Kootenay Ice captain Cale Fleury may not have picked up any points at the high-scoring 2017 Sherwin-Williams CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game in Quebec City, but the young defenceman was a part of the winning team.
A late addition, being named as the replacement for injured Seattle Thunderbird Jarret Tyszka, Fleury had 3 shots in Team Cherry’s 7-5 win over Team Orr on Monday night.
Fleury shared a spotlight on the Don Cherry-coached squad with players like consensus number one 2017 NHL draft pick Nolan Patrick of the Brandon Wheat Kings, Lethbridge Hurricanes goalie Stuart Skinner, and Portland Winterhawks d-man Henri Jokiharju who was the team’s MVP for the game after putting up 3 assists.
The 12th Ice player and sixth Kootenay defenseman to make the CHL Top Prospects game roster, Fleury was the first participant for the franchise since Sam Reinhart 2014.
Fleury was listed 74th among North American skaters for the 2017 NHL Draft in NHL Central Scouting’s Midterm Rankings and after the game was ranked at 80th in TSN hockey midterm rankings.
The 6’1 defenceman was named captain of the Ice following the trade of former fellow alternates Zak Zborosky and Matt Alfaro, and has eight goals and 30 points while logging heavy minutes for Kootenay through 49 regular season games.
The Kootenay Ice will play their second of a home-and-home series against the Medicine Hat Tigers tonight at 7 p.m. at Western Financial Place.