The 麻豆社国产Wolfpack junior hockey team players are back in town after a four-game exhibition road trip to the Kootenays, and they're close to putting together a final roster in anticipation of its home opener on Saturday (Sept. 11).
However the team has already named Ryan Niederkorn as captain. The 20-year-old Texas native is entering his third year on the team and is expected to play an important role on the blue line. His assistants will be forwards Ty Babych, Brady Bjornson and Luke Kasteel.
Head coach Matt Samson said the trip, which saw them play three different teams from the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League, was a great experience for the young athletes.
"It was definitely a positive trip for us," he said, noting it was the Wolfpack's first trip to the Kootenays. "I think the boys thought it was a cool experience."
The team opened the four game set against the Princeton Posse on Thursday (Sept. 2) with a convincing 5-1 victory.
They next travelled to Osoyoos to take on one of the newest Junior B clubs in the country, the Coyotes. The expansion team handled the Wolfpack fairly easily on Friday (Sept. 3), beating them 7-1.
The Coyotes and the Wolfpack met again, 24 hours later and the game ended in a 2-2 draw.
The Coyotes and Wolfpack also honoured recently deceased local hockey player Dan Savage with a moment of silence before Friday's game. Savage's father, Paul, lives in Osoyoos and allowed the Wolfpack free reign at his tourist attraction known as Rattlesnake Canyon.
The team got to play mini-golf, ride go-karts and relax between games. Samson said both he and the team greatly appreciated the gesture.
The final game of the trip saw the Wolfpack travel to Penticton to take on the Lakers and they dropped that game by a margin of 5-1.
Despite a few lopsided results, Samson said a number of players looked strong.
"We only took a couple of veterans on the trip but I think Marc Chabot was the best player on the ice for us," he said. "Jarrett Babych is another guy that we're pretty excited about."
Samson cut a few players following the trip, and fans can expect a bit more shuffling of players as the season approaches, he said.
The Wolfpack play their season opener Saturday (Sept. 11) against the Richmond Sockeyes in Squamish, and Samson said he thinks the competition should be a good test.
"They're going to be tough," he said. "They're always pretty solid and it should definitely be a challenge for us. We're going to work hard on our power play in practice this week and try to start off the year on a positive note."
The game is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. at the Brennan Park Arena. For more information on the team, visit www.squamishwolfpack.com.
