On a day when the Central Collegiate Hockey Association named its All-Rookie Team, three recent BCHL graduates received honourable mentions for great inaugural seasons in one of college hockey`s elite Division I conferences.
A pair of former Penticton Vees — forward Curtis McKenzie and defenceman Devon Krogh — as well as Langley`s Derek Grant were all recognized were all standouts in their freshman season.
McKenzie, who plays for the Miami University at Ohio, averaged a point per game in his freshman year as a RedHawk, scoring seven goals and 35 points in 35 regular season games. It`s been a year since the Golden, B.C. native departed Penticton for college hockey, after recording 30 goals and 64 points in the final season of a two-year stint with the Vees.
Across the state, McKenzie`s former teammate in Penticton, Krogh, has enjoyed similar success playing at Ohio State University. He recorded nine points and was a bright spot on the Buckeyes backend in the defensive zone. Joining other Vees teammates, Zac Dalpe and Cory Schneider, the West Vancouver product has settled in nicely as a Buckeye.
The final honouree, Derek Grant, has made an impact on the Michigan State hockey program. After notching a pair of 60-point campaigns in Langley, the former 6-foot-3 Chiefs`forward tallied 11 goals and 29 points in 36 games for the Spartans, who finished second in the CCHA and are to face seventh-ranked Michigan in the quarter-finals of their conference tournament.
As for McKenzie and Krogh, the former Vees duo is set to meet again when they the No. 1 RedHawks meet the No. 8 Buckeyes in another CCHA Quarter-Final match-up.
