THE CANADIAN PRESS
BOUCHERVILLE, Que. — Highly rated draft prospect Mikhail Grigorenko was named Tuesday as one of three finalists for the Michel Briere Trophy as the most valuable player in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
The Russian forward, who had 40 goals in 59 games for the Quebec Remparts this season, will be up against the league’s top two scorers: Yanni Gourde of the Victoriaville Tigres and Zach O’Brien of the Acadie-Bathurst Titan.
The winners will be announced at a league gala April 4 in Montreal.
Gourde, 20, led the league with 124 points in 68 games, while 19-year-old O’Brien was the league’s lone 50-goal scorer.
Grigorenko could be in for a major medal haul.
He was also nominated for the award as the top pro prospect along with Martin Frk of the Halifax Mooseheads and Brandon Whitney of the Tigres; the personality of the year award with Jonathan Huberdeau of the Saint John Sea Dogs and Nathan MacKinnon of the Mooseheads; and offensive rookie of the year with teammate Anthony Duclair and MacKinnon.
He is also up for a separate award, the RDS Cup as overall rookie of the year, along with MacKinnon, Whitney, Duclair, Francois Brassard of the Remparts and Zachary Fucale of the Mooseheads.
Gourde is also nominated for the scholastic player of the year with Michael Bournival of the Shawinigan Cataractes, Jonathan Brunelle of the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, Patrick Delisle-Houde of the Moncton Wildcats and Jean-Philippe Mathieu of the Rimouski Oceanic.
O’Brien was also nominated for the Frank Selke Award as sportsman of the year along with Ben Duffy of the P.E.I. Rocket and Sebastien Trudeau of the Titan.
Remparts boss Patrick Roy is nominated as general manager of the year with Martin Mondou of the Shawinigan Cataractes and Joel Bouchard of the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, and coach of the year with Gerard Gallant of the Sea Dogs and Jean-Francois Houle of the Armada.
Top defenceman nominees were Nathan Beaulieu of the Sea Dogs, Jerome Gauthier-Leduc of the Rimouski Oceanic and Xavier Ouellet of the Armada.
Those tabbed as best defensive defenceman were Pierre Durepos of Saint John, Morgan Ellis of Shawinigan and Martin Lefebvre of the Remparts.
Best defensive forward nominees are Maximilien LeSieur of Shawinigan, Stephen MacAuley of Saint John and Frederic Roy of the Remparts.
Defensive rookie of the year is between Brassard, Fucale and Whitney.
