Former Carolina Hurricanes captain Rod Brind鈥橝mour of Campbell River got to raise the Stanley Cup championship banner in Raleigh in 2006. Tonight, the Campbell River Storm will hoist their own banners in the namesake Brind鈥橝mour Arena.
The Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League regular season begins with the pre-game sa国际传媒 Cyclone Taylor Cup and Western sa国际传媒 Keystone Cup banner-raising ceremonies before the Storm take on the Nanaimo Buccaneers.
In another VIJHL opener tonight, the Peninsula Panthers host the Saanich Braves at 7:30 in Panorama Recreation Centre.
The Storm made history in the spring by becoming the first Island team to win the Keystone Cup Western Canadian Junior B hockey championship by sweeping to the 2015 title in Cold Lake, Alta.
Storm GM and head coach Lee Stone talked about not only bringing the glory back to Campbell River junior hockey, but one-upping it. That was referring to the seven consecutive VIJHL championships the Storm won from 1998 to 2005 while packing Rod Brind鈥橝mour Arena. Included in that stretch was a bronze medal at the 1999 Keystone Cup and silver medal in 2006.
鈥淟ast season was remarkable and special. Near the end, we were attracting 1,000 fans to the building, and that certainly helps in recruiting players,鈥� said Stone, on Thursday, as he prepared his club for tonight鈥檚 season opener.
鈥淲e wanted to get back to the era where players from not only all over the Island, but from across sa国际传媒 and sa国际传媒, wanted to play in Campell River and where people in the town wanted to come to the rink to watch.鈥�
That was a heavy lift. Yet Stone, entering his third season with the resurgent club, has managed it. But with success come a few holes to fill with six Storm players from last season going on to play college and seven on Junior A teams across the country. Dawson Frank of Duncan, a Storm forward from last season, is skating in the WHL training camp of the Victoria Royals.
鈥淲e lost some key guys but it鈥檚 more a matter of retooling than rebuilding,鈥� said Stone.
鈥淲e will have a team similar in strength to last season.鈥�
Key additions on the blueline include Alex Brewer from the Olds Grizzlies of the Alberta Junior Hockey League and mobile 16-year-old Ezra Paddock, whose signing is subject to his tryout with the Alberni Valley Bulldogs of the sa国际传媒 Hockey League. Returning defenceman Trevor Bottomley has had Junior A experience with the Powell River Kings of the BCHL.
The forward corps includes returnees Gage Colpron, who will captain, Kobe Oishi and Colin Blake. Newcomers include Marcus Divincenzo out of Gilmour Academy Prep in Ontario and Kenny Britton from Maine.
The 2016 Cyclone Taylor Cup sa国际传媒 championship next spring will be hosted by the VIJHL-rival Victoria Cougars at Archie Browning Sports Centre. The Storm had also bid to host the event.
鈥淲e were disappointed not to win the rights to host the tournament,鈥� added Stone, whose team defeated the Kimberley Dynamiters 6-5 in the 2015 Cyclone Taylor Cup provincial championship game in Mission for their first sa国际传媒 title since 1999.
鈥淏ut that makes us even more motivated to take care of business in their [Cougars鈥橾 barn. But that鈥檚 a long way off. Hopefully, we can be there again at the end.鈥�
The VIJHL opening weekend continues Saturday with Peninsula taking on Saanich at 5:30 p.m. at Pearkes Arena and Nanaimo visiting the Comox Valley Glacier Kings, with Sunday featuring a visit by the Glacier Kings to Campbell River.
The other openers have the Westshore Wolves hosting Saanich on Wednesday at Juan de Fuca Arena and the Kerry Park Islanders visiting the Cougars next Thursday at Archie Browning. The Oceanside Generals don鈥檛 play until they visit the Storm at Rod Brind鈥橝mour on Sept. 11.
