Ruddy changes Spruce Kings’ complexion
Championship pedigree. Brett Mennear had it, and look what he did last season for the Prince George Spruce Kings.
A season after helping the West Kelowna Warriors win a national championship, Mennear finished fourth in the scoring race and took the Spruce Kings six games deep into the B.C. Hockey League playoffs, nearly forcing a seventh game against the regular-season champion Wenatchee Wild.
Kings defenceman Chays Ruddy knows what it’s like to win junior A hockey championships. He played defence for the Trenton Golden Hawks of the Ontario Junior Hockey League the past two seasons and both years the Hawks won their league and the Dudley Hewitt Cup to advance to the RBC Cup national championship.
As one of the anchors of a young Spruce Kings team, can Ruddy add yet another league title to his resume? That remains to be seen, but there’s no doubt he’s making his presence felt as a stay-at-home type on the blueline and the surprising Spruce Kings under rookie head coach Adam Maglio have surged to the head of the pack in the Mainland Division.
“Coming in here as a new guy from Ontario I didn’t know what to expect – I had no idea how the team would be, and it’s been a pleasant experience being one of the top teams in the league so far,” said Ruddy, a native of Cobourg, Ont., host city of the 2017 RBC Cup.
“We know we’ve got to keep up the hard work. I think that’s why we’re there now, the guys are practicing hard and everybody’s giving it their all. As long as we keep that up we’ll be fine.”
While the 20-year-old Ruddy doesn’t sport a letter on his jersey as one of the designated leaders, he’s the only thirdyear junior A veteran on the Spruce Kings defence and his teammates look to him for advice.
“I’ve been to the RBC Cup two years in a row, I’ve been fortunate in my junior career so far,” said Ruddy.
“We’ve got a young team and a lot of inexperienced guys but I feel our players are very mature. They talk a lot and ask questions and they’re really ready to develop. Being an older guy, whether I have the skill or not, I know I can talk in the dressing room and be there for those guys whenever they need a bit of guidance. We’re a close-knit group of guys, there’s no bad guys in our room and I think that’s huge.”
The six-foot-two, 205-pound Ruddy doesn’t show up very often on the scoresheet. He totaled two goals and 20 assists in 93 regular-season games the past two years with Trenton. Through 14 games with the Spruce Kings he has two assists and 27 penalty minutes.
“Chays brings a lot of energy. He’s a 20-year-old but he’s full of enthusiasm and youth and it’s pretty neat to see a guy work as hard as he does and continue to have that strong passion to the game,” said Maglio.
“He’s a steady guy on the ice and knows what works for him and that makes him an effective player. He has a good stick and is physical and he plays with a edge but doesn’t cross the line, so he’s not taking bad penalties.
“He has a bit of offence to him that’s untapped and we have confidence he can do that as well.”
Cobourg is on Lake Ontario, 116 kilometres east of Toronto. Prince George is a long way from home and Ruddy got surprise visitors three weekends ago when his parents, Brian and Tina, made the trip to watch him play a two-game set against Surrey.
“I was in the change-room and somebody told me to go outside and I walked out and my parents were there, it was nice to spend the weekend with them,” he said.
— see KINGS, page 10