VANCOUVER - When the UBC Thunderbirds take on the SAIT Trojans in a pair of home games this weekend, the Blue and Gold will be doing more than just some pre-season tinkering. The Trojans, who were the ACAC champions in 2010 for the fourth consecutive year, present a stiff test for UBC head coach Milan Dragicevic's team.
SAIT heads to UBC intent on making a statement. Last season, the can-do attitude of another ACAC opponent, the NAIT Ooks, took the 'Birds by surprise in their first game of the pre-season. The Ooks upset UBC 5-3, a result the Thunderbirds will not want to repeat. With SAIT coming with something to prove, the T-Birds will need to be prepared to hit the ice in top form.
Adding to the SAIT threat is the Trojans' head coach, Ken Babey. Babey holds the Canadian record for both most post-secondary games and most post-secondary wins by a coach. The veteran bench boss will have his team ready to compete and will be prepared to match wits with Dragicevic.
The T-Birds long pre-season, which includes games against the NCAA's UNO (University of Nebraska at Omaha) Mavericks, Minnesota Golden Gophers, and MSU (Minnesota State University) Mavericks as well as the ECHL's Victoria Salmon Kings, means they'll have plenty of opportunity to develop chemistry before the Canada West regular season begins. But Friday night will be the first test.
The 'Birds have seven new skaters in the line-up to start the 2010-11 season, OHL veteran
Mike McGurk and former Vancouver Giants blueliner
Nolan Toigo among them. They will join long time Thunderbirds like
Tyler Ruel,
Jordan Inglis, and
Max Gordichuk in their quest for the post-season.
Puck drop versus SAIT is 7:00 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday with the first tilt on the main rink at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, while Saturday's game is in the cozy confines of Father Bauer Arena.
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