that, he’s a heads-up player. He knows where me and Ikkala are all the time.”

It’s this ability to see the ice and make the smart play that has earned Walchuk an invite to the fifth annual Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) Prospects Event, starting Monday in Winkler, Man.

Walchuk, 17, along with former Viper d-man Nick Amies of Enderby (now with the Cowichan Valley Capitals), are two of eight BCHLers on the 21-man Team West roster. Netminder Sean Bonar (Penticton Vees), defencemen Tim Daly (Langley Chiefs) and Joey Laleggia (Vees), and forwards Grayson Downing (Westside Warriors), Beau Bennett (Vees) and Brayden Jaw (Nanaimo Clippers) are the other players who will battle the Eastern stars.

Player selection for the event is a joint initiative of the CJHL and NHL Central Scouting, with the top-40 NHL draft eligible players showcasing their talent in front of a multitude of college and professional scouts and coaches.

“It’s going to be a little nerve-racking playing in front of all those scouts, but I’m just going to go out there and try my best,” said Walchuk, a top-10 scorer in the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League last season with the Nelson Leafs. “We just got to go there, show what we got and leave it all on the ice.”

Walchuk, who has committed to Northern Michigan for the 2011-12 season, is third in Vipers scoring with 13-25-38 and eight penalty minutes in 31 games. He credits Short and Ikkala, a pair of 6-foot, 205-pounders, for their relentless work ethic and for creating extra space.