Two Campbell River Storm players will be part of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League (VIJHL) All-Star team that heads to the Lower Mainland this weekend.
The team will be taking on a All-Star crew from the Pacific Junior Hockey League (PJHL) in the first-ever PJHL/VIJHL All-Star game on Jan. 26.
Forward Josh Pederson and defenceman Kyle Jennings will represent the Storm. The VIJHL team has representation from every squad in the league, but the Peninsula Panthers have the most players on the roster with five. The Oceanside Generals have three, while the Victoria Cougars, Storm and Nanaimo Buccaneers each have two players. The Westshore Wolves, Kerry Park Islanders and Comox Valley Glacier Kings have one player each on the All-Star team.
Pederson is leading the Storm for points so far this season. He has 45 points from 19 goals and 26 assists over 38 games. Jennings is the lead scoring defender on the team as well as captain. He has 29 points from five goals and 24 assists over 36 games.
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Pederson was named as a VIJHL Player of the Week in December.
The match-up between the leagues follows a prospects game on Jan. 12 in Nanaimo. The Storm’s Brendan Murray had a goal in the 7-4 victory.
The PJHL team will be looking to even the score between the leagues once the puck drop at the Ladner Leisure Centre, home of the Delta Ice Hawks Sunday afternoon.
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Brody Coulter, bench boss of the Victoria Cougars will be coaching the VIJHL team this weekend.
“If the Prospects Game is any indication, this year’s format should make for a very exciting game. The league is sending over a very talented group,” he said. “A lot of these guys are bitter rivals for six months of the year, so it’s going to be fun to watch them compete together.”
Coulter will be joined behind the bench by the rest of the Cougars’ coaching team.
“As a staff, it’s an honour to be awarded this game,” he said. “We made it one of our goals at the start of the season and with the parody in the VIJHL, we are obviously thrilled to be in this position.”
Puck drop is at 2:45 p.m. on Jan. 26.