After an impressive home weekend where they took four points against rival Simon Fraser University, the Selkirk College Saints men’s hockey team is heading west looking to build on a four game winning streak.
After a slow start to the British Columbia Intercollegiate Hockey League (BCIHL) season, the two-time defending champions have made a statement over the last few weeks that they will be in the mix for a third straight title.
“We have turned a corner the last few weeks not only in games but in practices,” says Saints head coach Alex Evin. “We are hoping to continue moving forward game by game.”
After starting the 2014-15 regular season with four straight losses on the road, any doubt the Saints could legitimately vie for a three-peat should be all but gone after a pair convincing victories over a powerhouse Simon Fraser University Clan at the Castlegar Recreation Complex.
On Saturday night at the complex, Saints’ rookie Ryan Edwards capped off a three goal third period in fitting fashion with a short-handed marker into an empty net as the Clan tried desperately to gain ground during a 6-on-4 powerplay. It was the same story all period and most of the game as the Saints put together one of their best complete outings of the season to stymie the Clan and bounce to a 5-2 final.
Earlier in the period, the Saints took hold of an otherwise very even high tempo match as Logan Proulx and Steven Pantazopoulos, both finished off beautiful passing plays to break a 2-2 tie.
It was back and forth hard hitting action in the opening periods, spilling over from another entertaining match the night before. Selkirk’s Jackson Garrett and Proulx scored for the home team while Saylor Preston and Trent Murdoch notched markers for the visitors.
Rookie netminder Steven Glass was solid in net and earned his first BCIHL win making 22 saves.
In Friday’s tilt the Saints took advantage of some SFU bus legs by tallying four times in the first period. Goals for Selkirk came from Jesse Knowler, Stefan Gonzales, Alex Milligan and Garrett.
James Prigione notched the win after the Clan could only solve him twice in 37 shots over the rest of the game. The final score was 4-2 Saints.
Both wins came at a critical time in the young BCIHL season. Only three points separate last place and first, which Selkirk now holds in a tie along with Trinity Western University and University of Victoria.
This weekend the Saints will be looking to build on its winning streak with games against Trinity Western and a rematch with Simon Fraser.
“We are still looking for our first road win this season,” says Evin. “It’s tough to win on the road in this league and I know that we’ve learned a lot from the previous two trips to Trinity Western and SFU. TWU has one of the top goaltenders in our league and we need to be at our best to make sure the game is not easy for him.”
After the western roadtrip the Saints will get a weekend of rest from games, but the team will be busy helping with the Selkirk College Gala 2014 at Nelson’s Mary Hall on the Tenth Street Campus. The team is running the silent auction portion of the evening with all proceeds going to the Saints. Tickets for the Gala are $70 and can be purchased by calling (250) 365-1360.