By Dave Leaderhouse
NOTRE DAME HOUNDS, LW
The Notre Dame Hounds are one of the youngest teams in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League and one of the youngest players on that squad is 17-year-old forward Zack Kosteniuk.
Still eligible to play at the midget level, Kosteniuk has been a huge contributor to the Hounds’ success this season scoring 11 times and assisting on nine others in 37 games.
The 6-foot-0, 180-pound forward from White City, Sask., was recognized for his efforts when he was named to Team Schwartz for the inaugural SJHL/MJHL Showcase held in Regina this week. Although he was held off the scoresheet in two games he undoubtedly gained valuable experience playing against the best of his age class.
Kosteniuk moved up to the Junior “A” Hounds after spending the last two seasons with Midget AAA Hounds of the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League. In 86 regular-season games with that squad he posted 20 goals and 44 assists while also helping Notre Dame capture the league championship as a 15-year-old during the 2015-16 campaign.
Kosteniuk has consistently been recognized for his abilities as at almost every level he has been called upon to play for a higher calibre team. While playing Bantam AAA with Notre Dame, where he tallied 45 points in 38 games, Kosteniuk appeared in six games with the Midget AAA Argos and in his final season with the Midget AAA Hounds he was brought up for one game with the SJHL’s Hounds. Kosteniuk has also appeared in the Western Canada under-16 championships where he played in four games.
A sixth-round pick of the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the 2015 Western Hockey League bantam draft, Kosteniuk could possibly chose that route in the future, but for now he is focused on helping the Hounds finish as high as possible in the regular-season standings. Notre Dame is in a fierce battle with three other teams to place in the top six and avoid an opening Wild Card round in the playoffs and with continued improved play from young rising stars like Kosteniuk they could be a real threat when the post-season starts in just under two months.
Tag(s): Young Guns
