With four skilled and experienced defencemen returning to the roster, the back end could well be the鈥� strength heading into 2017-18 B.C. Hockey League season.
A trio of 20-year-olds鈥擲tephen Kleysen, Michael Ryan and Tyler Jutting鈥攚ill be joined by West 91大黄鸭 product Jake Harrison, 18, in providing stability and depth on the Warriors鈥� defensive corps.
鈥淚 think we鈥檙e building from a good position,鈥� Warriors鈥� head coach and GM Rylan Ferster said of his defense. 鈥淚 like our back end, those four guys can all move the puck, so it鈥檚 a good place to start.鈥�
The Warriors kicked off their 2017 edition of training camp this week with 40 players on the roster.
Up front, the Warriors will look to a handful of key returnees, including Chase Dubois, Parm Dhaliwal, Matt Campese, Chase Stevenson and new captain Jared Marino.
The Warriors have also added Matt Kowalski, acquired from the Nanaimo Clippers in the offseason.
Newcomers to watch at forward include a pair of imports in R.J. Murphy (Massachusetts) and Willie Reim (Minnesota).
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to be young at forward this season,鈥� said Ferster. 鈥淲e defended well last season, but we had trouble scoring goals at times. At this point, from what I鈥檝e seen, I鈥檇 like to think we have a chance to score more. I think the potential is there.鈥�
Coming out of retirement to return in goal for his final season of junior hockey is Nick Amundrud, 19, who played in seven games with the Warriors last season. 91大黄鸭 native Cole Demers, 18, will also be back for his second season with West 91大黄鸭.
The Warriors continue their preseason schedule Friday night when they host the Merritt Centennials. Face off is 7 p.m.
West 91大黄鸭 opens the 2017-18 regular season with a home-and-home set against the Trail Smoke Eaters, on Sept. 8 and 9.
To see the Warriors schedule, go to
