IBAM PRESENTS MJHL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH FOR NOVEMBER
TULIK
Named IBAM MJHL Rookie of the Month for November
By Scott Taylor Photo by James Carey Lauder
The invasion of the American high school stars continues . The IBAM Manitoba Junior Hockey League Rookie of the Month for October was Gino Lucia from St . Cloud , Minn . The IBAM MJHL Rookie of the Month for November was Dallas Tulik of Kalamazoo , Mich . Tulik , 18 , of the Winnipeg Blues , had four goals and 12 points in 13 games in November and is now the No . 2 scorer on the Blues with 13 goals and 33 points in his team ’ s first 36 games . He ’ s also the 18th top scorer in the MJHL ( at press time ) and the leading scorer among MJHL rookies . It ’ s amazing how the MJHL has become such a popular destination for top U . S . high school graduates . “ Tuly is a kid from Kalamazoo who has been a wonderful surprise for us ,” said Blues head coach Billy Keane . “ We had him recommended to us by Dave Shyiak , a coach at Western Michigan University . He ’ s been a great kid on the ice and a great kid in our room . “ He ’ s a young guy who has found his way out of high school hockey in the United States into junior hockey here in Canada and it ’ s a big step to leave home at 17 or 18 and go and play Jr . A somewhere in Canada . He was certainly brave enough to make that step – a big , bold step – and he ’ s been great as a result . We ’ re happy to have him and he certainly has generated attention from the NCAA level . “ Of course , he deserves the attention he ’ s been getting . He ’ s a hard worker and we expect a strong second half from him and we hope he ’ ll help lead us in the playoffs .” Years ago , the MJHL might draw the attention of players from Saskatchewan or Northern Ontario . Now , however , it ’ s become an extremely popular place for American players to continue playing after high school . There are dozens of U . S . -born and trained players in the MJHL this season . “ When I played there were a lot of Ontario kids , but no Americans ,” said Keane . “ To be fair , the Americans have come up to the Jr . A leagues in general . There are just more and more kids playing . These guys are right out of high school . They ’ re coming here as 18- and 19-year-olds and they ’ re savvy 8 GAME ON 2016 - 17 ROSTER DEADLINE EDITION
“ Dallas is a kid who helps make us a better team . He ’ s a great teammate who brings a pro shot and he ’ s still learning the game . He came up flying blind . He didn ’ t know what to expect , but if Shyiak and WMU head coach Andy Murray like him , it ’ s worth taking a hard look . We ’ re glad we did .” The runners up were 17-year-old forward Riese Gaber of the Dauphin Kings and 18-year-old forward Will Koop of the Steinbach Pistons . n
The Insurance Brokers Association of Manitoba is one of the most committed and cherished supporters of amateur hockey in Manitoba and right across Western Canada . From the Winnipeg Jets to the Brandon Wheat Kings to the Manitoba Junior Hockey League , IBAM is part of our great Canadian game . Click on http :// www . bestinsurance . ca / for more information about your local Insurance Broker and what he ’ s doing to help make hockey in general and the WHL in particular , great .