Two members of the Saskatoon Blades and two other Saskatchewan products were among the seven East Division award winners announced Tuesday by the W-H-L.

Yorkton product Nolan Maier of the Bridge City Bunch is the division’s Goaltender-of-the-Year while Blue and Gold left winger Kyle Crnkovic (pictured) was the East’s Most Sportsmanlike Player. In addition, Prince Albert product and Brandon blueliner Braden Schneider was named the division’s top defenceman while Davidson native and P-A Raiders defenceman Nolan Allan is the East’s Scholastic Player-of-the-Year winner. All East award winners are finalists for the W-H-L awards to be named next week. Following is the news release from the W-H-L…..

WHL NAMES 2020-21 EAST DIVISION
AWARD WINNERS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE / TUESDAY, JUNE 1, 2021

Calgary, Alta. – The Western Hockey League announced today the East Division individual award winners for the 2020-21 WHL season.

WHL Division Awards are voted upon by General Managers and Head Coaches.

All individual WHL Division Award winners will be eligible for the overall WHL Awards, to be announced the week of June 7, 2021.

2020-21 WHL East Division Award Winners

East Division Player of the Year presented by Kia Canada – Peyton Krebs (Okotoks, Alta.) – Winnipeg ICE
Nominee for WHL Player of the Year (Four Broncos Memorial Trophy)

East Division Goaltender of the Year – Nolan Maier (Yorkton, Sask.) – Saskatoon Blades
Nominee for WHL Goaltender of the Year (Del Wilson Memorial Trophy)

East Division Defenceman of the Year presented by RE/MAX of Western Canada – Braden Schneider (Prince Albert, Sask.) – Brandon Wheat Kings
Nominee for WHL Defenceman of the Year (Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy)

East Division Rookie of the Year presented by Wawanesa Insurance – Connor Bedard (North Vancouver, B.C.) – Regina Pats
Nominee for WHL Rookie of the Year (Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy)

East Division Most Sportsmanlike Player presented by Real Canadian Superstore – Kyle Crnkovic (Chestermere, Alta.) – Saskatoon Blades
Nominee for WHL Most Sportsmanlike Player (Brad Hornung Trophy)

East Division Scholastic Player of the Year presented by CIBC – Nolan Allan (Davidson, Sask.) – Prince Albert Raiders
Nominee for WHL Scholastic Player of the Year (Daryl K. (Doc) Seaman Trophy)

East Division Top Scorer presented by Kubota Canada – Peyton Krebs (Okotoks, Alta.) – Winnipeg ICE
Nominee for WHL Top Scorer (Bob Clarke Trophy)

WHL East Division Award Winner Biographies

Forward Peyton Krebs (Winnipeg ICE): The 20-year-old ICE captain led the WHL in both assists (30) and points (43), setting a franchise record by recording points in 23 consecutive games. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound product of Okotoks, Alta. had five games in which he recorded three or more points during the 2020-21 season. The first-overall selection from the 2016 WHL Draft and Vegas Golden Knights prospect has tallied 231 points (62G-169A) in 199 WHL regular season games.

Goaltender Nolan Maier (Saskatoon Blades): Maier finished fifth among WHL goaltenders in wins, posting a 12-3-1-1 record in 17 games to go along with a 2.34 goals-against average and 0.915 save percentage. No East Division goaltender had more than the two shutouts recorded by the 20-year-old Yorkton, Sask. product. The 6-foot-0, 173-pound netminder is the Blades career wins leader, posting a 91-49-9-5 record, 2.92 GAA, 0.903 SV%, and nine shutouts over 156 regular season appearances in the WHL.

Defenceman Braden Schneider (Brandon Wheat Kings): The 19-year-old product of Prince Albert, Sask. led the Wheat Kings from the blue line, totalling 27 points (5G-22A) in 22 games to finish third in scoring among WHL blueliners, his 15 power-play assists were second-best in the WHL. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound defenceman, and New York Rangers prospect has recorded 115 points (21G-94A) in 207 WHL regular season games and is currently competing for Canada at the 2021 IIHF World Championship in Riga, Latvia.

Forward Connor Bedard (Regina Pats): The first player in WHL history to be granted exceptional status, Bedard was leading the WHL in scoring before leaving to represent Canada at the 2021 IIHF World Under-18 Championship in mid-April. The 15-year-old product of North Vancouver, B.C. finished with 28 points (12G-16A) from 15 games played, 10 of which were multi-point efforts. The 5-foot-9, 165-pound centre is eligible for the 2023 NHL Draft.

Forward Kyle Crnkovic (Saskatoon Blades): The 19-year-old led the Blades in scoring with 32 points (12G, 20A) while accumulating only eight minutes in penalties from 24 games played. The product of Chestermere, Alta. had two four-point games March 24, 2021 and April 26, 2021. The 5-foot-7, 166-pound forward has tallied 127 points (42G, 85A) in 142 career WHL regular season appearances.

Defenceman Nolan Allan (Prince Albert Raiders): The 18-year-old has excelled in his Grade 12 studies at Davidson High School, achieving first and second term averages of 90% in his courses including a 91% grade in Pre-Calculus 30 in the fall. The 6-foot-2, 189-pound Davidson, Sask. product, who is eligible for the 2021 NHL Draft, tallied two points (1G-1A) in 16 games with the Raiders before helping Canada win a gold medal at the 2021 IIHF Under-18 World Championship in Texas. Allan has career WHL totals of 11 points (3G, 8A) in 81 regular season games.