(CP) - John Tavares erased a Wayne Gretzky record en route to winning the Ontario Hockey League's most oustanding player award.

Tavares scored 72 goals for the Oshawa Generals this season, which is the most by any 16-year-old in the league's history. Gretzky scored 70 at age 16 for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in 1977-78. Gretzky and Tavares are the only two players to reach the 70-goal mark at that age.

Gretzky once said Sidney Crosby would be the one to break his records, but Tavares is making a case to do that as well.

Crosby, who won the NHL's scoring title this year, was a 54-goal scorer for the Rimouski Oceanic when he was 16, but finished with one more point than Tavares did at 135.

"It's great to achieve things that guys like that have achieved and it puts me in a special category, which is a great honour for myself, but I really don't try to compare myself to them or really try to beat their accomplishments," Tavares said Wednesday during a conference call.

Tavares, from Oakville, Ont., is the youngest player to win the Red Tilson Trophy, which goes to the OHL's best player.

He was born on Sept. 20, which makes him five days too late to be eligible for the 2008 NHL entry draft. Tavares has to wait until 2009.

"I thought about it, to maybe one day be the MVP of the OHL would be a great achievement," Tavares said. "To do it so young and in only my second year in the OHL is pretty amazing. I'm going to enjoy this moment."

The award is voted on by the media. Players receive five points for a first-place vote, three points for second and one for third.

Tavares earned 74 points, followed by London Knights forward Patrick Kane at 66 and Barrie Colts forward Bryan Little at 21.

Tavares finished second to Kane in the OHL's overall scoring race as Kane had more assists.

Tavares was given an exceptional-player designation to play in the OHL as a 15-year-old last season when he won both the OHL and Canadian Hockey League rookie awards.

He now has 117 goals and 94 assists in 132 career games.

The six-foot, 183-pound forward recognizes there will be a lot of eyes on him for another two seasons in the OHL before he is drafted.

"As years go by and seasons go by, the demand and expectations are going to get higher," Tavares said. "Definitely people are going to be thinking 'Am I going to win this again?' and 'how many times am I going to do this?'

"I really just try and focus on each and every day and how I can get better and become more of a complete player."

Medicine Hat Tigers defenceman Kris Russell was named the Western Hockey League's best player Wednesday.

Acadie-Bathurst Titan forward Mathieu Perreault was chosen the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's most valuable player last month.

Tavares has uncanny passing and puckhandling skills and the sixth hockey sense to make the most of them. His skating has been knocked by some, but apparently didn't hamper his ability to score goals.

But Tavares was stung when he was cut from the Canadian junior team in December. Crosby had played for Canada at 16.

The combination of rest during the OHL's December break and the desire to show the Canadian team they'd made a mistake cutting him, fuelled a second-half tear by Tavares.

He had 22 goals and 17 assists in 13 games in January and collected 16 goals and 19 assists in 15 games in March.

Past winners of the Red Tilson Trophy include last year's winner Wojtek Wolski, currently with the Colorado Avalanche, Frank Mahovlich (1957), Doug Gilmour (1983), Eric Lindros (1991), Jason Allison (1994) and Brad Boyes (2001, 2002).

Albert (Red) Tilson, who was an Ontario Hockey Association scoring champion in 1943, was killed in action in Europe during the Second World War.

Notes - Sudbury Wolves defenceman Marc Staal and goaltender Sebastian Dahm were named the Canadian Hockey League's player and goalie of the week respectively . . . Sudbury meets Plymouth in the OHL final starting Friday . . . The OHL priority draft is Saturday.