Denton Mateychuk named BIll Hunter Memorial Trophy winner
Moose Jaw Warriors captain Denton Mateychuk has been awarded the Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy as the Western Hockey League’s top defenceman following the 2023-24 season.
Mateychuk beat out fellow Manitoban Hudson Thornton (Prince George), as well as Carter Yakemchuk (Calgary) and Graham Sward (Wenatchee) who were also nominated for the award.
“It’s a huge honour to win the top defenceman award this year,” said Mateychuk. “I want to take the time to congratulate all the other division winners on their great seasons.”
The Dominion City product – and 12th overall pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2022 – posted a career-high 75 points in the regular season, where he played only 52 games.
Mateychuk’s 17 goals and 58 assists placed him third among WHL d-men this season—his 1.44 points per game ranked first.
“It was pretty cool to be able to tell my family that I won the award after all we’ve been through together and all they’ve done for me,” Mateychuk said.
The 19-year-old came out of the gates swinging this season, tallying six goals and 35 points in 23-straight games from October 10, 2023, to December 8, 2023.
Mateychuk also played a significant role on the blueline for Team Canada in the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championships in Sweden—totalling four assists and a plus-six rating in just five games.
In this year’s NHL preseason, Mateychuk contributed three assists in four games with Columbus, before returning to Moose Jaw.
His 1.44 points per game not only lead all WHL defencemen, but rank second among all CHL d-men. He has been a point-per-game player throughout his entire WHL career, which began in 2019-20.
Mateychuk has tallied 215 points in 203 career regular season games with Moose Jaw, while in the playoffs, he has averaged 1.25 points per game with 45 points in 36 career games.
The WHL’s East Division First Team All-Star has also eclipsed his first 100-point season, currently standing at 102 points after eight goals and 19 assists in 16 postseason games this year.
With a plus-89 rating over the past three seasons and 249 points in 216 games, the future is bright for Manitoba’s 5-foot-11, 191-pound defender, and also for Blue Jackets fans.
Mateychuk and WHL scoring leader Jagger Firkus lead Moose Jaw into the WHL championship, where they hope to win their first Ed Chynoweth Cup as the Warriors (the Moose Jaw Canucks were Ed Chynoweth Cup champions in 1966-67).
The Warriors begin their championship series against the Portland Winterhawks Friday night in Oregon.
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