They are poised in the Top 5 in the B .C. Hockey League standings and they鈥檝e done it without two of their six 20-year-olds in the lineup for the last month.
That will soon change for the Victoria Grizzlies, who are expected to welcome one and possibly both of Nick Guiney and Brett Stirling back from injury this weekend.
Victoria is home to Cowichan Valley tonight at 7 at The Q Centre before the two teams 鈥� tied atop the Island Division standings with 16 points apiece 鈥� meet again Saturday in Duncan.
Stirling is champing at the bit to get back after sustaining an injury in Game 5 of the season against Cowichan back on Sept. 17. Same goes for Guiney, who was injured the night before against Surrey on a crushing hit.
Over the stretch of eight games without the two, the Grizzlies recorded two wins, two losses, two ties and two overtime setbacks. With both in the lineup Victoria was 4-0.
鈥淭o get them back will definitely be a boost,鈥� said Grizzlies general manager and head coach Craig Didmon. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e allowed six 20-year-olds, so when you have two-thirds of them out, that鈥檚 a big chunk. We鈥檝e been OK without them, but certainly getting them back will add some depth.鈥�
Depth is exactly what鈥檚 been on display without the two as youngsters have filled in and ultimately that should be a benefit for the club, which sits with a 6-2-2-2 record, while Cowichan is 7-3-2, so technically in first because of one more win.
鈥淵ou have to have depth to move on. If you make it to the RBC Cup, that鈥檚 about 95 games so you need that when you get injuries. We鈥檙e happy they鈥檙e back,鈥� said Didmon.
Stirling wore a huge smile this week in practice.
鈥淚 really want to get back. It鈥檚 tough to watch, especially when the guys go into overtime five of the last seven games. I鈥檝e been working really hard and it鈥檚 day-to-day now. We鈥檒l see. I鈥檓 making good progress though,鈥� said Stirling, who has had bad luck the last two years with early injuries forcing him to miss the BCHL Showcase.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been tough for me, personally, just with school interest for missing it,鈥� said Stirling, the six-foot-two, 207-pound defenceman, who had a goal and an assist in his five appearances. 鈥淏ut I鈥檓 happy other guys are getting looks.
鈥淚 just want to, at this point, get back and be healthy so I can remain that way and we can make a good playoff run.鈥�
Getting in this weekend against the rival Capitals would be a good re-start.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a big rivalry weekend and, hopefully, we can space ourselves out this weekend,鈥� said Stirling, who appreciates where the team sits 12 games into the season. 鈥淭he great thing about this team is we have so many players and leaders that different guys step up.鈥�
Stirling will make a huge difference on a team that is said to feature the best blue line in the league.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a great athlete and keeps care of his body, he鈥檚 just had some poor luck,鈥� Didmon said of Stirling. 鈥淭he games that he has played we鈥檝e thought, arguably, he鈥檚 been one of the best defencemen on the ice.
鈥淚t鈥檚 that physical presence that we鈥檝e missed. He plays with a lot of bravado. He brings intimidation to our lineup, for sure, and he鈥檚 a fixture on our power play and extremely strong defensively.鈥�
Guiney had recorded one assist in each of his first two games before the five-foot-11, 175-pound forward went down. He can provide secondary scoring that the team needs as his 11 goals and 11 assists in 55 games attested to last season.
This will be the fourth and fifth times these two teams collide. Victoria is 2-1 so far with 6-1 and 4-3 (double overtime) wins. Cowichan won the other 2-1.
IN THE DEN: Team scoring leader Cole Pickup (18 points) has committed to the University of Nebraska-Omaha after visiting there last weekend and missing Sunday鈥檚 loss. 鈥淚t was quite the adventure down there. It was pretty cool and they have a highly touted hockey program and their business school is second to none,鈥� said Pickup. 鈥淭heir coaches treat you like you鈥檙e family and they just want to win. After going down there it made my decision clear. I called my mom and dad right away from there 鈥� it was like halfway through the trip and I said: 鈥榊eah, I don鈥檛 think I need to check any other schools.鈥� I called them up and said, 鈥楾his is the first and last trip I need to make.鈥� 鈥�
