BCHL News & Trades:
Vees Set CJHL Attendance Record:
The Penticton Vees are proud to announce due to their incredible fan support, they have become the first Canadian Junior Hockey League team to average 3,000 fans per home game. After nearly setting the record by averaging 2,981 last year, the Vees broke through and averaged 3,055 over the course of 28 games at the South Okanagan Events Centre following the final two games of the regular season. “As a group we fell agonizingly short of 3,000 last year and committed in the summer to work as hard as possible to make sure it didn’t happen again,” said Vees Director of Corporate Partnerships David Michaud. “Laura Carleton does a fantastic job working with our season members and connecting with local businesses for group sales. The SOEC is a fantastic facility to watch a game in and it’s a great night out for a family or a business. We can’t thank our fans enough for rallying behind the team this year and supporting us they way they do.” The largest crowd of the season came January 20 against the Trail Smoke Eaters. It was the annual Pink in the Rink night for anti-bullying, and 4,342 fans were treated to a 3-2 overtime win thanks to Jonny Tychonick’s power-play goal. There wasn’t a single game this season that had fewer than 2,585 fans inside the rink, and 13 of the 28 had crowds over 3,000. The Vees thank their fans for the unparalleled support over the course of the 2017-18 season, and look forward to even bigger crowds during the Fred Page Cup playoffs which begin Friday as the Vees host the Coquitlam Express at 7:00 p.m.
Grizzlies Part Ways With Captain For Violating Team Rules:
If the Victoria Grizzlies are to hunt down first place in the B.C. Hockey League’s Island Division and go on a long playoff run, they’ll have to do it without their captain. Lucas Clark has been sent home for disciplinary reasons, more specifically, violating team rules. Clark, who just returned to the lineup last weekend after missing five games with a leg injury, was absent from the Grizzlies’ lineup for Thursday night’s game against Alberni Valley and not listed as being injured. “It was an extremely tough decision because Lucas is a good kid but we have sent him home for breaking team rules, which we don’t take lightly,” Grizzlies president Lance Black said. “We are a team that treats our players very well and take pride in having integrity as an organization and there are certain things we just don’t condone. “And it’s too bad because Lucas is a good hockey player and was a big part of our team, but no individual is bigger than the team and we always put the team and the organization first.” The Grizzlies wouldn’t go into detail about what team rules were violated, only saying there was an incident earlier in the week. Clark, who’s from Port Perry, Ont., was sixth on the team in scoring with 40 points in 49 games this season. “We hold our players to a high standard and Lucas was our captain so this is very disappointing,” Black added. “But we wish him the best in the future.”The timing couldn’t be worse for the Grizzlies. They’re in a heated race for first in the division. After Powell River’s 3-2 loss Friday night in Cowichan Valley and the Nanaimo Clippers’ OT win over the Surrey Eagles, the Grizzlies and Clippers are tied atop the division with 70 points, two points up on the Kings, but Powell River has two games remaining — both in Port Alberni against the Bulldogs — while the Grizzlies just have Sunday’s home game against the Eagles left and the Clippers played their final game Friday. But the Grizzlies are in the driver’s seat because if they win Sunday, they win the division because they would own the tiebreaker over the Kings. The division winner will take on the fourth-place Bulldogs in the first round, while the second and third-place teams would match up in the first round. “No it’s not ideal and a very unfortunate situation for both the team and Lucas,” said Grizzlies GM and head coach Craig Didmon, whose club sits at 31-18-4-4. “But rules were broke and it’s time for both parties to move on.” Moving on for the Grizzlies means finding a new captain, but the team has chosen instead to add one more assistant captain. “We’ll go with four assistants instead of three now,” added Didmon. “T.J. [Friedmann] will wear an ‘A’ permanently now and he wore one while [defenceman Drayson] Pears was out long-term with an injury, and he has shown on the ice and off it that he is one of our leaders so we have the utmost confidence in him going forward. As we do with the rest of our leadership group.” That group also includes leading scorer Jamie Rome and veteran defenceman Dayne Finnson. “You definitely don’t want to lose a teammate like Lucas, it’s tough to take right now,” said Finnson, who racked up three assists in Thursday’s win over Alberni to bring his point total to 39, tops among Grizzlies blue-liners. “But we now look forward to playoffs and battling through this and we’re confident we still have the team to go on a long run this year.”
Eagles Add Bishop To Skill Development Staff:
The Surrey Eagles Hockey Club is excited to announce that Rob Bishop will be immediately joining their hockey operations staff. Bishop, who is originally from from Toronto, has been working with the local Semiahmoo Minor Hockey Association development team while living in South Surrey for the past five years. Prior to moving west, Bishop played junior hockey from 1988-1992 in the Ontario Junior Hockey League. Following an injury in his final season, he obtained a business degree at Seneca College. “We are very excited to bring Rob into the Eagles developmental team,” Eagles General Manager Blaine Neufeld commented. “He comes with a lot of experience and understands our pursuit of deepening the Eagles bond within our community.” Bishop has 20 years of experience running his development school, and understands the the junior hockey player’s journey. He has developed many players that have achieved success in professional hockey, including, most recently, Adam Mascherin who was drafted in the 2nd round, 38th overall by the Florida Panthers in 2016. “I am very excited to join the Surrey Eagles,” Bishop stated. “They have shown great progression for the past two seasons, and especially this year as they have their sights on winning a championship. I currently develop a lot of young hockey players in our community. Working with Blaine on this true development model, we will now see players from Hockey 1 all the way through their junior careers.” Bishop will join the Eagles immediately alongside head coach Brandon West and assistant coach Linden Saip. “I fully respect where the Eagles are at midseason, and I am coming in to add what I can,” Bishop added. “For development, I know it’s never too late to explore your game and work on it. At this point in the season it will be more about getting to know where these young men are at and if I can help push their game individually to help the team.”
