By Jake Courtepatte

All young athletes dream of scoring the big goal in front of thousands of fans: yet for Aurora's Cam Morrison, he has realized the dream twice over the course of seven days.

The star left winger for the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish led his team to their second-straight NCAA Big Ten tournament championship late in March, notching the game winner in a 3 – 2 win over the Penn State Nittany Lions in front of over 5,000 fans. The goal, and the game, booked Notre Dame's ticket to the prestigious NCAA final tournament, as an underdog and third-ranked seed in the conference. Morrison was also named to the Big Ten all-tournament team, alongside three of his Fighting Irish teammates.

It was already deja-vu for the twenty-year-old: he scored the game-winning goal in overtime of the Big Ten final against the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2018.

Yet the magic continued for Morrison on Saturday night against the second-ranked Clarkson University Golden Knights just one week later, burying the overtime goal to send Notre Dame to the final eight.

“Death, taxes, and Morrison scoring the game winner in overtime,” announced the Notre Dame play-caller, as Morrison celebrated with his teammates in front of another crowd of over 5,000 fans.

Morrison's stock in the hockey world has risen tenfold since having first caught the eyes of scouts playing minor midget for the York-Simcoe Express in 2013-14. His over a point-per-game pace earned the Aurora native a spot on the top line of the junior A Tigers the next season, where he alongside linemates Johnny Curran and Michael Laidley were the top offensive force in the OJHL.

Finishing second on the team in scoring as a 16-year old, Morrison earned the league's Rookie of the Year honours before moving south to join the USHL's Youngstown Phantoms. There he once again took home the Rookie of the Year trophy in 2015-16, scoring at over a point-per game pace against players as old as 21.

The most impactful moment of his young hockey career came in June of 2016, while ranked as the 46th overall North American skater heading into the NHL draft. There he was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche, 40th overall in the second round.

A stint at Avs camp in the summer led to his move to South Bend, Indiana, where he has since become the driving force behind the Fighting Irish squad.

The junior will be looking to sign his first entry-level contract with the Avalanche fairly soon, after just posting a 21-point performance in a 32-game season with the Irish.

Morrison was named the inaugural Sport Aurora Athlete of the Year in 2016.