Prior to Jan. 1, 2005, Ryan Wagner was considered one of the best defencemen in the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League. On New Year's Day, he got some hardware validating that claim.

Wagner, who hails from Weyburn, was chosen as the top defenceman from the 27th annual Mac's Midget AAA Hockey Tournament, one of the largest events for Midget AAA teams in Canada. The tournament draws teams from across the country and U.S. states as far away as Alaska.

Wagner also received a $1,500 scholarship and was voted to the first all-star team on defence.

The awards ceremony was a pleasant ending for a less-than-stellar weekend for Wagner. His team, the Moose Jaw AAA Warriors, had gone 4-0 in the preliminary rounds, but lost 5-0 to the Saskatoon Blazers in the quarter-final, preventing them from going any further.

Wagner was also injured in that final game, after he plowed into a net. So getting the best defenceman nod, out of a pool of literally dozens of talented players, was a big bonus.

"I was supposed to stay for that scholarship thing anyway," said Wagner, in an interview from his billet in Moose Jaw. "But then they told me to stay there (because) I was getting a few more awards."

"It was kind of like a bonus, I guess," he added.

Ironically, the Mac's Tournament didn't even see Wagner at top form, said Moose Jaw general manager Corey Olafson.

"I thought Ryan had a really good tournament. Having said that, it's not the best I've seen Ryan play," said Olafson, adding, "There's no doubt in my mind, or the coaching staff's mind, that Ryan was capable of bringing home that award, and he did."

Wagner grew up in Weyburn and passed through all the levels of the minor hockey system, though his last team was the Midget EnCana AA Wings. His last year with the EnCana Wings was in 2002-2003, when he was approached by Moose Jaw's coach to join their team.

He came in blind, knowing nothing about Moose Jaw. Despite that, Wagner said his first year was a positive one.

"It was really good. The guys on the team were awesome," he said.

In the 2003-2004 season, the Moose Jaw Warriors ended a playoff drought that dogged them for many years, finally breaking into the first playoff round against Tisdale. Unfortunately, they lost out quickly to the Trojans.

This year, the Moose Jaw Warriors are one of the more formidable teams in their 12-team league, as they finished 2004 in third place. This has also been a shock for Wagner.

"We lost a lot of guys to the WHL last year. I just figured we wouldn't do as well," he said.

At 17 years of age, Wagner is in his last year for Midget AAA hockey. Though he has no plans set up, Olafson said there were many junior teams from B.C. and elsewhere who expressed interest in Wagner at the Mac's Tournament.

Olafson said Wagner is a great skater and his puck skill is outstanding. Though he's a good offensive defenceman, good at picking his spots and using his speed to get into position, Olafson said Wagner just plays the game very smartly.

"There's no doubt he's one of the elite defencemen in our league," Olafson said.