Cleve Dheensaw / Times Colonist
NOVEMBER 24, 2016 10:12 PM
With apologies to all the other Island Division teams, the Victoria Grizzlies’ greatest rival has probably been the Nanaimo Clippers.
So it’s a strange scheduling quirk that has the Grizzlies and Clippers meeting for the first time tonight at Frank Crane Arena in Nanaimo followed by the return match Saturday night at The Q Centre in Colwood.
“We’re excited to get this rivalry going again against Nanaimo eight times [this season],” said Grizzlies head coach and GM Craig Didmon.
“Nanaimo’s is always a fun barn in which to play. These Grizzlies-Clippers games go from zero to 60 miles per hour real quick. It’s always intense and always a playoff-type atmosphere when these teams meet.”
The Grizzlies go in as a dominant team this year in the B.C. Hockey League at 16-5-2-3. The Clippers have struggled to find their footing at 11-12-3-1.
“You never take games against Nanaimo for granted,” warned Didmon.
“Mike [Vandecamp] is a good coach with a good system. He has a young group that is developing.”
Didmon, meanwhile, has a veteran group that has arrived.
Case in point is Grizzlies goaltender Matthew Galajda, among the 25 BCHL players invited to the 60-player Canada West tryout camp Dec. 5-8 in Leduc, Alta., for the 2016 World Junior A Challenge taking place Dec. 11-17 in Bonnyville, Alta.
The NCAA Cornell-bound Victoria creaseman will be among seven invited goaltenders, one of only two from the BCHL with Ty Taylor of the Vernon Vipers, battling for the two positions on Canada West.
Galajda, whose 2.25 goals-against average is second best in the BCHL, is part of a mix that has proved potent for the Grizzlies this season, mitigating the need for any drastic moves as BCHL rosters must be pared to 25 by Dec. 1. The BCHL trade deadline is Jan. 10.
But much of that Victoria strength is from a back end that extends from Galajda through to a powerful blue-line corps. There may, however, be room for more scoring touch. With a league second-best 63 goals allowed, Victoria is a BCHL sixth-best in goals for at 94.
“We’re happy with the group we have,” said Didmon.
“I like our roster. I think we have enough to move on. We’ll see how it goes over the next few games.”
