Now there’s a new venue and new sport at Shawnigan Lake. The school’s hockey program, made possible by the opening of the $8-million sprung-structure rink on campus last year, boasts a midget team that is 16-4 in the Canadian Sports School Hockey League and led by WHL Victoria Royals prospect Ben Berard, who has 21 goals and 34 points in 20 games.
“[Berard] is a talented kid who is close to being a WHL player now,” said Royals GM Cam Hope.
Shawnigan Lake’s bantam team is only 2-4-2. But it boasts blue-liner Jacson Alexander, the Island’s top 2016 WHL bantam draft prospect, and the most touted since defenceman Josh Anderson of Duncan went third overall in the 2013 first round to the Prince George Cougars. Alexander played for Racquet Club last season as a 14-year-old before switching to Shawnigan Lake School this season. The Shawnigan team will be in Calgary this weekend for a bantam tournament.
“Jacson is a great skater with a great shot and who competes hard,” said Kevin Cooper, Shawnigan Lake School’s director of hockey.
Cooper coaches the Shawnigan Lake midget team with Jeff Compton the assistant coach. The Shawnigan Lake bantam head coach is Brian Passmore, and assistant coach the former NHLer Doug Bodger. The latter two and Cooper are preparing Alexander to deal with all the attention about to fall on him.
“We’re more than just about hockey at our school and we are teaching Jacson about being balanced and how to mentally prepare himself,” said Cooper, a three-time NCAA All-American at Middlebury College in Vermont and eight-season minor-pro in the ECHL, UHL and Central League.
The Royals are well aware of Alexander, who also plays lacrosse.
“He’s been on our radar for a couple of years. He’s one of those kids you start tracking early,” said Hope. “We’re not going to be able to hide him on the Island. All 22 WHL teams are talking about him.”
Another Shawnigan Lake player being heavily scouted for the 2016 WHL bantam draft is forward Jojo Tanaka-Campbell, whom Cooper describes as a “great skater with great vision.”
The Canadian Sports School Hockey League consists of Shawnigan Lake School, Pacific Coast Hockey Academy of Langford, Burnaby Winter Club, Delta Hockey Academy, Yale Hockey Academy of Abbotsford, Okanagan Hockey Academy, Pursuit of Excellence in Kelowna, Banff Hockey Academy, Compete Hockey Academy of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Edge School for Athletes of Calgary, Swiss International Sports and Education Centre of Chestermere, Alta.
