Simon Fraser is Okanagan-bound for first road game of season vs. Coyotes

The Simon Fraser University Men’s Hockey team will take their 1-0 record to the Kelowna Memorial Arena on Friday night for a meeting with the 0-1 Okanagan College Coyotes, who are beginning their second season in the B.C. Intercollegiate Hockey League.

Puck drop is set for 8:45 PM and the game will be streamed live on the SFU Hockey Broadcast Network with Shaheed Devji and Zameer Karim calling the action.

The Clan handled Okanagan College with ease last season, going 5-0-1 against the expansion club including a thrilling 3-2 shootout victory en route to the league title last spring.

SFU started its championship defence with a bang last Saturday with an 8-3 win over the University of the Fraser Valley in front of a healthy crowd of over 800 fans at the Bill Copeland Sports Centre.

Ben Van Lare, one of the Clan’s coveted recruits, tallied a hat-trick in his BCIHL debut against the Cascades and has raised some eyebrows with his early season fireworks. His linemates, Jaime Laprise and captain Paul Moscone, combined for five assists in the opening-night triumph. The top line will remain intact, as will the other forward lines from opening night. However, Barry Moscone, who re-separated his shoulder in an exhibition game against Thompson Rivers on September 18th, will not be making the trip.

Bryan Kim will likely move up front after playing defence in the season-opener, while Justin Isaacs could make his season debut in the place of Moscone. In addition, defenseman Bryan Brunton will miss his second straight game with SFU as he completes a professional tryout with the Texas Brahmas of the Central Hockey League. His absence will mean plenty more ice time for SFU’s defensive core.

Meanwhile, the Coyotes are looking for a bounce-back effort after they were handed a 7-1 road loss at the hands of Interior rival Thompson Rivers University.

“I expect Okanagan to come out hard in their home-opener, especially after suffering a defeat to TRU,” says Clan head coach Mark Coletta. “Playing up there is going to be tough, especially on opening night. There are going to be a ton of fans and it could be an overwhelming environment.” Coletta notes the Coyotes played much better than the six-goal defeat would indicate. “The game was closer than it looks,” he says. “Okanagan College outshot the WolfPack and TRU had three games under their belt already.”

Okanagan College has 12 returning players from the third-place finish a year ago. Captain Sasha Golin and Craig Materi headline the key returnees up front for the second-year squad, while veteran defensemen Dave Mann and Kolby Barnstable will again anchor the Coyotes’ backend.

The Coyotes also added a few pieces to help the team compete for a league banner, most notably former Kamloops Blazers forward Brady Mason, who is expected to boost the roster this season. Mason is coming off a league championship with the SAIT Trojans of the Alberta Colleges Athletics Conference.

The Clan will travel back home following the game before hosting Eastern Washington next Saturday in exhibition action. The Coyotes will battle Trinity Western University on their home ice on Saturday night.