Ex NHLer Marty McSorley Visits Salmon Arm:
Two time Stanley Cup Champion Marty McSorley was in Salmon Arm, B.C. to take in some community events and be a part of the BCHL Silverback’s Fan Appreciate Night vs the West Kelowna Warriors. One of the pre-game events was held at Ian Gray’s Salmon Arm GM location where #33 signed autographs and played ball hockey with the Silverbacks and a number of local kids. The 54-year-old says he still enjoys being around the game and giving back to the sport that he played professionally for close to twenty years.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqgNYyfbQIc
Merritt Centennials Billet Family Narrowly Escapes House Fire:
On Friday night, Jessica and Rich Culbertson were lying in bed, discussing their good fortune. Jessica had just won $10,000 at the final Merritt Centennials home game of the regular season and Rich was joking that he wouldn’t see a big share of the money after they divided up the winnings among the members of their family. A few hours later, the raffle was the last thing on their mind. Just before 6 a.m., Jessica awoke to the sound of beeping — at first mistaking it for her phone’s alarm — before the scent of smoke tipped her off that something else was going on. Even days after the fire, Rich is still able to recall a moment-by-moment account of the family’s escape from their burning home. Realizing there was no chance of extinguishing the fire which had started to engulf the first floor, he quickly made the rounds waking up his daughter and the three Cents players billeted at the family’s home on Coldwater Avenue. Minutes later, the stairs down to the ground floor of the house collapsed completely. With no time to put on shoes, the group of six found themselves outside in the cold morning air, pounding on a neighbour’s door to alert them of the fire. Adorned in borrowed clothes, the family could only watch as the Merritt Fire Department arrived on scene and set to work fighting a fire which gutted the rooms they had occupied only moments prior. Twenty-eight firefighters responded to the scene, along with three engines, a ladder truck and two command vehicles, said Merritt’s fire chief, Dave Tomkinson. The department remained on scene until 1:30 in the afternoon that same day. The Culbertsons are still talking about their good fortune — but the context has changed drastically. “We totally relied on that smoke detector — that we haven’t checked in years,” said Jessica. A working smoke alarm likely saved their lives, but putting everything back together following the catastrophic fire is no simple task. Factor in a few time constraints — the Cents start their playoff series against the Wenatchee Wild this week but all three billeted players lost their passports in the fire — and the stress of the situation is starting to become a reality for the family. “Myself, I wish I could get everything done today,” said Rich. “Get on with our life — today.” In the immediate aftermath of the blaze, several supports proved integral to the family, said Rich. Emergency Social Services provided vouchers for the family to purchase some clothes and covered the initial costs of checking rooms at the Comfort Inn. Beyond that, the support of Jessica’s family in Merritt, other billet families across the country and the local community have played a big part in lifting the spirits of the group. Still, there is a long way to go before they begin to feel a sense of normalcy return to their lives. Having insurance will help the family recover at least a few of their material possessions, but some things are tougher to replace. “We’ve been billeting players for about five or six years. We’ve heard from every billet, wishing us well,” said Rich. “On our kitchen wall, we had pictures of every hockey player who had stayed at our house. That’s gone.” And though all the humans were safe in the moments after they escaped the fire, a number of the family’s pets are still unaccounted for. Fifteen-year-old Emma Culbertson still feels the singed skin on her forehead when she wakes up in the morning. Baseball season starts soon for Emma, but she is now without the necessary equipment to start her season on the right foot. Rich keeps a small notepad handy — jotting down a list of the items lost as they come to him. Jessica stares at a backlog of messages on her phone wishing her well, and said she regrets not being able to answer every single one in a timely fashion. The trauma is still fresh. Fire investigators will spend the next week combing through the rubble of the home before the family is allowed back on the property in order to salvage any belongings from their home. In the meantime, the group plans to stay at the hotel while the Cents make their playoff run, hoping to provide a little stability for the guys. “You get out there, and forget everything and just play. It can come rushing back an hour after the game and real life sets in again,” said Joe Martin, Cents’ head coach and general manager. “At the same time, it’s a chance to escape and with the tight group we have, I’m looking forward to that happening.” The family said they’ve been overwhelmed with the support from the community in Merritt, but emphasized that their currrent living situation makes material donations of clothes or furniture impractical. “Right now all we’re trying to do is make sure the kids have stuff for school, [and] that they can go play hockey in Wenatchee,” said Jessica. A GoFundMe account has been set up to support the family, and those looking to donate can access the campaign by following this link: gofundme.com/culbertson-house-fire.
State Of Arizona Added To Wenatchee Wild Territory:
The Wenatchee Wild, proud Interior Conference members of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL), are pleased to make this major announcement: Effective immediately, the State of Arizona has been approved by the BCHL as a “Territory” for the Wild. This means players from Arizona are now considered to be “Territory Players”, and not “American Import” players. “Territory Players” of any age are eligible to play in Wenatchee, including high school age. As the only US-based team in the BCHL, the Wild must build their roster with a minimum of fifteen (15) players from it’s “Territories”, which now are as follows: California, Colorado, Washington, and Arizona. To round out the remaining eight (8) roster spots, the Wild are permitted to have four (4) “American Import” players from any state in the country, after their Senior year in high school, as well as four (4) Canadian players, also after their Senior year in high school. Head Coach and General Manager Bliss littler commented, “This is a great step forward for the Wild, having another territory with a more geographic connection to the West only helps us improve our brand, and provide more opportunities for players to reach the NCAA. Arizona is a state that continually produces talented players, and we are excited for the potential to have them in a Wild uniform in the future.” Littler also continued, “We would like to thank BCHL Commissioner John Grisdale and the BCHL Board of Governors for the approval of our request.”
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