With the way things have gone for Moose Jaw Warriors forward Brayden Yager and goaltender Jackson Unger in their WHL careers, one would think their most recent accolades would just be a formality.
Both Yager and Unger, both 17, will be among 40 players from throughout the Canadian Hockey League taking part in the Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game on Jan. 25 in Vancouver.
The annual contest is a showcase of players eligible for the 2023 National Hockey League Entry Draft and features some of the top players in junior hockey today.
“It’s a big honour,” Yager told Marc Smith of mjwarriors.ca shortly after the announcement. “You look at the class of 2005s and the NHL Draft prospects in this class, it’s pretty special, so to be a part of that group is pretty cool.”
Yager’s selection was all but academic. As one of a handful of ‘A’ ranked prospects for the 2023 Draft -- meaning the Saskatoon product is expected to be a first-round selection and could even crack the top five -- Yager will have plenty of eyes on him as he takes the ice with some of the best scoring talent in Canada.
That includes himself. Yager is currently 17th in WHL scoring with 18 goals and 37 points in 31 games and has hovered around the top 10 at times this season. A solid showing during the 2021-22 campaign saw Yager named the CHL Rookie of the Year and led to his first Hockey Canada appearance during the Hlinka Gretzky Under-18 world championship. Yager finished third in tournament scoring with five goals and nine points in Canada’s unbeaten run to gold.
Unger was also a member Team Canada for the event, but didn’t see action as Canada’s third goaltender. He’s also off to a good start this season with a 3.94 goals against average and .873 save percentage in 13 games.
“It wasn’t really on my mind, I didn’t really expect it,” Unger said of his selection. “It’s a huge accomplishment and I’m really excited.”
With only four goaltenders selected for the tournament, Unger is happy to be part of an elite crew of up-and-coming netminders.
“Top-four in the country with some recognizable faces to be competing, it’s good,” Unger said. “It’s going to be high competition, lots of skill there. I’m sure I’ll only play half the game, so I got a period and a half to worry about, but it’s going to be a tough game.”
One only has to look back to the 2022 Top Prospects Game to find Moose Jaw Warriors having an impact.
Jagger Firkus scored a highlight reel goal, assisted on another and was named Team White’s Player of the Game, while defenceman Denton Mateychuk showed off his puck-handling and decision-making skills throughout the night, drawing an assist on White’s insurance marker with 8:23 to play.
“It’s a competitive game and there’s a bunch of the best players in our age group, so it will be super cool and super fun,” Yager said. “I’m just going to go there and try to have fun, not really going there to compare myself to anybody, but just go there and have fun.”
The Warriors close out their pre-Christmas schedule on Friday night when they host the Regina Pats. Game time is 7 p.m. at the Moose Jaw Events Centre.
