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WHL Prince George Cougars

Cougars to Present Eight Brand New Awards Prior to Tonight's Game

March 20, 2015 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Prince George Cougars News Release


Prince George, B.C. - One of the many initiatives introduced this year by the Prince George Cougars new ownership group is to honor and respect past members of the franchise. As a part of that initiative, we worked with Tyler Brough and the Alumni Association to re-brand our Annual Awards. Each new trophy has been named to recognize a past player or community member who has made significant contributions to the team or achieved greatness in their chosen career.

We are proud to announce that the following new awards will be presented prior to the game tonight in Prince George:

Dan Hamhuis Award - Most Valuable Player

Dan Hamhuis (Smithers, B.C.) is one of the most accomplished junior hockey players ever to dawn a Prince George Cougars sweater. Though he was never drafted into the WHL, Hamhuis joined the Prince George Cougars at the start of the 1998-99 season as a 16-year-old. He would go on to play 247 regular season games with the Cougars and finished with 34 goals and 122 assists for 156 points. During his tenure in Prince George he would be named the Rookie of the Year (1999), Scholastic Player of the Year (1999). In 2001, he represented the Prince George Cougars in the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game serving as his team's Captain for that event. In the summer of 2001, he was selected 12th overall by the Nashville Predators in the NHL Entry Draft.

His final season (2001-02) with the Cougars was arguably his most successful. He scored 10 goals, added 50 assists and received the the Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy and the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy as the WHL's Best Defenceman and Player of the Year, respectively. Hamhuis additionally received the CHL Defenceman of the Year Award and was named to the WHL West and CHL First All-Star Teams. He was also named team Captain, and the Cougar's Most Valuable Player. During his tenure with the Cougars, Hamhuis represented Canada twice at the World Junior Hockey Championships (2001, 2002).

Hamhuis joined the Nashville Predators full-time in 2003 and has since played 800-plus games with the Nashville Predators and the Vancouver Canucks. He played a major role in helping lead the Canucks to Game 7 of the 2011 NHL Stanley Cup Finals, and in 2014 Hamhuis won a Gold Medal with Team Canada at the Sochi Olympics. He has represented Canada five different times at the World Hockey Championships earning three silver and one gold medal.

In May 2014, Hamhuis was announced as one of the six members of the new Prince George Cougars ownership group.

Eric Brewer Award - Defensive Player of the Year

Eric Brewer (Vernon, B.C.) was originally selected by the Prince George Cougars in the fourth round (81st overall) during the 1994 WHL Bantam Draft. He joined the Cougars full-time in 1995 and was named the Cougars Rookie of the Year after posting four goals and 10 assists.

In 1996-97, Brewer more than doubled his point total from the previous season with (29 points) and represented Team Orr at the 1997 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game. Later that summer, Brewer was selected fifth overall by the New York Islanders in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft.

Brewer's final season (1997-98) with Prince George was his best, statistically. After representing Canada at the 1998 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, he was named to the WHL Western Conference All-Star team and would join the New York Islanders full time next season.

Eric Brewer's NHL career has spanned 16 seasons. He's played with the New York Islanders, Edmonton Oilers, St. Louis Blues, Tampa Bay Lightning, Anaheim Ducks and Toronto Maple Leafs and by the time the 2014-15 NHL season ends, Brewer will have suited up in over 1,000 NHL games.

Internationally Eric Brewer has won three gold medals with Canada at the World Hockey Championships, and also played a big part in Canada's Gold Medal Victory at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, UT.

In May 2014, Brewer was announced as one of the six members of the new Prince George Cougars ownership group.

Troy Bourke Award - Offensive Player of the Year

Troy Bourke (Onoway, AB) was originally selected by the Prince George Cougars in the second round of the 2009 WHL Bantam Draft. He joined the Cougars full-time in 2010 and represented Canada Pacific later that season in the 2011 U17 World Hockey Challenge. In 68 games for the Cougars, he scored 19 goals with 23 assists.

In 2011-12, Bourke led the Cougars with 56 points and also helped lead Canada to a bronze medal at the 2012 World Under-18 Championships. Later that summer, Bourke was selected by the Colorado Avalanche in the third round (72nd overall) in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.

Bourke's third season in the WHL resulted in a 50 point campaign, but his best statistical season would come a season later in 2013-14. Bourke (who Captained the team in 2013-14) finished second in team scoring with 29 goals and 56 assists for 85 points. Heading into the final game of the 2013-14 regular season, Bourke needed two points to surpass Eric Hunter as the all-time leading scorer in Cougars history, and wasted little time in accomplishing that feat by recording two points in the first period. He would add two points later in the game to reach 236 career points in a Cougars uniform, which remains the franchise record.

Currently Troy Bourke is playing with the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League.

Dr. Jeff Zorn Award - Scholastic Player of the Year

Jeff Zorn (Tisdale, Saskatchewan) played five seasons in the Western Hockey League from 1995-2000. Originally selected in the fifth round of the 1994 WHL Bantam Draft by the Moose Jaw Warriors, Zorn spent the majority of his career with the Prince George Cougars, before joining the Saskatoon Blades as a 20 year old. During his five years in the WHL, the defenceman appeared in 252 games, recording 34 goals, 105 points and 316 penalty minutes.

