The North Van Wolf Pack would have been forgiven for stumbling a bit to start the 2015-16 season.
The junior B squad, coming off their first ever PJHL title, did, after all, lose their head coach/general manager/founding father Matt Samson in the offseason, along with the top seven scorers from their championship team.
So here we are – a little more than halfway through the season and on the precipice of the Christmas break – and the Wolf Pack is … leading their conference and battling once again for top dog status in the entire league.
“It’s going maybe a little bit better than we would have thought,” said head coach Bayne Koen, who joined the team as an assistant last season and earned a promotion when Samson took a job with the BCHL’s Merritt Centennials in the summer. “Being so young, and losing seven top guys and guys moving on to junior A, those are big holes to fill. Guys have come in and have done a good job filling those holes.”
The offensive records set by departed stars like Spencer Quon, Dyllan Quon and Mitch Crisanti over the past couple of seasons won’t likely be challenged this year, but there are new names emerging with Mitchell Cobby, a 20-year-old from Surrey, leading the way with 36 points in 27 games, good enough for fourth spot on the league’s stats page. League veterans Ram Brar and Nyshan Basra have also picked up the slack, both bumping into the top 10 in league scoring, to lead a forward group that is really sharing the load.
“We don’t really look at our club as having (line) 1, 2, 3, 4. We look at it as a 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D kind of thing,” said Koen. “With our depth I think it takes the pressure off those top-end guys. If they miss something one night, they’re not always having to bail everyone out.”
Rookie forward Alexander Uryga and defenceman Scott Munro are also averaging at least a point per game while North Van is putting up impressive defensive numbers with captain Shane Kumar and the goaltending tandem of Trevor Withers and Brock Leach-Moore providing the backbone.
The team’s depth is another encouraging sign for the health of the franchise, more proof that the Pack should have plenty of firepower even during seasons that would otherwise be classified as a rebuild.
North Van has been earning a reputation as a popular PJHL destination ever since Samson and his father Dean, who remains the team’s CEO, moved the team here from Squamish prior to the 2011-12 season.
“The Samsons and the other ownership have done a great job creating what’s been going on for the past three or four years,” said Koen. “It’s really turned around. I know there were some really lean years, so this is good to see with all of their hard work. … People really take pride in our organization. I think people respect us and respect our team and the hard work that has been done away from the ice surface to bring players in and have guys want to come here, which is a big part of the puzzle. It makes it easier when you have players that actually want to come to you instead of having to grind it out and get those guys.”
The Wolf Pack will get a good test of their championship aspirations Saturday night when they host the Mission City Outlaws in the final game before the break.
North Van defeated Mission in last season’s championship final and the two teams were tied atop the PJHL standings heading into last night’s games.
The Outlaws boast the top three scorers in the league, led by David McGowan and Bryce Pisiak who have picked up 58 and 56 points, respectively, in their team’s 29 games. The league’s next highest scorer, Mission’s Ryan Sharma, is 17 points behind Pisiak.
“Their top line is something – you’ve got to watch them. Pisiak has been absolutely on fire,” said Koen. “They’re a potent offensive team that seems to be getting goals in bunches. We have to be prepared for that.”
The game should have extra meaning given the battles the teams waged last season during the championship series.
“There’s some blood there for sure,” said Koen, adding that he expects his players to go out on a high note before the 13-day Christmas break. “It’s the last game before Christmas … let’s work hard and then enjoy our time off.”
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Puck drop Saturday night for the Wolf Pack versus the Outlaws is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Harry Jerome Recreation Centre.
