Glacier Kings Captain Excited About Upcoming Season

The Comox Valley Glacier Kings looked to Finn Withey at the start of last season as a go-to guy, both as a captain and as a guy that would ignite the offence. It was a surprise when he started the season in Junior ‘B’. Despite it being a huge benefit having their leading scorer back on a young, inexperienced and offensively challenged team, head coach Jordan Kamprath consistently told me that he wanted to move Finn up to Junior ‘A’. I’ll admit that the selfish side of me wanted him to stay but was so happy for him when he left. He was leading the team in scoring by a long shot and played in every situation (even strength, PP, SH etc.). The team looked to him anytime they needed something positive to happen. After Jordan announced in late November that Finn was going to play for the Canmore Eagles in the AJHL, many of us thought… who is going to take his place? Who on this team is going to turn into a leader? At the time it didn’t seem like there was anyone that was ready to take on such a role. Kamprath decided not to name a captain through the whole month of December. He said he wasn’t going to name one unless someone stepped up and showed that they not only could handle it, but could thrive in that role. In early January, the announcement was made. It would be Damian Rennie, just 18 years old at the time. Despite his young age, he was one of the veterans on the club. With Withey on the team, Rennie had 6 goals in those three months. After Finn left, it was Damian that stepped up in December scoring 5 goals and 3 assists in the 8 games. The problem with Damian was that he took too many undisciplined penalties. In fact, in the first 4 months before becoming captain, he collected 86 minutes in penalties. However, Kamper saw something in the Campbell River native. Could it prove to be the correct move to make him the team captain? Well, not only did Rennie score in his first game as captain on January 4th in Campbell River, he had a grand total of just 6 penalty minutes in the final 2 months while donning the ‘C’. The second year forward ended up leading his club in scoring and was named MVP and Top Forward at the Awards Banquet at the end of the season. He also led Comox Valley in Game Winning Goals. It was indeed the perfect move by the head coach.

So we all know about his great speed and scoring ability now, but what is Damian like away from the rink? Kamprath said he is just as good away from it as he is playing in it.

“Off the ice, Rennie has been absolutely everything a coach could expect. As a captain, he manages and provides the link between ownership, coaches and the team. He works hard at the gym, shows up to volunteer events when he’s not working, and leads the dressing room. He really stepped into the leader role well and has run away with it.”

Two years ago, Rennie had 1 goal and 6 assists in 18 games before getting hurt. There was concern going into last year about his health and if he would be able to get into good enough shape after being hurt. Jordan said he loves the way this kid has overcome obstacles and developed.

“The last two years have been dramatically different in his play. He had a season ending shoulder injury during the 17/18 season, putting him in the stands for the second half. Last year, he started off a little pulled back because of the year before, but by Christmas he showed his true ability and talent. It’s been an honour to watch him blossom into the player he is.”

Watching him do that as an 18 year old, it should be fun to see what he can accomplish in the next 2 years (assuming he’s still here). He will be one year more experienced, one year faster and one year smarter. I asked Kamper what he wants out of him this season.

“I won’t be asking much more than what he’s already brought to the ice. He’s a fearless leader, vocal in the dressing room, and works harder than anyone else to succeed. Any time I’ve asked him to do something, Rennie does it to the best of his ability. As a 19 year old, with the growing pains we have had, I expect some very amazing things with him this year.”

After seeing what he did in the last half of last season, it’s easy to see that he can be a 20 goal scorer in this league. That would be a welcome blessing for a team that finished last in offence last season.

Damian has been enjoying his summer so far going to the lake, doing some 4x4ing and has spent a lot of time in the gym lifting weights. To keep his reflexes sharp, he can quite often be seen stick handing and shooting pucks. As for work, Rennie is busy working with his Grandpa doing floor laying which he says he really enjoys. I asked him what he is wanting to see from himself and his teammates this season.

“I would like to play much more consistent with my offence and also stay out of the penalty box. For the team I can really see us battling for the top 2 positions in the North. With pretty much the whole team coming back it will help being a year older, every one is more mature, and knows what it takes to win in the league from playing last season so I see a really big year for the Glacier Kings.”

