Season Preview: Spartans target title threepeat in final BCIHL season

Trinity Western University enters the 2019/20 B.C. Intercollegiate Hockey League season with a pair of key objectives.

The first is to capture their third consecutive league championship following wins in 2018 and 2019. The second is to prepare for the jump to USports in 2020/21, as the Spartans sit just 12 months away from joining the nation's top level of post-secondary hockey.

KEY RETURNERS

TWU welcomes back a BCIHL-high 22 skaters from last year's team that earned a decisive Finals sweep over Vancouver Island University. That group includes their five top scorers and a total of 13 of their 15 highest point-getters.

Up front, the point-a-game trio of Jarrett Fontaine, Evan Last and Brandon Potomak all return, as well as impact rookie Logan Casavant (21 points) and former WHLers Spencer Gerth (14) and Brayden Brown (13). The Spartans will also benefit from a full season from USports transfer Spencer Roberts, who netted eight points in 10 games after joining the team in January.

The returning group on the back-end is equally strong for TWU, led by 2019 BCIHL Top Defenceman award winner Dustin Deugau. The Calgary product finished second in league scoring with 31 points and led all BCIHL skaters with 26 assists. AJHL veteran Travis Verveda and Aldergrove Kodiaks alum Elijah Vilio bring additional scoring punch from the blueline, while Kenny Batke and Evan Cusmano also return.

In goal, Lucas Mills is back for a second year as the team's starting netminder after leading the BCIHL in wins (14), goals-against average (2.27) and save percentage (.918) last year. He was an easy choice for the league's Top Goaltender award.

NEW TO THE TEAM

The Spartans look to have taken a 'quality over quantity' approach in their offseason recruiting, having added just three new players. Up front, former WHL and BCHL winger Josh Bruce should make an immediate impact, with a hat trick already under his belt in exhibition. He's joined by Ontario native Grayden James, who put up 11 points in 29 games with the OJHL's Toronto Jr. Canadiens last season.

TWU has also boosted their depth between the pipes in adding former Waywayseecappo Wolverines starter Isaac Labelle out of Manitoba. The 21-year old finished fourth in the MJHL in wins a year ago with 24 while leading all netminders in games and minutes played.

GETTING STARTED

The Spartans close out their preseason slate over the next two weekends with out-of-conference match-ups against Portage College and SAIT (ACAC) in Castlegar, followed by a trip south of the border to play a pair of NCAA Division 1 opponents in Colorado College and Air Force. They'll raise their 2018/19 championship banner and begin their BCIHL regular season schedule on October 12th when they host Vancouver Island University.