North York Rangers defenceman Will Reilly has been named to Team East for the 2015 Canadian Junior Hockey League’s Top Prospects game.
The event, set for Jan. 20 in Oakville, will showcase Canada’s best Tier II Junior ‘A’ prospects.
Reilly joins 13 Ontario Junior Hockey League players on Team East’s roster, while Aurora Tigers coach James Richmond will also be the head coach of the squad.
North York bench boss Mark Joslin is thrilled for the 17-year-old Reilly.
“As a rookie he has come in,” said Joslin, “and obviously has been given a great opportunity to play a lot of important minutes.
“He has definitely taken advantage of all of that, and hats off to him. He was obviously a little disappointed when he didn’t make Team Canada East but this is a real positive step in his future.”
Reilly leads all rookie defencemen in scoring through 36 games, posting 31 points over that span. He is also currently second in goals scored amongst defencemen with 15, only one behind veteran Aurora defender Eric Williams.
He remains uncommitted to a university, as of this writing.
“It is great for the organization for him to get all this recognition,” said Joslin.
“It is huge for the individual, but it really reflects well on us and we’re all proud of him. He is a great kid and he deserves all the recognition he has been getting.”
Reilly was also invited to Team Canada East selection camp for the recently concluded 2014 World Junior ‘A’ Challenge, and represented the Rangers in the mid-November Central Canada Cup All-Star Challenge.
He is a native of Toronto, and an alumnus of Upper Canada College.