You have to love the exuberance from the 19 year old. That optimism starts from the top with the coaching staff and having the captain this excited is certainly a great step for winning more games. Rennie will also be participating in some upcoming ice sessions at the Sports Centre. The dates of the sessions are July 22, 25, 29, August 1, 8, 12, 15, 19, 21, 26. It should be fun watching the enthusiasm of this year’s team.

That’s it for today, have a great evening.

Darryl Skender

Glacier Kings Preparing For Upcoming Season

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The Comox Valley Glacier Kings had the longest off-season of any team in the VIJHL this year and it has not been wasted. The recruiting staff have been all over the island and lower mainland looking to improve a team that managed just 4 regular season wins last season. The Glacier Kings also have the advantage of having the entire team from last year’s  squad eligible to return. According to head coach Jordan Kamprath, he is expecting everyone to show up at Main Camp except for the one’s at junior “A” camps.  An interesting position will be goaltending where it appears there may be as many as 6 goaltenders trying out. With Mathias Smith heading to the Dauphin Kings of the MJHL, there may be a real competition. Defenceman Noah Mathaner has shown some interest in the NOJHL, forward Jon Tagoona will be going to tryout in Dauphin while Lochlan Willis  signed with the Oceanside Generals in the off-season. Depending on what happens, there should be a few roster spots up for competition. Regardless, Jordan has been busy filling spots for Main Camp. He spoke about how he has spent his time since the end of the season.

“The off-season has been busy for me. Lots of travelling for scouting, building relationships and taking some personal time as well. Every time I get to a rink I wish the season started the next day, but it’s nice to have the summer weekends off to play other sports I enjoy. Mid July I’m back on the ice 1/2 times a week so I enjoy the freedom while I can.”

The ice is being put back in Arena #1 to accommodate the ice sessions that Jordan will be hosting for players later this month.

It’s no secret that the Glacier Kings struggled to get wins last season as they went through a rebuilding phase, not just with talent, but with character. Sometimes an organization must go through the growing pains to make progress. Kamprath said that despite the team’s record, they did move in a positive direction.

“Last season honestly was a great success in my mind. The organization identified a lot of boulders that needed to be broken down and moved, and I feel like we did that collectively very well. The issues that were consistently occurring before no longer was happening, and we were able to set our sights more towards the front of the team and on the ice instead of behind the scenes. With the rebuild that we did, we lose very little players. This is a huge advantage moving into this season coming up, with everyone already acquainted with one another, teammates are already brothers and everyone is here for the right reasons.”

With that being said, losing a lot of games can take its toll on a young player and coaching staff. Kamprath stayed positive the entire season with his players and with the media. He talked about the good and the bad.

“The season had many ups and downs for sure, don’t get me wrong. It’s challenging mentally to continue day in and day out when you’re on the losing side of many battles. But a few things definitely stuck out to me. Obviously the double overtime win was the best occurrence last year, if not of my coaching career. Bringing players in and giving them opportunities for them to succeed and them grasping it and running with it was also an amazing thing to witness. Many young kids grew up into adults last year. Looking back, I wouldn’t say anything was extremely disappointing last year, other than the record. But winning isn’t everything- last year was a year filled with many little success stories, and we will build on those for the year to come.”

Yes, the majority of players from last year’s team will be at Main Camp, but most will not have a position guaranteed without fighting for it. They will however have a decisive advantage having played for the club last season. Life is always a little better coming in as a veteran. I asked Jordan what his biggest hole is to fill for the upcoming year.

“Honestly I believe a lot of the returning players will be filling the issues we ran into last year themselves. We needed an extra touch of scoring, a little bit more confidence in our defensive core, and just a smidge of experience mentality. With a large core coming back, all a year older, all those players will be playing with a confident veteran attitude. This means more shots on net, more body contact in our zone, more blocked shots etc. I am looking forward to seeing how the season starts out, as I’m expecting every player to come into main camp in shape and ready for hockey. Our trainers at Stronghearts has given everyone a workout program to use while they are gone for the summer, and it’s pretty intense. I would expect everyone to be in mid season form on day one.”

