It was supposed to be the most heated battle of the Victoria Grizzlies training camp and preseason.
With two No. 1 goaltenders set to return to the sa国际传媒 Hockey League club, who would win the starting job: 20-year-old Kurtis Chapman, who had a strong finish to last season and has Western Hockey League experience, or 19-year-old Zack Rose, committed to Bowling Green of the NCAA and who led Team sa国际传媒 West to a gold medal at the World Junior A Challenge in Dawson Creek last December?
Sometimes the best laid plans go astray.
A shoulder injury to Rose during off-season training forced the Paradise, N.L., product to have surgery, putting him on the shelf until mid-December.
Over to you, Chapman.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really unfortunate what happened to Zack, but his rehab is progressing as expected, which is good news,鈥� said Grizzlies GM and head coach Craig Didmon, whose club continues the preseason tonight with a game in Duncan against the Cowichan Valley Capitals.
鈥淎nd we鈥檙e moving forward with Kurtis as our No. 1 and he鈥檚 looking forward to having a great season in his last year of junior hockey so we expect big things out of him.鈥�
Chapman was at home near Calgary this summer when he got the call from Rose.
鈥淶ack phoned me as soon as it happened and told me he would be out a while so I was a little shocked to hear that and you feel bad for him,鈥� said Chapman, who came to the Grizzlies last December from the Calgary Mustangs of the Alberta Junior Hockey League and got in 20 regular-season games with a goals-against average of 2.75, and another nine in the playoffs, where he recorded a GAA of 2.17.
鈥淪o it鈥檒l be a busy first half, for sure.鈥�
Those 29 games with the Grizzlies last season was the most Chapman has appeared in since he started his Junior A career in 2015 with the Olds Grizzlies of the AJHL. He also played sporadically for the Regina Pats and Kootenay Ice of the WHL.
鈥淏ack in Olds I got in more than 30 games. So it might take some getting used to, but I had a good summer of training, working on conditioning and flexibility, and I think I鈥檓 ready for a heavier work load.鈥�
To help spell Chapman off every now and then, Didmon has gone to a familiar face. Keenan Rancier, who just turned 18, is from Victoria but played midget at Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton last season. And he looks ready to start his Junior A career.
鈥淜eenan has spent the last few seasons with OHA but he鈥檚 from Victoria and we鈥檝e kept a close eye on him the last little while and like the way he has progressed and feel he鈥檚 ready for the next level,鈥� Didmon said.
Rancier played 22 regular season games last season, posting a 2.29 GAA and picked up a BCHL preseason win last weekend.
鈥淭hey move the puck a lot quicker up here and make decisions quicker, so my whole game has to be better,鈥� said Rancier, who attended Spencer Middle School in Langford before heading to the Okanagan.
Rancier said he was excited when his hometown team came calling.
鈥淚 had been to a few of the Grizzlies rookie camps and it鈥檚 a great organization on and off the ice so I鈥檓 really excited to be here.鈥�
Even if it might only be for half a season.
鈥淎ll I can do is focus on how I play and control the things I can control and not worry about the things I can鈥檛 control. I鈥檓 going to play my best when called upon and keep helping the team win. And when a decision has to be made, it鈥檒l be made.鈥�
No matter who plays in net, Chapman is confident the Grizzlies have what it takes to make a serious run at a BCHL title.
鈥淜eenan has looked great in camp and in the games, and we have a ton of skill at forward and some good, experienced guys returning, so I think we鈥檙e in for a real good year,鈥� said Chapman, who already has some offers from U Sports schools in Alberta for next season.
The Grizzlies and Capitals will wrap up the preseason on Saturday with a 2 p.m. game at SEAPARK Arena in Sooke. The Grizzlies open the regular season Sept. 8 in Powell River against the Kings.
LOOSE PUCKS: A week before the start of the BCHL regular season, the Surrey Eagles have a new coach. Peter Schaefer takes over as head coach after Brandon West and the team mutually agreed to part ways. Schaefer, a former NHLer with Vancouver, Ottawa and Boston, was the head coach of the Eagles for the 2013-14 season after serving as an assistant coach before that. . . . Former Grizzlies forward Keyvan Mokhtari, 20, has been dealt from the Vernon Vipers to the Langley Rivermen. Going to the Vipers is 18-year-old defenceman Austin Chorney.
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