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By Chris Stanford
The Okanagan College Crusaders hockey team are ready to hit the boards instead of the books Friday night.
When they face off against UVic at the Winfield Arena in their first-ever home contest in the seven-team B.C. Intercollegiate Hockey League, the team is also hoping to make some history with their first victory.
“If we stick to our game plan and execute well, we hope to come away with a couple of wins,” said Loudoun, player, president and co-founder of the Crusaders. The team was edged out in their league debut 5-3 on the road against the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack last Friday, and narrowly lost the second game against TRU 5-4 on Saturday, but Loudoun is confident his team can bounce back.
“We’ve got a pretty good looking roster,” he said. “It’s a good weekend to hopefully get back to .500 hockey.”
The twenty-one year-old Loudoun, like most of the squad, has some junior hockey experience, his coming during a stint with the Lumby Fighting Saints in the WHA junior league. Team mate Sasha Golin logged five season in the WHL with the Portland Winterhawks and the Kamloops Blazers, while other have played at some level professionally.
Forward Devin Gelowitz leads the Crusaders in scoring with two goals and an assist in their first two games, while Kolby Barnstable, also the teams vice-president has three assists so far.
The 20-member team is composed entirely of full-time students at the college, with an allowance for three part-timers in accordance with league rules, with ages ranging from goaltender Cam Beskidny at only 17-years-old all the way up to 27 said program co-founder and player Barnstable. The team will play 22 games this season against teams from Trinity Western University, Simon Fraser, the University of the Fraser Valley, Selkirk, UVic and Thompson Rivers.
Also a third-year business student at OC like Loudoun, Barnstable, 22, played his junior hockey with the North Battleford North Stars in the SJHL. He also suited up for the Westside Warriors in part of their first season in the Okanagan in 2006 before being dealt to the Powell River Kings.
Coming from a hockey family (his brother plays with the WHL Red Deer Rebels), Branstable’s dad Kim, a scout for the Vancouver Giants, has stepped up as the team’s first head coach.
Although, according to the younger Barnstable, others have tried to fly the college hockey idea in the Okanagan before, he and Loudoun felt two felt it was worth another shot, and they have spent almost a year of their own time to get the program up and running.
“We just decided this needs to happne and we;ve taken it an ran with it,” he said. ‘We’re hoping people will embrace the program.”
With the college’s support, the hard work has paid off so far, now all that remains is to put the books on hold – at least for few hours and get down to work on the ice.
“We’ve gotten accepted into the league with the school supporting us,” said Loudoun. “Now we just have to win some hockey games.”
Tickets to the games are $7 for adults, $5 for students and $3 for kids 12 and under and are available at the door.
Their first home game is Friday, Oct. 2 at the Winfield Arena at 9:10 p.m.
They also play Saturday at 9:15 p.m. at Memorial Arena in Kelowna.
sports@kelowna.com
250-575-3981
