At the start of the season, the odds would have been astronomical against a 16-year-old rookie leading the Prince George Spruce Kings in scoring heading into the last month of the BCHL season.
But a quick check of the stats will reveal Jujhar Khaira is setting the pace among Spruce Kings pointgetters. In 50 games, the 16 year old from Surrey has nine goals and 39 points in 50 games, playing for a team that ranks near the bottom of the BCHL in goals scored.
The January trade deadline airlift that sent the Kings' higher-end point producers to other teams shot Khaira to the top of the team chart. Old before his time? Maybe, but it's no secret. The word is already out on the kind of potential Khaira has packed into a six-foot-one, 180-pound body and once he's done with the Spruce Kings, Michigan Tech has first dibs on him, having signed Khaira to a scholarship agreement set to begin in the fall of 2012.
"A lot of it has to do with coaching, just giving me the opportunity to be out there in every situation and I just try to give it my all and hopefully they'll like my play and I keep performing to my highest," said Khaira, a top-five scorer among rookies in the BCHL.
"I've had a lot of accomplishments this year but it's not really an accomplishment unless we make the playoffs this year. That's the big thing right now -- just finishing the year strong so we can have a good start next year."
Khaira just might get his wish. With eight games left, the Kings are just two points behind the Quesnel Millionaires for the seventh and final Interior Conference playoff berth. The Kings face a must-win situation tonight at the Coliseum (7 p.m. start), where they host the Nanaimo Clippers.
Although he's on the young end of the junior scale, Khaira is already a leader, in everything he does.
"He's dedicated to getting better -- he works hard on the ice, he works hard in the gym, and he works hard at his studies," said Kings head coach Dave Dupas. "He's focused and he knows where he wants to go and he's dedicated to getting there. Guys like that are easy to work with.
"He's a 16-year-old who is now centring our top line and that's almost unheard of in this league. It's frustrating for him sometimes, because he's playing against the No. 1 lines all the time. But he's getting all this icetime and in the coming years he's going to get stronger and a little bit older and he'll be a very good player here."
Khaira came to Prince George last spring for the team's tryout camp on the recommendation of Kings' scout Kirk Star, who coached Khaira on the triple-A midget team in Cloverdale. Knowing he has a college hockey home reserved for him on the Michigan Tech campus in Houghton Mich., is a load off Khaira's mind.
"It's a big accomplishment on my part and I'm quite excited but that's in the future and I'm trying to play my best so they're happy with how I'm playing and get there as soon as possible," Khaira said. "They just want me to get smarter with the puck and get more comfortable with the league and do better than I have this year, just so I'm ready and developed to go up to that (NCAA) league.
"My size helps me just because I don't have all the speed in the world, so the body helps me down low, guarding the puck away from some of the players."
Khaira recently wrote his college entrance exam and his marks in school at PGSS are not a concern. As a Grade 11 student, Khaira put together a 94 per cent average last semester.
"Jujhar's success this year is a testament to his work ethic and passion for the game of hockey and to his commitment to his educational goals," said Spruce Kings president Darcy Buryn. "It is further proof that players can thrive and will get noticed in the Spruce Kings program."
The Kings picked up three of a possible six points on their last weekend roadtrip, making playoffs a definite possibility.
"The worst-case scenario coming out of the next two games is we're down six points, which would be devastating for us," said Dupas. "The best-case scenario is we're up two after the game in Quesnel. As much as we've closed the gap, we're still two points back and we have to have some help from somebody else, but we have to help ourselves by beating them on Tuesday.
"We got a point out of that game in Vernon (last Friday) after being down 3-0 and that gave the guys confidence we can come back, it doesn't matter who it is, if we just stick to it. I just like the fact the guys don't quit."
Forward Faiz Khan (shoulder injury) won't play tonight. Alex Millhouse, an affiliated player, has been called up from Fernie. Kirk Thompson, the first star with 47 saves in the Kings' 4-1 win in Merritt on Sunday, will get the start in goal again for the Kings tonight.
