Vipers Hand Out Player Awards

The Vernon Vipers have honoured their best, with the annual player awards.

The award winners were announced after Wednesday night’s 4-1 win over the Coquitlam Express, the Vipers final home game of the regular season.

The awards were announced at Kal Tire Place by Vipers play by play voice Graham Turnbull, and his comments are included.

FAN FAVORITE AWARD

The Fan Favorite is a special award. It goes to a special individual who can bring smiles to fans faces whether it’s a big goal, crashing into the boards, an autograph or simply a fist bump to the 7th man.
The winner of the Fan Favorite Award is Jagger Williamson.

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RENEE HOLLAND COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD

Junior hockey doesn’t work without a strong community. This community is a huge part of the success of this franchise and it doesn’t go unnoticed. The winners of the
Renee Holland Community Service Award didn’t hesitate to put their names down when it was time to get out and about at schools or any event that was coming up.
The winners are Connor Marritt and Brendan Kim.

UNSUNG HERO

The difference between winning and losing can sometimes be a fine line. Things that don’t show up on the scoreboard can be the reason you win or lose. When it
comes to the intangibles of the game, these two players have it in spades. Block a shot, kill a penalty, chip a puck.
The winners of the Unsung Hero Award are Jack Judson and Connor Marritt.

MOST SPORTSMANLIKE AWARD

Sportsmanlike Conduct takes into account many things, but really its how this person plays the game with integrity and a high level with emotions running
high. And to have just 16 minutes in penalties all year long…well that’s just unheard of.
The winner of the most sportsmanlike award is Brendan Kim.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

This is not an easy league to break into, but this player broke the walls in a big way. It took a while to get going too…he didn’t register his first goal until
his 8th game. Since that time you could see the confidence mounting and he has become a key part of the offense, pushing 20 goals.
The Rookie of the Year is Teddy Wooding.

BILL BROWN AWARD FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

Athletics is part of the goal of the Vernon Vipers, academics is the other. This players exemplifies how to succeed at a high level at both and it shows with a
scholarship to Wisconsin.
The Bill Brown Award for Academic Excellence goes to Ben Helgeson.

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER

We’ve already spoken about how difficult this league is. Its hard as a 20 year old and with out question it’d be difficult being even younger. The winner of this
award cracked the lineup on a regular basis as a 16 year old and absolutely made the most of every opportunity suiting up in 53 games, playing on the power play and killing off key penalties and most importantly, improving everyday.
The Sun Valley Source for Sports Most Improved Player Award goes to Trey Taylor.

TOP DEFENSEMAN

The best defenders play key minutes and get the toughest matchups. Not often was this player not out against the oppositions best players. He is a physical defender, a
cerebral defender, and has an absolute bomb for a shot.
This years top defenceman is Michael Young.

WAYNE BUCK MEMORIAL AWARD

This award, presented by Sharon Buck, is given to the Viper honoring hard work and unselfish play. This player demonstrated not only those traits on the ice, but off as well.
The winner is Teddy Wooding.

BLUE LINERS ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIP: Josh Latta

DUNCAN WRAY MEMORIAL AWARD presented by Libby and Erika Wray, is a very special award.
A line that many people still use that Duncan Wray used to say is, once a Viper, always a Viper, and you couldn’t find a better example of what it means to be Viper.
The winner of the Duncan Wray Memorial Award: Jagger Williamson.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

The term MVP encompasses a number of elements to any team and this player embodies them all. He leads by example on the ice, off the ice, in the community
even as a cheer leader. It’s not necessarily about always being vocal, but being vocal at the right time and leading, sometimes dragging your team into the
battle.
The Vipers 2018-19 Most Valuable Player is Jagger Williamson.

The 20 year olds on the team were presented with a special commemorative gift: Josh Latta, Jagger Williamson, Jesse Lansdell, Michael Young, Lane Zablocki and Carver Watson.

Thirteen Vipers has made commitments with university teams so far this season.

Ben Helgeson – Wisconsin
Ben Sanderson – Colorado College
Jagger Williamson – Michigan Tech
Jesse Lansdell – Notre Dame
Nick Cherkowski – Merrimack
Josh Latta – University of Alabama-Huntsville
Teddy Wooding – Yale
Logan Cash – University of Vermont
Elan Barlevwise – Ohio State
Michael Young – Yale
Jack Judson – Arizona State
Carver Watson – Michigan Tech
And Aidan Porter – Princeton