A Campbell River teen has been recruited to play for Team BC.
Price, a 15-year-old First Nations youth from Wei Wai Kum First Nation, is attending his second year at the Delta Hockey Academy.
Price played in the Campbell River Minor Hockey Association (CRMHA) as a Tyee for the first four years of his rep hockey career before making the move in his second year of bantam to the Delta Hockey Academy.
In Price’s first year at Delta Hockey Academy he made a name for himself playing on the Bantam Prep team in the CSSHL – one of the most difficult leagues to play in – being the top point getter on the Bantam Prep team in 25 games with 15 goals and 18 assists for 33 points.
This 2016/17 season, Price is playing on the Delta Hockey Academy Midget Prep team and is the only 2001 born player on the team. He has made a great start with two goals and one assist in the first three games of the season.
Price entered the WHL Bantam Draft this past May and he went in the third round, 63rd overall to the Medicine Hat Tigers. On July 20, the Tigers signed Price to a standard WHL player agreement and he attended the Tigers training camp at the end of August. After training camp he was asked to stay and practice with the team for the rest of week. He gained valuable extra ice training with the team and the opportunity to play in two exhibition games in a Tigers’ jersey against the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Sept. 2 and 3.
Price’s latest accomplishment was making the final roster for the 2016 Male U16 Team BC. He was one of four 2001 born players from Campbell River invited to the 2016 U16 BC Cup in Salmon Arm on April 20– 24.
Players were then selected based on performance at U16 BC Cup and divided into two teams to attend the 2016 Provincial Camp at Shawinigan Lake on July 13-17. They then picked the top 20 players from that camp for Team BC which was announced on Oct. 4 and Price was the only one from Campbell River to make the Provincial Camp in Shawinigan Lake and one of three from the Island to make the final roster for Team BC.
Team BC will be travelling to Calgary on Oct. 16 for the 2016 Western Canada Challenge Cup, which starts with the team’s first game on Oct. 19 against Team Manitoba.
The Western Canada U16 Challenge Cup features the highest rated players in the U16 age category representing the four western provinces of Alberta, B.C., Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
“I am very excited and honoured to represent B.C. at the U16 Western Canada Challenge Cup,” Price said.
“I would like to thank my family for making the sacrifices they have made the past couple of years that have allowed me follow my dreams of playing professional hockey. I would like to thank my past coaches from CRMHA for the first few years of my hockey career for giving me a mould to be a focused, determined hard worker on and off the ice.
“I will do Campbell River proud representing Team BC.”