Following his junior hockey career, Zorn chose immediately to utilize his five year WHL Scholarship and enrolled in Medicine at the University of Alberta in 2000. Subsequently, Zorn went on to a five year hockey career with the University of Alberta Golden Bears from 2000-05, winning a Canadian University National title in 2005. He played in 190 Canadian University games compiling 27 goals and 130 points. He captured the Canada West Freshman of the Year Award in 2001, was named Canada West Defenceman of the Year in 2002 and in 2004 was honoured with the Dr. Randy Gregg Award as the Canadian University Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year.

The four-time Canadian University Academic All-Canadian (2002-05), Zorn graduated from University of Alberta Medical School with his Bachelor's in 2008 and received his Doctoral in 2009. Dr. Jeffrey Zorn has recently joined the Urology Team at North Island Urology in Courtney, B.C.

Brett Connolly Award - Rookie of the Year

Raised in Prince George, Brett Connolly was selected by the Prince George Cougars as their first selection, 10th overall, in the 2007 WHL Bantam Draft.. As a 15-year-old, he played major midget for the Caribou Cougars in Prince George, while also appearing in four WHL games. He joined the WHL Cougars full-time in 2008-09, scoring 30 goals and 30 assists in 65 games. In doing so, Connolly became the first 16-year-old to score 30 goals in the WHL since Patrick Marleau in 1995-96. He was named the winner of the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy as WHL rookie of the year. The recognition made him one of three nominees for the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Rookie of the Year; he beat out the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's Dmitri Kulikov and the Ontario Hockey League's Evgeny Grachev for the national distinction.

Selected sixth overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, he joined the team permanently in 2011-12 after an explosive season in 2010-11 where he scored 46 goals for the Cougars while serving as the team's Captain. Internationally, Connolly has represented Canada at the 2009 IIHF World U18 Championships, 2009 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, 2011 IIHF U20 Championships and 2012 IIHF U20 Championships. Brett is currently a member of the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League.

Chris Mason Award - Most Points - 3 Star Selection

Goaltender Chris Mason (Red Deer, AB) joined the Prince George Cougars full-time during the 1994-1995 season. He played three full seasons with the Cougars and dressed in 153 career regular season games.

Selected by the New Jersey Devils in the fifth round of the 1995 NHL Entry Draft, Mason would eventually make his NHL debut during the 1998-1999 season with the Nashville Predators. His NHL career spanned the better part of 11 seasons including stops in: Nashville, St. Louis, Atlanta, Winnipeg and eventually Nashville again. In 317 career NHL games, Mason put together a record of 137-113-31 with a 2.66 goals-against-average and a .909 save percentage. He helped lead Canada to a gold medal in the 2007 World Championships and also secured a silver in 2009.

Chris Mason is currently playing with Augsburger Panthers of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL).

Player's received three points per first star selection, two points per second star selection, and a single point for a third star selection at games both played at home and away.

Dorothy Johnson Memorial - Fan Favorite Award

Dorothy Johnson (aka Gramma Cougar) was born on February 6th, 1931 in Esterhazy, SK. Dorothy and husband Richard settled in Prince George in 1966 with their seven children: Robin, Renee, Pamela, Robert, Patrick, Fern and Paul. She passed away on October 31, 2014.

She enjoyed travel with friends and family across the globe, especially loving Mexico's beaches and bartering for a good deal with the locals. Dorothy was an avid card player and not many days would go by without playing a game of canasta or pinochle. She made friends easily and kept her friendships for life. She loved a good time, great food, celebrated life to its fullest and made sure every day was not wasted. She worked very hard to instill good values on all of her children whilst doing this.

One of her biggest passions was cheering on the Prince George Cougars Hockey team. She held season tickets from the time the Cougars came to town until 2014. She was known as "Gramma Cougar" and she had an extensive collection of Cougar jerseys and souvenirs. She was even featured in a Mastercard commercial which highlighted the Prince George Cougars and their loyal fans. An exhibition game of 2014 was her last attended game. With help she travelled from the hospice to get to see her boys on the ice once last time.

Michael Fogolin Memorial - Player's Award

Prince George Cougars alumni defenceman Mike Fogolin was born on March 17, 1987. He joined the Prince George Cougars hockey club in 2003-2004 and played in 42 games during his rookie season. That year he scored two goals and added three assists, and was considered by many to be a future cornerstone to the Prince George Cougars hockey club. He played the game with passion, intelligence and was praised by his teammates, coaches, and management for showing maturity beyond his years. Tragically Mike Fogolin passed away in his sleep on the morning of May 26th, 2004. His passing sent shock-waves throughout the organization, and his loss is still being felt today. The Cougars organization will forever hold Fogolin close to their hearts. His number seven has remained unassigned in his honor.

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We would like to thank Tyler Brough and the Alumni Association for assistance in honouring these past players and we also thank Diane VanHorlick and her staff for their significant effort to make tonight's trophy presentation possible on a very tight timeline.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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