It was tough selecting a team of young rookies to go up against the more experienced send-downs, but I think I found a team that should give the rookie class it's best shot. I've tried to take a more balanced approach as opposed to pure offence in hopes of slowing down the opponents skill.

C - Kristjan Vilhjalmsson
Some may argue it's a Kelowna bias, but I think Kristjan brings a balance of offence and defence, most noteably shown by his 54.66% in the faceoff circle, the 2nd best clip of all rookies and the 3rd best in the SMJHL. He has proven to be an offensive force as well. With 17 points through 24 games he is a top 10 producing center in the SMJHL.

LW - Adam Falk :impact:
Real toss up here between Falk and Hoover, but I feel the two-way game of Falk will better compliment the play-making of Vilhjalmsson and the scoring of my next choice. With 18 points he has proven he can more than contribute offensively. Meanwhile his defensive qualities are not to be forgotten.

RW - Robb Wind
The choices were a little more limited on the right wing, so I've gone with the consensus pick in Robb Wind. The 1st overall draft choice in the S24 SMJHL draft has tremendous skill and should work well with Vilhjalmsson's play-making ability.

LD - Alexander Wolff :impact:
Going a little off the board with this one. Alexander Wolff has proven to be an all-around beast on the blue line posting 12 points through 24 games and more notably 55 hits, good enough for 4th best in the league through 24 games. It's his mix of physicality and offence that will prove invaluable against the older and more experienced send-downs.

RD - Maria Maximova
Maria has made quite a name for herself in Kelowna. She has done alright defensively with a -1 on a team with a penchant for slow starts and has done more than her part offensively with a sparkling 14 points through 24 games. I think her and Alexander will compliment the forwards nicely to give the rookies the best chance to succeed.

G - Austin Lemieux
Given the number of quality send-down goalies the rookies have had a tough time earning starts. Austin Lemieux has proven to be the exception as he has split the workload with his fellow netminder Lee Bowden. But don't assume he's being handed the role. Lemieux has performed well with 6 wins and a very good penalty shot save%, should the game go that far.

Notable mentions:
C - Evandrus Jesster :impact:
The consensus center leads all rookies in scoring with 20 points, but the center class is deep and I feel Vilhjalmsson will have better luck against the send-downs.
LW - Zack Hoover
The Whalers have struggled this year, but not rookie play-maker Zack Hoover. As I mentioned earlier it was a tough choice between him and Falk, but with a playmaker already occupying the center role I went with Falk's two way game.

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