Trinity Western inks first two recruits for 2018 adding Verveda & Uhrynuik

The BCIHL champion Trinity Western Spartans have begun defense of the league crown with the announcement of their first two signed recruits for the 2018/19 season. Defenceman Travis Verveda and forward Julian Uhryniuk are two players with a plethora of junior hockey experience who are expected to make an impact on the Spartans roster right away.

The Spartans graduated four players from their championship roster, and adding Verveda and Uhryniuk is the start of the process for replacing that graduating core.

Verveda hails from Alix, AB and comes to Sparta having spent two years in the WHL with the Kamloops Blazers, and the past two season in the AJHL with the Canmore Eagles. During the 2017/18 campaign, he scored five goals and added 23 assists in 58 regular season games with the Eagles.

"Travis is a dynamic player who will make an immediate impact on our D core," says TWU head coach Barret Kropf of Verveda. "His versatility as a shut down dman, combined with his strength in running a power-play, will make him a hard player for other teams to match up against."

"We are excited to be adding a player of his pedigree into the Spartan lineup and we know that his leadership will fit in well with our ‘team first’ culture."

Uhryniuk hails from Winnipeg, MB and has spent the past three seasons with the SIJHL's Fort Frances Lakers. He suited up in a total of 158 regular season and playoff games in Fort Frances and served as team captain last season while scoring 10 goals and 28 points.

"Julian is a leader!" Kropf explains. "Anyone you talk to about Julian says he is a leader on and off the ice, and for us that is a critical piece for all our recruits to have. He brings great speed to our lineup which will allow us to continue rolling our lines, and keep the pace of the game really high for the entire time."

"As a former captain with the Lakers, we really like that Julian will continue to be a leader in our program, and continue to make an impact on and off the ice."

Verveda will enter the Bachelor of Science program at TWU, while Uhryniuk will pursue his degree with a Bachelor degree in Business.

The 2018/19 season will be an exciting time for the defending champion Spartans. They will kick off their exhibition season with the battle for the Captains Cup, a three-team Lower Mainland battle for bragging rights against the Simon Fraser University Clan and University of British Columbia Thunderbirds.

The remaining exhibition games for the squad will be up against University of Victoria, followed by a trip south to play NCAA Division 1 powerhouse University of Minnesota Golden Gophers.

Once Conference play kicks off at the start of October, the Spartans will be looking to go back-to-back titles to go along with their current league championship banner.