The Kimberley Dynamiters organization held its annual awards ceremony on Friday, April 11, honouring their players for another tremendous season of hockey.
The ceremony, which was held at the Kimberley Elks Club, began with a speech from Jim Scott who thanked the countless people who help make each season possible. This includes billet coordinator Karrie Hall and all the billet families who take players into their homes, the volunteers, the sponsors and everyone else who help out on and off the ice.
The retiring 20-year-olds were recognized by President James Leroux, who said he is extremely proud of each and every one of them and said that this group is probably his favourite group he's had in his many years with the team.
They are: Trey Stephenson, Tristan Weill, Tyler Lindal, Nick Hughes, Josh Hager, Remy Spooner and Justin Sommer.
Derek Stuart, who won the awards for coach and general manager of the year in the Eddie Mountain Division, spoke next.
He highlighted their record of 32-9-3 for the regular season, which made them first in the Eddie Mountain Division, second in the Kootenay Conference and fourth overall in the KIJHL. They were one of just four teams in the league to have single-digit losses and had an incredible at-home record of 19-2-1, or 26-2-2 with the playoffs included.
Their 67 points were tied for fourth best in the last 10 seasons and it was the most points the team had earned in the four seasons since COVID.
"I really enjoyed this team this season," Stuart said. "We had a good mix of characters and different personalities. What I really enjoyed was seeing them bond together and become family. This team was very tight, it was obvious with any time you got to spend with them.
"After a disappointing season last year this team got us back on the track this year. The proper culture was back, the expectations were back, the overall enjoyment of going to the rink every day was back. I just want to say thanks to the guys for that."
Team Captain Trey Stephenson — who was recognized as the February Player of the Month and the Top Defenseman — then took the podium, first expressing his gratitude to team volunteers Neil Rye and Scotty McLellan for all the work they do behind the scenes.
He also thanked the coaches and trainers for helping the players grow as athletes, and the billet families, who he referred to as the "backbone of the whole organization."
Finally, to the boys on his team, Stephenson said:
"I know we didn't reach our end goal this year of winning the Teck Cup, but I'm standing here satisfied with our effort and how hard we pushed. I'll never forget this group, how much fun we had every day and how close we got. It's an honour to share the logo of the Dynamiters with you 23."
The full list of awards recipients is below:
•Most Popular Player/Fan Favourite: Danik Reeves
•Most Scholastic: Marc Samyn
•Most Improved: Nathan LaForge
•Most Sportsmanlike: Nick Hughes
•Community Service Award: Billy Kiray and Jackson Murphy
•Unsung Hero Award: Tyler Lindal
•Most Inspirational (voted on by the players): Nick Hughes
•Rookie of the Year: Luke Davies
•Best Forward: Tristan Weill
•Most Valuable Player: Luke Davies
•Best Defenseman: Trey Stephenson
•Coaches Award: Nate Murdoch
•Leading Scorer: Luke Davies
•Century Club, presented to players who reach 100 or more points in the regular season: Tristan Weill
•Playoff MVP: Tristan Weill
•Eddie Mountain Division Rookie of the Year: Luke Davies
•Eddie Mountain Coach and General Manager of the Year: Derek Stuart
