Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League

Matthew Chekay

By Dave Leaderhouse

ESTEVAN BRUINS, C

The Estevan Bruins have scored the most goals of any team in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League and they have also been among the leaders in penalty minutes for most of the season.

Rookie forward Matthew Chekay has contributed to both of those totals.

The 18-year-old Regina product has eight goals and seven assists in 37 games with the Bruins and he has also picked up 112 minutes in penalties. Neither of those stats is surprising as the 6-foot-0, 199-pound Chekay has played that way his entire career.

As a 14-year-old with the Regina Pat Blues, a Bantam AA team, Chekay had 64 points in 31 games while also accumulating 102 minutes in penalties.

The next three years were spent with the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League’s Regina Pat Canadians and in 124 regular-season contests with that club he registered 27 goals and 47 assists to go along with 182 minutes in penalties. He also suited up for 19 playoff games with the Pat Canadians collecting another 16 points and 35 minutes in penalties while also helping that club to league titles in his first and third seasons.

Chekay also has experience playing on the national stage as he was part of the Pat Canadians team that captured the bronze medal at the 2015 Telus Cup championship.

While Chekay is still just getting his feet wet at the junior level, he has already made a mark on the league and with two more years of eligibility remaining after this year he certainly is a player to keep an eye on in the future.

Tag(s): Young Guns