Because scoring was a big issue last season, certain players will be asked to pick up their offensive game a little bit. One player I’m looking forward to seeing is Matthew Teasdale. He showed great hands as a 16 year old last year and was part of one of the power play units. He may be the most improved player this season and could be in double digits in goals in 2019/20. Remember Finn Withey’s last game with the team was November 28th of last year but he still ended up leading Comox Valley in scoring. Rick Takeda and Jordan Neufeld will also need to add a little more offence.

Main camp is scheduled to begin August 30th at 12:45 and will conclude September 1st. There is one exhibition game booked at the Sports Centre. Kerry Park will visit Wednesday September 4th at 7:00 PM. The Glacier Kings regular season opener is on September 6th in Campbell River.

The local kids have been staying active in the community. Just recently, Jacob Murray, Jordan Neufeld, Brendan Almer, Tanner Roberts, Matthew Teasdale, Mathias Smith, Ryan Telford and Alex Jalbert were out representing the team at the Canada Day parade. Being a part of the community has always been a big part of this organization. There are a lot of good kids here now so I would expect the volunteer work to continue in the future.

That’s it for today, I hope you’re enjoying your summer. Ours happened in the spring and we haven’t seen it since.

Darryl Skender

Glacier Kings Ready To Head South

It was a weekend of a lot of snow, icy road conditions, school cancellations, postponed games but some hockey was played. The Comox Valley Glacier Kings are looking ahead after a pair of losses, 7-2 to Campbell River Saturday night and 5-1 to Kerry Park Sunday afternoon. That pushed the Glacier Kings streak to 13 losses in a row. It’s not all doom and gloom however as there were some bright spots. Some of the youngest players on an already young squad seem to be playing well and have a bright upside. That could bode well for next season. I caught up with head coach Jordan Kamprath and he talked about last weekend.

“I thought both games were good enjoyable games. In both we ran into a bit of penalty trouble and against top teams like CR and KP you can’t give them those opportunities. But in both games our AP players played phenomenal and had goals scored by secondary players which is very nice to see.”

It is no secret that this club has had trouble scoring all season. The loss of their greatest offensive weapon and MVP candidate Finn Withey last November was a devastating blow to the offence. Last time I checked he had put up 4 goals and 6 assists in 20 games in Junior “A” with the Canmore Eagles. The bright spot that came out of this was the improved play of Damian Rennie. The leadership fell on his shoulders and he became a different player. He stopped taking so many foolish penalties and turned up his game to another level. In fact his attitude and performance went up so much, Kamprath named him Team Captain. With that promotion, he has done nothing but run with the opportunity. However, the team needs more than just one player putting the puck in the net on a consistent basis. I talked with the coach about the struggling offence which averages under 2 goals per game.

“To be honest the number one thing is getting our defensive zone better. We spend so much time in our own zone we have very little time against the other side. Come out as a unit and attack together, and build opportunities off of it.”

One thing that has stood out lately is the team’s power play which has been looking better. When a club is spending a lot of time in their own end in 5 on 5 situations, it is imperative to have good special teams. Yes Comox is last in the VIJHL with 21 goals with the man advantage but it has been good lately. In their last 8 power play opportunities, they have scored 4 times dating back to their last PP of the game on February 2nd. Jordan talked about why his team has been more successful as of late.

“The biggest change we have had on the powerplay is enforcing the shots. We have had little to no shots on our PP in the past and we have stuck people in front that will stand there and guys up high that will let loose.”

The team is looking ahead now as they have to travel south on Friday before returning home Saturday. Their practice schedule this week was affected by all the snow and players not able to make it to the rink. Things are back on track now but everyone knows it will be a very tough weekend. Kamper discussed the challenges.

“Friday’s game is our last Victoria road trip for the year, and playing in Saanich is always an interesting experience. It’s a small barn, Saanich has a very skilled team and they aren’t going to take us lightly. We have to go after them and take away their space and don’t let them take shots. The blue line feels like it’s hashmarks in other barns so any shot is a dangerous one. Help the goalies out as much as possible and spend as much time in the offensive zone as possible while playing smart disciplined hockey.”

The Braves come into the game (at the time of this post) 7 points behind Kerry Park and Nanaimo who are tied for 3rd place and are 11 points ahead of Westshore. Gavin Grewal and Dale McCabe are both point a game players while Connor Cheyne boasts an impressive 2.70 GAA. Saanich is struggling right now however losing 5 of their last 6 games and 8 of their last 10. Game time is 6:30 at George Pearkes Arena.

