It's been quite a week for Fort Saskatchewan's Olen Zellweger.
The 19-year-old defender is coming off a gold medal win with Team Canada at the 2023 World Junior Championships in Halifax last Thursday and, on Sunday night, was the centrepiece in a massive WHL trade that saw him move to Kamloops from Everett.
If hearing about Zellweger winning a gold medal with Canada sounds familiar, it's because this is the third time since 2021 that he's done it. Those medals include two at the U20 World Juniors and one at the U18 World Junior event.
"I'm super grateful for those opportunities," Zellweger told FortSaskOnline.com. "It's very exciting to be able to go [to Halifax] and win the tournament."
"It was nuts, the crowd was so loud, I don't think I ever played in front of a crowd that loud."
The gold medal was not an easy accomplishment for Canada this year. The team was nearly eliminated in the quarterfinals by Slovakia before eventually finding a way to win in overtime, with Zellweger leading Canada in ice time at just over 30 minutes. He was then relied on heavily in the gold medal match, playing 23 minutes en route to a 3-2 overtime win against Czechia.
"It is hard to conserve your energy, especially in an elimination game," said Zellweger. "Even though I know I'm going to be playing a lot of minutes I still try to go all out on the ice."
"It's really fun to be out there playing a lot and that is where I want to be using my energy."
Zellweger finished the tournament with six assists in seven games. Over the course of two tournaments, he has 18 total points, which is the second-highest ever for a Canadian defender at the tournament, behind only Ryan Ellis' 25.
"It's pretty cool to have that, but you don't do that without your teammates," said Zellweger.
The gold medal's significance on the community of Fort Saskatchewan is not lost on Zellweger.
"[Fort Saskatchewan] is obviously a great city and a great place for hockey," said Zellweger.
"Thank you for the support."