Before the Canadian Hockey League awards the Memorial Cup on Wednesday night, the CHL held its annual awards ceremony on Tuesday night with Logan Stankoven, Nathan Staios, Dylan Garand, and Brayden Yager among the night’s big winners.

Stankoven, 19, won the David Branch Player of the Year Award over other finalists Saint John Sea Dogs winger William Dufour and centre Wyatt Johnston of the Windsor Spitfires.

A native of Kamloops, B.C., Stankoven led his hometown Blazers in scoring with 45 goals and 59 assists, finishing third in the Western Hockey League in scoring. A second-round pick of the Dallas Stars in 2021, Stankoven’s 1.76 points per game was a league best. In claiming the award, Stankoven joins an illustrious list of winners that includes Hockey Hall of Famers Mario Lemieux, Dale Hawerchuk and Joe Sakic, as well as current NHL stars Sidney Crosby, Mitch Marner and John Tavares.

Staios, 21, was named the CHL Defenceman of the Year. The Hamilton Bulldogs blueliner beat out Olen Zellweger of the Everett Silvertips and Lukas Cormier of the Charlottetown Islanders for the award.

A native of Oakville, Ont., Staios led all Ontario Hockey League defencemen in scoring with 15 goals and 51 assists in 59 games played. Finishing fourth in team scoring, Staios had five games with three or more points this past season. Staios is the son of long-time NHL defenceman Steve Staios, who appeared in 1,001 career games over 16 seasons with the Boston Bruins, Vancouver Canucks, Atlanta Thrashers, Edmonton Oilers, Calgary Flames and New York Islanders. Among those who have previously won CHL Defenceman of the Year include Chris Pronger, Dougie Hamilton, and Thomas Chabot.

Jim Hulton of the Islanders was named the Brian Kilrea Coach of the Year. The 53-year-old Kingston, Ont. native led his team to a 48-13-7 mark this past season. The team’s 103 points were second-most in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League behind the Quebec Remparts who finished on 104 points. Hulton has extensive CHL coaching experience having previously served as bench boss with the Mississauga IceDogs, Belleville Bulls, and Kingston Frontenacs before arriving on Prince Edward Island. He beat out finalists Patrick Roy of the Remparts and Stephane Julien of the Sherbrooke Phoenix for the award. Previous CHL Coach of the Year winners include Ken Hitchcock, Gerard Gallant, and Sheldon Keefe.

Kamloops Blazers goaltender Dylan Garand, 20, won the CHL Goaltender of the Year Award, beating out Brett Brochu of the London Knights and the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies’ Samuel Richard. A fourth-round pick of the New York Rangers in 2020, Garand posted a 34-9-1 record this past season with a 2.16 goals-against average and a .925 save percentage in 45 games. The Victoria, BC native joins the likes of Carey Price, Darcy Kuemper and Felix Potvin in winning the award.

Moose Jaw Warriors forward Brayden Yager was named CHL Rookie of the Year ahead of Cam Allen of the Guelph Storm and Islanders winger Jakub Brabenec.

Yager’s 34 goals this past season set a new franchise record for 16-year-olds, breaking the previous mark of 29 held by Theo Fleury. The Saskatoon, Sask., native added 25 assists for 59 points in 63 games. Draft-eligible next summer, Yager is expected to suit up for Canada at the Hlinka-Gretzky Tournament in August. He joins a list that includes Joe Thornton, Vincent Lecavalier and Taylor Hall in winning the award.

Shane Wright, the prospective first-overall pick in next month’s NHL Draft in Montreal, also took home hardware on Tuesday night.

The Burlington, Ont. native beat out Remparts forward Nathan Gaucher and Matthew Savoie of the Winnipeg Ice to win the CHL Top Draft Prospect Award, an honour given to the top draft-eligible prospect. Wright had 32 goals and 62 assists this past season for the Frontenacs, finishing second in team scoring. Previously named the CHL Rookie of the Year in 2020, Wright is only the sixth player in CHL history to earn exceptional status and early admission to the league. A number of players who went on to be taken with the No. 1 pick in the NHL Entry Draft have previously won the award, including Connor McDavid, Steven Stamkos and Eric Lindros.

Several other awards were handed out at the ceremony. Missing out on Player of the Year, Johnston took home the CHL Top Scorer Award. Edmonton Oil Kings defenceman Luke Prokop received the CHL Humanitarian of the Year Award. The CHL Scholastic Player of the Year went to Owen Beck of the Mississauga Steelheads and the Halifax Mooseheads’ Jordan Dumais won the CHL Sportsman Player of the Year Award.

The Bulldogs meet the hometown Sea Dogs on Wednesday night for the Memorial Cup.