Moving away from home to pursue his passion for hockey was a challenge for George Young, but he feels great about his decision after wrapping up his rookie season.
Young, a 19-year-old Stephenville Crossing native, recently wrapped up his first year with the Ottawa West Golden Knights of the Canadian Central Hockey League Tier 2 hockey league — an affiliate of the CCHL’s Nepean Raiders where Young is listed as the 13th forward.
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The Knights were eliminated from the playoff picture after losing a best-of-three wildcard series against the Embrum Panthers that went the distance. The wildcard series featured the fourth-place Knights taking on the fifth-place Panthers to determine who would square off against the top seed in the semifinal bracket.
Young averaged a point per game in the playoff round and was pleased with the amount of ice-time he received in his first playoff appearance.
The past year was all about growth.
He believes he improved his skills since moving away, but more importantly he believes he has matured from having to adjust to life away from home by learning to fend for himself.
“It was tough moving away from home at first but I got used to it as the season went on,” Young said Tuesday.
He has aspirations of playing college hockey in the United States at some point, but he’s not sure what the future holds for next season.
He’s going to weigh his options and hasn’t ruled out school as an option for the fall.
He’s back home now working with his dad who owns a construction company so he’s just going to take the next little while to ponder what the future holds.
No matter what happens, he feels good knowing he put in a good effort all year and learned a lot of things he probably wouldn’t have if he didn’t make the move.
“It was a great experience, for sure,” he said.
