Top seeded TRU rested and ready for BCIHL Championships redemption

The Thompson Rivers University WolfPack are hoping the B.C. Intercollegiate Hockey League playoff tournament of 2011 has a different outcome than their first appearance last year. In 2010, the WolfPack made it all the way to the championship final only to lose.

This season, the WolfPack enter the five-team championship sitting as the number one seed. This is thanks to a league best regular season record of 19 wins, four losses and a loss. Finishing on top gives them a bye to the second round of the playoffs, which means that they won’t play until Thursday.

"I think the advantage will be the ability to see what the other teams are doing," says WolfPack head coach Lorne Cumming. "We don’t expect huge changes in the other teams’ strategies, but know they will have players that come off the break stronger than others and we will try to get a read from that. Strong performers are always critical to any team’s success and we will have the opportunity to key on that. We know we will have "first game" rust on Thursday and will have to have a very strong start to game one in order to be competitive."

The WolfPack and the other four teams left vying for the title: defending champion SFU, Okanagan College, UVIC and Trinity Western have been idle for almost 19 days.

"I know our players are excited and anxious to get playing," says Cumming. "It’s been a long break, but we have had the focus of a determined group, and the injuries we were playing through have had a chance to heal. I know our players realize how tough each game will be, and they look forward to the challenge of playing excellent hockey at a critical time."

The WolfPack used the lay off to get healthy.

"We used the layoff to build ourselves back to our level we felt we were at before we had the injury bug hit us," he explains. " Our guys are pretty competitive and we get a lot out of practice for that reason. I don’t think the big break was to anyone’s advantage, but if there was a huge positive for us it was the fact that it allowed us to get healthy."

Cumming believes that all five clubs have the chance to go all the way.

"I think the tourney will be a test for every team to be ready to have their "A" game in the chamber and ready to fire. There can be no hesitation. A tournament format is unique to a lot of guys on our team, and we have left no question in anyone’s mind on our team how critical it is that we have every man on deck and ready for battle. If you’re a flat team it will cost you dearly."

The WolfPack go into the championship tournament as the second hottest team of the five participating schools. TRU has seven wins, two losses and a tie in their last ten games. SFU, who finished a point back of the ‘Pack has eight wins, a loss and a tie.

Scoring goals will be a priority for Cumming and company. They have two of the top five scorers in BCIHL in Jassi Sangha (2nd year, forward, Kamloops, BC) and Andrew Fisher (4th year, forward, Kamloops, BC). Sangha finished second in league scoring with 14 goals and 22 assists. Fisher was fifth with 18 goals and 16 assists.

"It has been our goal all season to be a very difficult team to play against and that will not change," Cumming states. " Our guys have had a plan all season and that plan will not change. We need to compete – to a man – in order to have the success we are looking for. Our players are a very honest group who hold each other very accountable for their play. That has been a huge part of their success and I know that will not change either."

The Championship final is set for Sunday (Mar 27) at 6:30 pm. All but two of the BCIHL Championship tournament games are being held at the Bill Copeland Sports Center. Those other games are being played at the Burnaby Winter Club.