Lots going on in the BCHL, here’s a look at the latest…
* Surrey Eagles 20-goal man Spencer Bennett has elected to play for the Portland Winter Hawks this season after being drafted by Calgary in the 5th round.
Spencer ducks out on a commitment to the University of Alaska Anchorage with the decision. No word if any Sutters influenced his choice.
* The Prince George Spruce Kings have brought back former Penticton Bronco Ed Dempsey for two more years at the helm. He’s responded by making some roster tweaks including bringing in Pentictonite and former Vees net-minder Evan Smith. Some nice TV coverage here on Ron Gallo’s Blog.
* The Merritt Centennials have rounded out their coaching staff with assistants Luke Pierce and Richard Molenaar.
The new assistants join Head Coach and GM Joey Bouchard (above) in the quest to snap their two year run without playoff action.
* The Trail Smoke Eaters have settled on a goal-tending tandem that backed up Kevin Jebson in Westside last season. Garrett Beckwith and Devon Murtagh have re-united in the Kootenays to stop pucks, but the question remains who will back up Jebson be the starter. The Smokies have also added Darnell Dyck up front in exchange for 20-year-old goalie Paul Barclay who was shipped to Surrey. My homeboy ‘Mullsy’ is all over it at the Smokies Blog.
* The Vees will play an extensive seven game pre-season schedule (five of which are on the road). Starting with a three game round robin in Trail with the AJHL’s Brooks Bandits, the Coastal Conference defending champs from Powell River, and of course the host Smokies. Last season a similar pre-season event was played in Dawson Creek, BC with the Grande Prairie Storm (AJHL) Prince George Spruce Kings and the Burnaby Express taking part.
* After Brad Fox scampered out of town the reincarnated Timberwolves have announced their 2nd head coach as Dave Dupas formally of the Okanagan Major Midget Rockets.
Dupas has a two-year deal and an owner/president in John Wright who wants to be a playoff team come March. That could pose a problem.
* Vernon Vipers D-Man Kyle Bigos was at Oilers Prospect Camp after being drafted in the 4th round. Bigos is interviewed here, and pumps the tires of the RBC Cup as best he can.
Bigos was as improved as any player in the BCHL last season and was named the MVP and Top D-man at the RBC (he is shown above teasing his bleached-blonde Mohawk). Bigos is off to Merrimack this season and will leave a big hole on the Vernon blueline that will also lose Cam Brodie, Cody Ikkala and Mike Leidl due to their ‘88 birth years.
* Staying with the national champs, Pentictonite Sahir Gill is off to the Chicago Steel USHL, which has left some cranky at the Northern tip of the Okanagan. Like mysterious ‘vipersdiehardfan’ blogger who clearly has (her/his) (panties/briefs) in a knot about the move.
Head Coach Mark Ferner was also less than enthusiastic about Gill’s goodbye when speaking with the Vernon Morning Star:
“I feel like we treat our players pretty good here. Here’s a young player, 16-years-old, playing on the top line, the top powerplay unit, and he goes and makes a lateral move to another league… He had offers from big (NCAA) schools and he had NHL teams looking at him. There will be lots of teams who will question Sahir for making this decision.”
To me it’s not a lateral move at all. Yes, the BCHL and USHL are both NCAA eligible junior leagues, but c’mon the USHL had seven players drafted at the June NHL Entry Draft BEFORE Kyle Bigos was the first BCHLer nabbed, and the USHL grossed seventeen players picked as compared to five players selected from the BCHL. Add the US Developmental Program to a concentrated 13 team league this year, over 180 commitments to college programs and it’s obvious the level of play in the USHL is simply higher.
Sahir wanted to play at a higher level. End of story. This isn’t about getting a commitment (he already has his pick of schools), this is about development and a bigger challenge for the talented ‘92 forward - who was far and away the top 16 year old in the BCHL last season.