That’s it for now. Drive safe and I’ll see you at The Pond on Saturday night.

Darryl Skender

All-Stars, Prospects, New Captain, Christmas Break & Practice Update

The Comox Valley Glacier Kings are back at work for the first time since the Christmas break. Lots happened during the break so let’s get right into it. There are a lot of local kids on the team so quite a few didn’t go too far. One player in particular that had a long way to travel was forward Jon Tagoona as he headed way back up north to Rankin Inlet. I spoke with forward Damian Rennie after practice this morning and he as well as a number of players were under the weather over the break. To brighten his spirits however, he did get a new snowboard and plans on going up the mountain this winter to try it out. Head coach Jordan Kamprath talked about the team’s time off.

“We had a nice long break. I gave a lot of these kids as much time as we could. Guys like JL (Jon Tagoona) is out from Nunavut so we wanted them to go home for as long as they can. They got back in last night. Made sure they were all here for practice this morning. It was a nice time over the break for the local players. Back at it today and tonight against Campbell River. We’re really looking forward to that. It’s definitely time to get back on the ice.”

After a long break, (2 weeks to be exact), the team was on the ice this morning at 7:45 as it is time to prepare for the Campbell River Storm this evening. I watched a lot of it with one eye open as I too was suffering from the flu over Christmas. It seems it has hit broadcasters too as Mark Berry and Kyle Ireland have also been feeling the effects of the bug going around. The players still seemed to be in good spirits and had a lot more energy than I did. Jordan said it was a slow start but things eventually got rolling at practice.

“Sometimes you never know what you’re going to get when you have your “Turkey Legs” underneath you. I think it’s been long enough between Christmas and New Year’s that a lot of the guys have started to get back at it. You can see which guys have been on the ice and which haven’t. It was a high tempo practice trying to get their legs back underneath them. As you could see, as the practice went on, it was getting much better. I thought today went very well and I’m looking forward to the game tonight.”

There were some pieces of good news over the break. Both the All-Star teams and Prospects teams were announced. Three members of the Glacier Kings were named to both. Forwards Damian Rennie (11G 8A), Jordan Neufeld (4G 12A) as well as goaltender Mathias Smith (4.69 GAA, .890 save percentage) got the news earlier this week. I thought a couple defencemen should have been given consideration with Noah Malthaner and Dayton Keith having outstanding seasons. The All-Star game is set to take place on Sunday January 20th in Campbell River while the Prospects game will be one week later in Saanich.

In other news, there were a couple letter promotions. The Glacier Kings have been without a captain since the departure of Finn Withey in late November. Kamprath explained the promotions.

“Early New Year’s present for a couple players. Damian Rennie was the obvious choice for captain and we’ve put the letter on his jersey. He’s been leading the team on and off the ice. He’s a very vocal guy in the dressing room, very vocal on the bench and he’s been part of a leadership core since Finn Withey left. He’s really upped his tempo in the game as well. We named Noah Goyer assistant captain. With Damian stepping up to a ‘C’, it left an ‘A’ open. Noah has brought a lot of leadership to the group when he came onboard. He keeps the tempo up on the bench, he’s brought a lot of things positive towards the team. He’s been a great asset here and the coaching staff all agree that he’ll be a great leader on the team.”

Speaking with Rennie after practice today he seemed pretty happy with the promotion and heading to his first all-star game. He said he had never been a part of an all-star team this before but was looking forward to it. He has grown a lot in maturity since the start of the season. He was taking too many selfish penalties at the beginning but has now turned his emotions towards playing a fast, skilled game on the ice. Good on the coaches for making it happen as it was well-deserved.

With the turning of the calendar comes a new time for hope for all 9 teams in the VIJHL. All believing good things will happen in the new year. I asked Kamper what he was looking forward to in 2019.

“I just want to keep the positivity going forward and continue trying to get closer, win some more games. I’d love to get double digit in wins but as long as the effort is there and everybody is getting better and better, that’s all I can ask for. It’s been a really tough season for lot of guys mentally and physically, I expect everyone to continue with that effort from here on out.”

