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Current and former stars of the Victoria Shamrocks will regale fans with lacrosse tales of Mann Cup and league championship seasons past at a hot-stove gathering next month.

St. Patrick’s Day perhaps isn’t the best occasion to play a team that wears green. Especially a really good emerald-clad team.

Welcome to March Madness, oblong-ball style. It has everything the round-ball version boasts, from pulsating pace to whiplash momentum swings to the dizzying array of games in succession.

Forget John Wayne. It is Ryan Gagnon who plays the role of the Quiet Man on the Victoria Royals.

Canadian junior champion Tyler Tardi of Langley will be looking to add yet another title to his name as the inaugural sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ U-18 Curling Championships begin today at the Nanaimo Curling Club.

The way Cody Van Lierop sees it, the second round of the sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ Hockey League playoffs may just be a stepping stone toward greater achievements for the eventual Island Division champion.

Owners of the Nanaimo Clippers hockey club have established a two-week window to attract local buyers for the sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ Hockey League club or they will be forced to sell elsewhere, move the team themselves or even let the 45-year-old franchise go dark.

Youth will be looking to bust the brackets. But experience will be working to keep those brackets sturdy and holding firm.

The Royals, Grizzlies and a few assorted VIJHL playoff teams aren’t the only Island hockey clubs playing meaningful games in March. The University of Victoria Vikes, maybe the Island’s best-kept secret on ice, are into the sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½

Having reached the second round of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League playoffs, Mark Osmond’s goals have already been achieved.