http://www.tsn.ca/tsn_talent/columnists/bob_mckenzie/
The first ever World Jr. A Hockey Challenge is being played in Saskatchewan this week, featuring Canada's best Jr. A players against teams from Russia and Belarus, amongst others.
NHL scouts are flocking to check out the talent and the player who is generating the most interest is Team Canada West star Kyle Turris, who plays for Burnaby in the B.C. Junior League. It's not like Turris's talent comes as a surprise to the NHL scouts.
Last season as a 16-year-old, he scored 58 goals and 120 points in 89 regular season and playoff games for Burnaby. He scored seven goals and 13 points in six games to help lead Burnaby to the RBC Cup national championship last spring, where he was named championship game MVP.
He was also the only Jr. A player on Canada's Under-18 team this past summer and came out of that tourney as a potential first round pick for the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. His play this week is only reinforcing his status as a first rounder and he's showing signs of rocketing up the charts.
Scouts love his scoring and shooting ability, he's a very good skater and he's only going to get better as he physically matures.
As dynamic a player as he is, scouts like the total package.
His mother Vikky was a high school track star. His father Bruce has been inducted into the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame as a player.
Turris is one of those kids who not only plays great hockey, he has a real passion for the game. His family dog is named Cooper, after the old hockey equipment manufacturer. His favorite NHL team is his hometown Vancouver Canucks and his bedroom is painted and decorated in Canucks' colors with Canucks wallpaper and a ceiling light that looks like a score clock.
The former high school quarterback is off to the University of Wisconsin on a hockey scholarship next season, but not before he's tabbed as a first rounder in the NHL entry draft, a first rounder with a bullet.
For TSN.ca, I'm Bob McKenzie.