Storm Name Former Vernon Viper Correale Most Improved Player At Year End Awards Banquet:

The AJHL Grande Prairie Storm named former Vernon Vipers forward, Gus Correale most improved player at the Storms annual awards banquet back in early March. Correale in his second season with the Storm was recruited by the Vipers, started the 2010-11 season in Vernon before being traded on October, 26th 2010 to the Storm for defenceman, Austin Baecker & future considerations. In 58 regular season games with the Storm this season Correale collected (16-22-38) as Grande Prairie was swept in the first round of the AJHL playoffs by the Fort McMurray Oil Barons in three straight games.

Gus Correale's Player Profile:

http://www.gpstorm.com/default.aspx?p=playerinfo&id=238

This is posted on the Storms website:

Grande Prairie Storm’s annual awards night

By IVAN DANIELEWICZ

Herald-Tribune staff

Posted on 03/02/2012

It was a player fans weren’t used to hearing about, but he was honoured as the team’s most important one.

At the Grande Prairie Storm’s annual awards night on Thursday, defenceman Scott Milnthorp was named the Storm’s Most Valuable Player and the team’s Top Defenceman. With the grin plastered from ear-to-ear on Milnthorp after the ceremony, it was obvious he was still trying to take it all in.

“It was just a surprise,” he said. “It’s a tremendous honour to win both awards. I look at some of the names on the plaque and it just amazes me that I could be on there with them.

“I had no idea that this was coming.”

Milnthorp finished the season 11th on the Storm’s scoring charts with four goals, 15 assists and 86 penalty minutes in 58 games this past season. At five-foot-11 and hovering around 170 pounds, he also wasn’t one of the Storm’s big hitters or grinders.

However Storm head coach Blaine Bablitz said that Milnthorp set an example for his work ethic and consistency both on and off the ice, which is why he won both of the awards.

“He’s a kid that we have identified that we want everything in our program to be about,” Bablitz said. “He’s involved with the community and working with the youth, he has great leadership, he has a great head on his shoulders, he had a big impact on the games on the power-play, penalty kill and even strength, so for me … to identify the one guy that had the biggest impact on our team in every area … was why Scott Milnthorp was named our MVP.

“We did have some very strong individual players on our team this year that garnered a lot of attention like the Hugo Turcottes or the Patrick Terrisses, but at the end of the day you have to evaluate the guy that has the biggest impact on your program.”
This was Milnthorp’s second season with the Storm and he was one of the team’s assistant captains.

At the age of 19, he still has one more year with the Storm and his goal for next season is to see the Storm through a longer post-season.

“It’s not good to lose out (like we did) two years in a row,” Milnthorp said. “(A longer play-off drive) is definitely one of our main focuses for next year and to just have a really good season; a lot better than the one we had this year.

“I’m looking forward to it and I’m really excited.”
At the end of the evening, the Storm also honoured their five graduating players: Captain Mitch Neumeier, leading-scorer Hugo Turcotte, defencemen Matt Cumming and Ryan Hamberg, and goalie Patrick Terriss.

THE AWARD WINNERS

Most Valuable Player: Scott Milnthorp
Top Forward: Hugo Turcotte
Top Defenceman: Scott Milnthorp
Rookie of the Year: Jordan McTaggart/ Curtis Skip
Playoff MVP: Mitch Neumeier
Most Improved Player: Gus Correale
Unsung Hero: Chad Roorda
Most Dedicated Player: Jon Aylward
Two-Way Player: Tanner Labbe
Hustle Award: Spencer Mault