After six preseason contests and over a month of work on and off the ice, the UBC Thunderbirds are ready to finally kick off the 2018-19 Canada West season as they visit the Lethbridge Pronghorns Friday and Saturday, September 28
th and 29
th at the Nicholas Sheran Ice Centre.
Featuring another tremendous recruiting class, the 'Birds are deeper, bigger, and ready for what they feel will be another step forward for the program which saw its best regular season finish in three decades last year.
For the first time in six years, the 'Birds are without a trio of stalwarts in goaltender
Matt Hewitt, forward
Nick Buonassisi, and captain
Wes Vannieuwenhuizen, all of whom have now graduated on. Meanwhile, head coach
Sven Butenschon, who enters his third season at the helm, has brought in a group of five highly touted recruits in goaltender
Patrick Dea, along with forwards
Colton Kehler,
Maxwell James,
Steven Hodges, and
Quentin Greenwood.
The T-Birds enter the new campaign with a new leadership group as third-year defenceman
Jerret Smith will wear the 'C' on his jersey while forwards
Chase Clayton and
Tyler Sandhu will serve as alternates.
After losing to the Calgary Dinos in the Canada West quarterfinal for the second straight season in 2017-18, UBC is gunning for a breakthrough campaign with a goal of being back in Lethbridge come mid-March for the U SPORTS national championship.
It all starts this weekend with puck drop against the Pronghorns at 6:00 p.m. PT Friday night, followed by a rematch Saturday afternoon at 12:00 p.m. PT.
Last Meeting
The 'Birds completed the season series sweep over the Pronghorns by way of a 4-3 double overtime victory back on January 20
th, one day after a 2-1 win at the annual Winter Classic. UBC outscored the 'Horns by a 17-8 margin last season and enter Friday night's season opener having won four straight in Lethbridge.
By the Numbers
21.8 – The 2017-18 'Birds were especially deadly on the power play, clicking at 21.8%, the second most efficient man advantage in the Canada West
9 – UBC had a successful preseason going 5-1 with a +9 goal differential.
Players to Watch
Tyler Sandhu (#19, F) – As a rookie last season, the Richmond, B.C. product led the 'Birds in assists with 17 and finished with 23 points, tied with
Austin Vetterl for tops on the team. Sandhu led UBC with four preseason goals and is poised to take another step forward as one of the top young players in the league.
Colton Kehler (#25, F) – One of the most highly touted recruits this past offseason, the former Edmonton Oil Kings captain finished the preseason with a share of the team lead in scoring with six points (2 G, 4A).
Coach's Take
The season opener isn't just exciting for the players, but the coaching and training staff are anxious to get going after months of preparation.
"Now that it's here the sense of urgency is fun and it makes the job fun when there's pressure and there's stuff on the line and the games mean something," said UBC head coach
Sven Butenschon who was named the 2017-18 Canada West Coach of the Year. "Anytime you start a season or a game off on the right foot, doing the right things, you know you can go back to it. That's why we need to come out, set the tone and know that we can play the kind of brand we want to play."
While there have been many solid performances by individuals throughout the preseason, several have stood out in particular.
"The line of
Carter Popoff,
Maxwell James, and
Colton Kehler, they were the guys that got us going on Saturday," added an impressed Butenschon. "They just went out there and took the game over. As a unit, those three guys and then
Josh Connolly and
Joe Carvalho have really been great on the back side."
The T-Birds have been largely responsible for the Pronghorns missing the post-season the last two years and UBC expects a motivated home team.
"They're always tough to play against, they play a real simple, physical, meat and potatoes kind of game," explained Butenschon. "The fact they have a new coach and it's their home opener, they're going to try to run us out of the building. We have to stay composed, we have to be mature and calm and maybe catch them in transition."
