Time to build a trophy case...

[SlapshotWrangler 864]

SASKATOON - The VHL(M) Awards recently happened and as expected, the Saskatoon Wild and their player's won a ton of awards. Along with their Founders Cup, they won the Prime Minister's Cup as the top team in the regular season with their historic 68-4-0 record in season 69. The Wild's Danny DeYeeto won the Ethan Osborne trophy for leading the league in points, the Mitch Higgins for the Most Valuable Player of the Victory Hockey League Minors in the regular season, and the Ryan Sullivan award for being the league's top defenseman. David OQuinn went home with the Vladmir Boomchenko award, leading the league in assists. As expected, the mastermind @Peace, the former Wild general manager (as well as the current manager of the Toronto Legion), won the Jack Reilly award for top GM. Edwin THE Encarnacion and Jacques Lafontaine shared the Skylar Rift trophy with Mississauga Hounds netminder Jimmy Spyro. Jacques Lafontaine also went home with the Benoit Devereux trophy, being chosen as the league's top goaltender.

 

Lafontaine had an amazing season with the loaded Saskatoon Wild, as he had a save percentage of 0.900, and an impressive Goals Against Average of 1.83. In the playoffs, where he tied for the Skylar Rift, he had a save percentage of 0.899 and a respectable Goals Against Average of 2.28. When it comes to shutouts, he had 5 in the regular season and 2 in the Victory Hockey League Minors players.

 

"Yeah, I feel great. I'm honoured to have won these two awards. I was thinking that I'd maybe win the Benoit Devereux, which I did end up winning and I'm grateful for winning but I didn't expect to win the Skylar Rift. I'll take it though. But yeah, congratulations to everybody else who won an award. I can't wait to play against you all in the future, even those who didn't win any awards this year," he said in an interview.

 

Jacques Lafontaine, despite his thankfulness for the awards, thinks that he still has to do more. "Well, I won two awards. That's great and all but now I have to think about my future. I'm not saying that I'm not proud of my accomplishments, I'm just saying that this isn't the end. This isn't all I have to be remembered for. Jacques Lafontaine won't just be a Victory Hockey League Minors star. The minors were just the start. Now I have to continue to press on as I enter into the big leagues. I just gotta keep on trying to reach the next step and I have to improve my game as I go along. This isn't the end. Heck, it isn't even near the end. So you bet your ass that I'm gonna be working hard this season. I'm going all out. Reaction time, skating, hand speed, controlling rebounds, I'm practicing it all. The Calgary Wranglers picked me because they thought I would be able to handle being their starter. They chose me because they thought I'd be the best. I'm sure as hell gonna prove them right."