It all begins tonight at the Rod Brind’Amour Arena when the GKings take on the Campbell River Storm. The Storm lead the VIJHL with 72 points. Comox Valley has lost 3 in a row including a 5-0 decision to Campbell River in both team’s last game before the break. Mathias Smith is getting the first start of the new year for the Glacier Kings. Their only scratch is Cianan Briscoe who is serving his one game suspension for getting into a fight with defenceman Noah Spain. Spain is suspended for tonight’s game as well but considering he was an AP that was called up from the North Island Silvertips (BCMML), he probably wasn’t going to suit up tonight anyways. Mark Berry will have the play by play of the game starting at 7:15 on HockeyTV as we will hear him talk to Storm coach Cam Basarab.

That’s it for now. Happy New Year everyone!

Darryl Skender

Glacier Kings Prepare For Tough Games Ahead After Disappointing Weekend

The Comox Valley Glacier Kings are back at work after a couple of disappointing losses on the weekend. It was a chance to make up some ground on a couple teams that they are trying to catch. After the losses they have fallen 16 points behind both Oceanside and Westshore in the fight for the final playoff spot. The good news is the GKings are back at it and working as hard as ever to try and make up some ground. Head coach Jordan Kamprath talked about the losses after practice this morning’s practice.

“I think the most disappointing part on Sunday was the effort level just wasn’t quite there. I don’t mind losing like we did in the Saturday game. We worked hard. There were a lot of good opportunities to pull ahead in that game. Unfortunately one undisciplined penalty. On Sunday it seemed like the effort level wasn’t there. We weren’t winning battles or races to the puck. I’m not happy with that loss. No loss is a great loss but I was definitely unhappy with the effort level that was there.”

The club has stayed upbeat and positive this week as they prepare for games against the top two teams in the North Division. Both however are trending in different directions One of the teams has lost 4 in a row while the other has won 7 straight. Kamprath discussed what’s ahead.

“We got a big weekend, our division rivals with Campbell River on Saturday and tomorrow we have Nanaimo. It’s a big weekend for us. We beat both teams before so we know we can do it but it will be the first time playing both teams without Finn and I know a couple players are going to have to step up and find the back of the net a bit more. Practice went extremely well today and the week has been really high tempo and really good efforts. I think we’re flying coming into the weekend.”

He’s right that someone is going to need to step up and be the “go to” guy. The Glacier Kings got used to “that guy” being Finn Withey. The obvious choice right now would be Damian Rennie. The 18 year old has shown flashes of brilliance but just needs to be more consistent and stay away from undisciplined penalties. He is a terrific kid off the ice too. Rennie, who is the new team leader in goals, told me today that he believes this team can make a run and realizes that he must step up his game even more.

Jordan has brought another player into the fold to help out with some of the younger players. He talked about his newest acquisition.

“Matt Johns came in from Oceanside. He’s a 20 year old, I expect him to be a little bit of a leader out here. He’s got some experience out east in one of the leagues out there winning a championship as well. I know the kid can put up points if he can find the puck. He’ll be a good addition to the team for sure.”

Johns wasn’t able to play last weekend as BC Hockey didn’t give their approval of the transaction in time. He will play in Nanaimo Thursday.

Comox Valley hasn’t had a captain on their squad since the departure of Withey. I asked Kamper if he is ready to put a “C” on a jersey in the near future.

“Right now it’s not a huge priority, we have a good leadership group with the people on the ice that have letters and others without letters on their jersey. We’re just trying to see if someone steps up and fills that role. We might run with 4 “A’s” right now. We’re not sure, it’s something that the coaches and ownership group is going to have to discuss a little bit more.”

Good news is that forward Brett Henri is expected to be back in the line up for Comox Valley for the first time since September 29th. He has been practicing for some time now and has been looking terrific. And more good news on the horizon is defenceman Dayton Keith might be ready to go as early as Saturday night as he recovers from his lower body injury that was suffered in a game in Nanaimo a few weeks back.

Game time Thursday at the Pirate Ship is 7:15 with Larenzo Jensen having the play by play on HockeyTV. Then on Saturday, the Campbell River Storm will be here to take on the Glacier Kings at 7:30. The pre-game show will begin at 7:15.

Darryl Skender