For the first time in franchise history, the Greater Vancouver Canadians will have a permanent home for the coming season.
The B.C. Major Midget Hockey League club has struck a deal with the City of Richmond to play all home games at the Richmond Olympic Oval. The team will also train at the world class facility that features two Olympic size ice rinks. An additional weekly practice date has also been secured at the Richmond Ice Centre, where the NHL size rink dimensions will compliment the majority of road games.
The Canadians, which represent the top midget age (15-to-17-years-old) players from Delta, Vancouver and Richmond, have typically split their weekend home games between two arenas since the league was founded in 2004. The majority of Sunday contest and playoff games have taken place at the Ladner Leisure Centre.
Their roster is typically loaded with Western Hockey League Bantam draft picks and this season will be no exception. The 2012 class of freshmen includes 15-year-old standouts Glenn Gawdin (Richmond) and Adam Musil (Delta) selected fifth and sixth overall respectively by Swift Current and Red Deer in the 2012 WHL Bantam Draft.
"We are very excited (to have a permanent) home as it was something we have always strived for but not a lot of places want to make that kind of commitment," said Canadians head coach Leland Mack. "To be honest, I didn't think this would ever happen. It took a lot of work by (team manager) Jonathan Reilly to get it done and Richmond really stepped up for us.
"To know where we are going to be every week and having our own permanent dressing room is just huge for the program. The other (dryland) training options here are endless. We're thrilled to be part of this high performance facility."
The BCMMHL regular season schedule consists of a two-game weekend series between teams. Home games will be played at 4: 15 p.m. on Saturdays and the back half of the doubleheaders will start at 10 a.m. on Sundays to allow traveling time for visiting teams. The league features teams from Prince George, Cranbrook, Kelowna, Kamloops, Nanaimo, Victoria and five in the Lower Mainland.
Although the Canadians have yet to win a league championship, they have certainly been a perennially contender.
Last season, they were bounced from the playoffs in the semi-finals after a heartbreaking overtime loss in the deciding game to the defending champion Vancouver Northwest Giants. It marked the fourth straight year the two rivals have met in the playoffs with three of the series going the distance.
The team is in the process of finalizing its roster, leading up to their season opener on September 29 when the defending champion Giants visit the Oval.
Returning players include goaltender Nathan Alalouf of Tsawwassen, who is fresh off a strong showing at the Saskatoon Blades camp, and Vancouver Giants prospect Shaun Dosanjh. Ladner's Mitch Walter returned to the club this week from the Edmonton Oil Kings, while Andrew Kluckas and Phoenix Worth are two other South Delta products already signed.
Icing... The Canadians have welcomed a new but familiar face to its coaching staff. Ladner resident Rob Rogers served as the team's first-ever head coach and was instrumental in starting the franchise. He has also worked a number of years as a coach with B.C.
Hockey's High Performance Programs.
