The Victoria Grizzlies will open and close the 2022-23 B.C. Hockey League regular season with home games against the Alberni Valley Bulldogs, and in between it’ll be a busy season for the club, now under the direction of new general manager and head coach Rylan Ferster.
The puck drops on the new BCHL season on Sept. 23 with the Grizzlies welcoming the Bulldogs to The Q Centre. And the very next day, Victoria is right back at it when the West Kelowna Warriors, the team Ferster led to the 2016 Canadian Junior A championship, come to Colwood.
BCHL teams will play a 54-game schedule with two of those games to be played at the annual BCHL Showcase in Chilliwack. A schedule for the Showcase is expected in the coming weeks.
Highlights of the Grizzlies’ schedule include a road trip to Wenatchee, Washington, and Cranbrook on Oct. 11 and 12. Due to the pandemic, the Grizzlies did not travel to either Wenatchee or Cranbrook last season, which was the first for the expansion Bucks. The Grizzlies will also play on New Year’s Eve this year, with the Cowichan Valley Capitals visiting The Q Centre on Dec. 31. And on Feb. 4, the defending BCHL-champion Penticton Vees will make their lone visit to The Q Centre.
The Grizzlies will wrap up the regular season with a pair of home games against the Nanaimo Clippers on March 25 and the Bulldogs on March 26.
The Grizzlies will open training camp on Sept. 2. A preseason schedule will be unveiled at a later date.
LOOSE PUCKS: The league also announced that the Prince George Spruce Kings and Salmon Arm Silverbacks will play two regular season games in Burns Lake on Feb. 18 and 19 as part of the annual BCHL Road Show event.
bdrewry@timescolonist.com
