The smile still stretches across Zack Rose鈥檚 face.
How can you blame him, really?
The gold-medal victory from the World Junior A Hockey Challenge is still very much fresh for the Victoria Grizzlies鈥� goaltender, who led Team sa国际传媒 West to the 5-1 championship victory over the U.S. on Dec. 16 in Truro, N.S.
Rose, 18, then returned home to Paradise, N.L., to begin his Christmas break. He ventured back to Victoria on New Year鈥檚 Eve, after a 16-hour adventure, but missed the team鈥檚 first practice as he and teammate Alex Newhook of St. John鈥檚, N.L., were the last two to arrive.
Both will be in the lineup tonight as the Grizzlies get back to work against the visiting Cowichan Valley Capitals at 7 p.m. at The Q Centre in the first of a home-and-home two-game set that continues in Duncan on Wednesday.
鈥淚t was a fantastic break. Time to relax, regroup and get ready for the second half, so it was pretty nice,鈥� Rose said. 鈥淛ust coming back and seeing the boys again is nice, I鈥檓 just smiling. It was an incredible experience.
鈥淚鈥檝e said it before, just to look down and see the Maple Leaf on my chest was incredible, then, to get on the ice with the crowd cheering for you in a sold-out rink is something special, for sure.鈥�
And the win, in which he was named the most valuable player and top goalie, is something to build on for the second half of the sa国际传媒 Hockey League season.
鈥淥bviously, it鈥檚 a confidence boost because of it, so I just want to take it into the second half, bring it to Victoria and try and go for a long push into the playoffs,鈥� Rose said.
His performance in Truro, where he began the tournament as a backup only to eventually lift sa国际传媒 West to the tournament win, also garnered him a lot of attention from NCAA schools.
鈥淚鈥檓 just taking it all in. I鈥檝e had talks with schools,鈥� said Rose. 鈥淚 was talking to a few schools prior, but afterwards it was like I became a hot commodity and everyone was hopping on. There are some big schools, with great programs, so I鈥檓 excited about it.
鈥淚t was all a great experience 鈥� something I never thought I would ever do. To actually go and do it, is something I鈥檓 still trying to wrap my head around two weeks later,鈥� he added.
The Grizzlies, as a team, are coming back from a five-game undefeated run that ended with a 3-3 tie against Prince George on Dec. 16. It鈥檚 a three-game week with the two against Cowichan Valley, then another home game Friday against West Kelowna.
鈥淲e had a good practice [Sunday], we were a little rusty, but [Monday] we鈥檒l get a bit more focus,鈥� Grizzlies GM and head coach Craig Didmon said prior to the team鈥檚 second practice. 鈥淐owichan has already got a game in so we have to make sure we鈥檙e at our best and I think the guys understand it will be a tough task.
鈥淲e just have to take off where we left off before the break. I can tell, by my captain, that the guys mean business and I expect us to be real good.鈥�
The team is without defenceman Jacson Alexander, who left the Grizzlies to begin his Western Hockey League career with the Swift Current Broncos on the weekend where he had an assist in his first game, a 4-3 loss to Saskatoon.
Didmon will need to replace him on his blue-line and he could be looking at Jarin Sutton of Prince George, who currently has 10 goals and 15 assists with the Kelowna Chiefs of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League. Sutton was at Grizzlies camp in the fall and is an 18-year-old, who stands six feet and 185 pounds. He also has 65 penalty minutes in the 27 games in Kelowna.
He previously played for the Cariboo Cougars of the sa国际传媒 Major Midget League where he had five goals and 18 assists in 32 games the year previous.
鈥淲e鈥檙e looking for a guy who can be a depth defenceman for us, probably right-handed, who also plays a tough game and can make a good first pass,鈥� said Didmon who still has two open cards remaining prior to the Jan. 10 trade deadline.
Defenceman Drayson Pears is also expected back from injury in two to three weeks.
