Cougars look to claw back to top of the VIJHL
Like the saying goes, you always want to be the host with the most.
The Victoria Cougars are guaranteed a berth by hosting the 2016 Cyclone Taylor Cup B.C. Junior B hockey championship tournament in April at Esquimalt’s Archie Browning Sports Centre.
But they want to enter with blades ablaze, and not just because they are automatic.
“We know we are going to be there, but we want to go in through the front door,” said Cougars head coach Mark Van Helvoirt.
Having been an annual power in the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League, there is every chance they will do just that despite the fact that the club faces a rebuild this season. And also a formidable obstacle in the resurgent defending Cyclone Taylor Cup provincial and Keystone Cup Western Canadian champion Campbell River Storm, who have outscored the opposition 14-3 in handily winning their first two VIJHL games of the season.
The Cougars got off to the start they wanted on Thursday night, beating the Kerry Park Islanders 6-3 at Archie Browning. Brett Lervold had a goal and an assist to lead the Cougars in what was the season opener for both teams.
“We don’t have the high-end talent as in past years, which has also proved a bit of an Achilles heel for us. But we have a more balanced attack with four lines, seven capable defencemen and two strong goalies,” said Van Helvoirt.
Gone are the Cougars’ four leading scorers from last season — Michael Fretz, Sam McMullen, Robert Zadra and Wade Johnson — who totalled 130 goals and 308 points in 2014-15. That’s a lot of firepower to replace. So the Cougars traded future considerations to Kootenay Junior B League team Chase in order to obtain forward Cody Hodges, who had 28 goals last season, and tough blueliner Connor Harding. Moving up to the Cougars from the South Island Royals of the B.C. Major Midget League are James Scott and Brandon Tutte.
Van Helvoirt is proud that three of the departed Cougars went on to college teams and couple of others to Junior A.
“Junior B has shifted from being a place where players ended their junior careers to being a place for a lot of late bloomers who go on,” he noted.
The Cougars are back at it tonight when they head to Panorama Recreation Centre to take on the Peninsula Panthers (1-1) at 7:30.
Also tonight, the Westshore Wolves (0-1) are at Pearkes Arena to play the Saanich Braves (2-1) at 6:30 and the Oceanside Generals open at Rod Brind’Amour Arena in Campbell River against the Storm.