Alex DeBrincat named Canadian Hockey League player of the year; Chmelevski Scholar Student

By @MichaelCaples –

Turns out Alex DeBrincat wasn’t just the best player in the Ontario Hockey League, but the best one in all of the Canadian Hockey League this year.

The CHL – a collection of the OHL, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and the Western Hockey League – has named the Farmington Hills native their recipient of the Sportsnet CHL Player of the Year Award.

DeBrincat has the chance to earn even more hardware Sunday night; his Erie Otters will be playing host team Windsor in the 99th Mastercard Memorial Cup Final.

He’s a big reason why the Otters are one win away from a Memorial Cup title; DeBrincat has nine points in four games at the prestigious tournament.

The Chicago Blackhawks second-round pick in 2016 has been racking up the points all season; he led the OHL with 38 points in 22 postseason games after logging a league-best 127 in the regular season.

He wasn’t the only Michigan native earning some hardware today; Northville’s Sasha Chmelevski was named the CIBC CHL Scholastic Player of the Year Award winner. He had a 98-percent average across his six Grade 12 courses in Ottawa, where Chmelevski plays for the 67’s.

Chmelevski, eligible for this summer’s NHL Draft, was studying British Literature, Sports and Entertainment Marketing, Anatomy and Physiology, Probability and Statistics, Psychology and Physical Education through Michigan’s Virtual Charter Academy.