Submitted to the Castlegar News
With playing commitments from a pair of top-notch defencemen, the three-time defending British Columbia Intercollegiate Hockey League (BCIHL) champion Selkirk College Saints have started to rebuild a key component to continued success.
With the majority of the 2014-2015 Saints blueline contingent graduating this spring, the team is pleased to announce the addition of tier II junior veteran Ashton McLeod and junior B champion Nathan Browne.
“Ashton will be a very smart, capable player in our league,” says Saints head coach Alex Evin. “We are looking to replace a lot of veteran championship winning defensemen next season and we couldn’t be happier adding a player like Ashton.”
McLeod is a 6-foot, 200-pound defenseman who recently completed his final season with the Humbolt Broncos in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. A product of Lethbridge Minor Hockey, McLeod previously spent two seasons playing for the Canmore Eagles in the Alberta Junior Hockey League. In three seasons of tier II hockey, McLeod played 147 games scoring three goals and 25 assists.
McLeod plans to take the Electrical Foundation Program at Nelson’s Silver King Campus and hopes to one day run his own company.
“I would just like to thank Selkirk College and the Saints hockey team for giving me an amazing opportunity to pursue my hockey career as well as education, I’m extremely honoured,” says McLeod.
A Proven Winner on the Blueline
Browne is a 6-foot-2, 195-pound defenseman who recently won a Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League Championship with the Campbell River Storm. He contributed three goals and three assists in 10 playoff contests. The Storm competed in the Cyclone Taylor Cup which took place this past weekend in Mission, B.C..
With the ability to skate and move the puck, Browne will play a significant role with the Saints as they rebuild their defence corps. Browne began his junior hockey career with the North Okanagan Knights of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League after graduating from the Okanagan Rockets Major Midget program. After a run to the KIJHL championship finals with the Knights in 2013, Browne signed on with the Trail Smoke Eaters of the British Columbia Hockey League and spent time in junior A in Ontario before landing with the Storm.
“Coach Lee [Stone] gave me every opportunity to perform at my best in Campbell River and I am very thankful to him and the entire Storm organization,” says Browne. “I’m excited to join Selkirk College because they have established themselves as a winning program and that is something I value and want to contribute to.”
“Adding another player with championship experience is valuable to our hockey program,” says Evin. “Nathan is a quality person and athlete who we believe will be very successful in academics and athletics.”
Browne plans to study in the School of Environment & Geomatics at Selkirk College.