QUEBEC CITY -- A defining moment in Corey Locke's hockey season came during the Canadian junior team's selection camp in December.

Even though he didn't make the team, the Ottawa 67's centre from Newmarket realized what kind of player he wanted to be.

Locke was named the Canadian Hockey League's player of the year yesterday during a luncheon at the Memorial Cup. He also picked up the award for being CHL's top scorer with 63 goals and 88 assists in 66 games.

Locke, whose 19th birthday was earlier this month, had never attended a camp or played for a Canadian team before. Even though it stung to be cut, the experience was an epiphany.

"I think when I got the invitation to the world junior camp, that was totally, really unexpected," Locke said after receiving his awards. "Whenever you get cut from any team, even if it's a basketball team in grade school, you're disappointed.

"What I learned from it? Just the confidence that I thought I could play with these guys, that I was in a class with them. The leadership some of the guys showed -- they didn't even know they were on the team and the way they conducted themselves on and off the ice . . . that's something I want to come back to with Ottawa next year and I think I proved some of it this year."

Locke is the third player from the Ottawa 67's to win the CHL's top award in the last seven years, along with defenceman Brian Campbell in 1999 and Alyn McCauley in 1997.

Locke's sophomore year in major junior hockey surpassed everyone's expectations.

"It just seemed like he could do whatever he wanted sometimes," said teammate Brendan Bell, who was named the top defenceman yesterday.

"He's not the most physical guy. He's not going to dominate a game that way, but you look at the scoresheet at the end of the night and he's got three or four points every night."

The five-foot-10, 180-pound forward has great hands, vision and anticipation. He plays with an extra-long stick, as Don Cherry has often pointed out, which Locke says gives him more reach around the net.

Locke had a decent, but unspectacular rookie year.

He was eligible to enter the NHL draft as an 18-year-old last year but didn't opt in, hoping for a better season this year.

"The season I had this year was unexpected," said Locke. "I didn't imagine anything like this coming in.

"I didn't even know where I fit in on the team on the depth chart or what line."

Last year's winner, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, was a first-round pick of the Minnesota Wild and played in the NHL this past season. Locke is rated 61st overall by NHL Central Scouting.