Prince Albert Raiders forward Aliaksei Protas and local product Braden Schneider, who patrols the blueline for the Brandon Wheat Kings, were both named to the 2019-20 Western Hockey League’s Eastern Conference first team all-star squad on Tuesday.
Protas, who is a signed prospect of the Washington Capitals, doubled his point total from his rookie campaign with 80 markers in 58 games to lead the Raiders in scoring and finish ninth among all players in the league.
He also represented Belarus at the Division I World Juniors and had seven points in five games during the tournament.
This marks the second straight season that the Raiders have had a player on the Eastern Conference first all-star team as forward Brett Leason and goaltender Ian Scott earned spots on the squad last year.
Raiders netminder Max Paddock was selected as a second team all-star on Monday.
Prince Albert product Braden Schneider prepares to make a pass for the Brandon Wheat Kings during a game against the Prince Albert Raiders at the Art Hauser Centre in November.
Schneider is the second player from Prince Albert to be recognized by the league in as many days, as Edmonton Oil Kings forward Riley Sawchuk earned Eastern Conference second all-star team honours.
The 18-year-old blueliner, who is projected to be a first round pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, had a career high 42 points in 60 games to finish fifth on the Wheat Kings in scoring.
He also received an invite to Canada’s World Junior Selection Camp in December and is expected to be a key part of the team’s defence next December.
The rest of the Eastern Conference lineup, which was voted on by WHL general managers, featured forwards Dylan Cozens (Lethbridge Hurricanes) and James Hamblin (Medicine Hat Tigers), defenceman Calen Addison (Hurricanes) and Jiri Patera (Wheat Kings).
The Western Conference squad consisted of goaltender Dustin Wolf (Everett Silvertips), blueliners Ty Smith (Spokane Chiefs) and Johnny Ludvig (Portland Winterhawks), along with forwards Adam Beckman (Chiefs), Seth Jarvis (Winterhawks) and Connor Zary (Kamloops Blazers).
