AJ Williams at 15 years old

[AJW 2,201]

Taking a spin on this theme week to talk about where Williams was at the age of 15. Williams is currently in his 5th season of the VHL and played 2 seasons in the VHLM. So let's just say he entered the VHLM at 17 and with each season being a year his time, he is now 24. SO, this article will talk about Williams two years prior to his VHLM debut.

 

To start things off, Williams is a Northern Ontarian boy, growing up his entire life before his hockey career took over. At 15 years old, Williams was playing for his AAA team. Williams was getting lots of recognition for his talents at a young age, and entering his mid teen years that recognition blew up. Scouts from across the world were reaching out to contact Williams, showing interest and wanting him to come play in their leagues. He remembers doing a Russian league interview where the interviewer had such a thick Russian accent that Williams did not understand any of the questions and had to mainly laugh things off.

 

Williams was just a teenage boy at the end of the day and this was all a lot to take in. He basically had the next chapters of his life planned out and did not know where to go or what to do. So instead of thinking about what's next, he thought about what's now, and that was to play his best hockey for his AAA team. Williams went on to set a team record of 104 points in 46 games. He crushed the previous record that was set by 81 points back in 1991. Up north does not produce a lot of talent in anything, so for Williams to be producing at a high level like this was not only huge for him but the community. Soon more Canadian leagues were reaching out and Williams was pretty excited for the chance to play for a high level league in his home country.

 

Through countless phone calls and emails, Williams finally had his heart set on entering the VHLM. There are two teams from Ontario, the Ottawa Lynx and the Mississauga Hounds, so Williams had known of these teams and the league they played in for a long time. Williams had been contacted by the Ottawa Lynx GM to come play for them once he was developed and ready. Williams would play another season with his native team before signing a waiver deal with the Lynx in S78. Williams enjoyed the league and knew this is where he would want to play his professional hockey career. Williams then entered the S79 VHLM Dispersal Draft and to his surprise, Mississauga, the other Ontario team, drafted his player 1st overall to keep him as a home body. Williams was thrilled and his talents really took off, leading him to a 5th overall pick in the VHL draft, and just recently winning a cup for the Seattle Bears. The VHL was definitely the place for Williams to grow and be the best player he is today.

Edited December 13 by AJW