CJHL Announces National Player Awards:

CJHL announces national player awards
 
Wednesday, February 6, 2013 - Submitted by Canadian Junior Hockey League

New CJHL MVP and top player awards to complement the RBC CJHL Player of the Year Award and RBC Junior A Scholarships

CALGARY, Alberta (February 6, 2013) – The Canadian Junior Hockey League will recognize the best Junior A talent from across all 10 Junior A leagues with a new suite of national awards.

The new CJHL awards will include Most Valuable Player, Top Forward, Top Defenceman, Top Goaltender and Top Rookie as well as Coach of the Year and Top NHL Prospect.

"The CJHL is always looking for new ways to showcase our players and raise the profile of the Junior A game," said Kirk Lamb, President of the CJHL. "The adoption of national awards is an important step in recognizing CJHL athletes while at the same time providing exposure for our players and Junior A leagues across the country."

The MVP will be awardedannually to the player judged to have contributed most to his team’s regular season success while the top player awards will be given out to the most outstanding player in that category based on regular season individual performance.  The coach considered to have contributed the most to his team's regular season success will be named the Coach of the Year.

Each Junior A league in the CJHL will submit a nominee for each award and the winner will be chosen from among those 10 national finalists.  The selection panel will consist of representatives from each of the CJHL's 10 Junior A leagues and the award winners will be chosen based on a weighted-voting system.

The CJHL will also honour its best and brightest throughout the season with the introduction of the CJHL 3 Stars of the Month.  This monthly award will recognize outstanding on-ice achievement of three players across the country, with the first CJHL 3 Stars to be chosen for the month of January 2013 and announced on February 7.    In addition, the highest-rated CJHL player on NHL Central Scouting's final draft rankings will be named the CJHL Top NHL Prospect.

The new national awards will complement the RBC CJHL Player of the Year Award and the RBC Junior A Scholarships in honouring CJHL players. "The new CJHL awards are a great addition to the RBC CJHL Player of the Year Award and the RBC Junior A Scholarships, both of which have a proud tradition of recognizing some of Junior A hockey's best and brightest athletes and students," said CJHL President Kirk Lamb.

The RBC CJHL Player of the Year award is given to the player who best combines on-ice performance with off-ice social responsibility while the RBC National Junior A Scholarship program provides an opportunity for Junior A players to receive scholarships based on academic accomplishments and community service.