The UBC Thunderbirds men's hockey team will open the 2011-12 season by hosting a two-game weekend set against the Calgary Dinos at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre.
GAME TIMES
Friday, October 7 – Calgary at UBC (7:00 p.m. at Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, Vancouver) – also broadcast live on
CiTR 101.9 FM
Saturday, October 8 –Calgary at UBC (7:00 p.m. at Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, Vancouver)
UBC Thunderbirds
2010-11 conference record: 11-12-5 (6th, missed playoffs)
Last CW title: 1970-71
Last CIS title: N/A
Canada West ranking: #7
Key additions: Steve Stanford,
Michael Wilgosh,
Jason Yee,
Brendon Wall
Key returnees: Justin McCrae,
Max Grassi,
Ben Schmidt,
Marc Desloges,
Jordan White,
Scott Wasden
Key departures: Matthew Schneider,
Craig Lineker,
Max Gordichuk,
Dalton Pajak
VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds men's hockey team is looking to make the Canada West playoffs for the first time since the 2008-09 season.
Head coach Milan Dragicevic is hoping the team can continue the progress shown last year, when UBC improved by ten points in the standings from the previous season.
There are 11 new players, including former Saskatoon Blade goaltender Steve Stanford (1st, Calgary, AB) and Junior A players,
Michael Wilgosh (1st, Selkirk, MB),
Jason Yee (1st, Victoria, BC) and
Brendon Wall (1st, Saskatoon, SK).
Coach Dragicevic says his new players are crucial to the success of UBC in 2011-12 and will be relied upon often to produce offence and energy for the team.
They join a group of returning players that includes
Justin McCrae (
3rd, Cochrane, AB) and
Max Grassi (3rd, North Vancouver, BC), UBC's only top-20 scorers in the Canada West last season.
Ben Schmidt (2nd, Campbell River, BC), the team's third-leading scorer and leading defenceman, also returns.
Goalie
Jordan White (3rd, Surrey, BC) is will be back in the Thunderbird net after playing in every game last season and leading the conference in minutes and games played.
The Thunderbirds went 2-4 in the preseason, beating the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology twice at home before losing to the Abbotsford Heat (American Hockey League) and three NCAA Division I schools.
Last weekend, the T-Birds travelled south for three games in three nights and were competitive in losses to No. 14 Nebraska Omaha Mavericks (4-1), Minnesota (3-0), and Minnesota State (3-1).
Calgary Dinos
2010-11 conference record: 17-8-3 (2nd)
2011 playoffs: 2-3
2011 CIS: 0-2
Last CW title: 1996
Last CIS title: N/A
Canada West ranking: #2
Key additions: Jacob DeSerres, Tyler Fiddler, Taylor Stefishen, Dylan Hood, Teigan Zahn
Key returnees: Reid Jorgensen, Brock Nixon, Dustin Butler
Key departures: Aaron Richards, Torrie Wheat
CALGARY – The Calgary Dinos opened the 2011-12 Canada West season last weekend with two shutout losses at home to the Manitoba Bisons.
Calgary lost both games 2-0 with the Bisons scoring three of those goals on the power play. The Dinos went 0-13 with the man advantage over the weekend series.
The Dinos enter season with high expectations after making the team's first trip to the University Cup since 2000.
Coach Mark Howell made several key additions to the team over the off-season. Leading the list of recruits for the Dinos is a familiar name to Calgary hockey fans in former
Calgary Hitmen co-captain Tyler Fiddler. Other recruits joining Fiddler on the Dinos this season are Dylan Hood, Jacob DeSerres, Taylor Stefishen, Max Ross, Spencer Copp, and David Robinson. The Dinos also announced a pair of late roster additions this week that should significantly solidify their chances in 2011-12 in Teigan Zahn and Randy McNaught.
Brock Nixon enters his fourth season with the Dinos after finishing second last year in team scoring. Nixon will now play a huge role in mentoring the new Calgary recruits, which include five freshman forwards. Reid Jorgensen, the team's leading scorer with 33 points in 28 games last year, has committed to return for a fifth and final season and will once again bring his offensive firepower to bear for the Dinos.
On the blue line, Calgary has reliable defenders it can feel very comfortable with entering this season. Five of the seven defencemen on the roster have at least two years of experience in CIS and will add a veteran presence to the squad.
Between the pipes, Calgary has some of the best goaltending in the nation. Butler, the reigning CIS top goalie, was pushed by Lazaruk last season and Memorial Cup champion DeSerres looks to be in the mix as well.
