Dylan Walchuk can’t quite decide whether his BCHL team mates on the Canada West team are his friends or his enemies.
On October 21, he and seven other BCHL players were announced as members of the squad that will represent Western Canada at the World Jr. A Championships in Penticton, November 8-14. Players were drawn from leagues in western Ontario,, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and B.C.
The selection has posed a bit of a dilemma for Walchuk, an intense competitor who gears himself up to play against Vernon’s BCHL rivals.
“Especially in the interior division,” he said after practice on Thursday, “we see each other a lot, and the teams are pretty evenly matched, so it’s a dog fight every game.”
“It’s a little bit easier to get pumped for games when you have a hate built up. I’m sure the Penticton guys don’t care much for Vipers, and I’ll be tempted to mention our 3-0 record against them this year. But now Laleggia and O’Donnell and MacMillan are my team mates, so I guess we’d better get along.”
He admits that “now that I’m getting to know them, I have to admit that they’re pretty good guys. That’s something I wouldn’t have said last week!”
He continues, “Yeah, I played with MacMillan when we were kids, and with the other Penticton guys in last year’s Prospects game, but you put that behind you when you play against them.”
He’s full of praise for Westside’s Grayson Downing, who was also on the 2009 CJHL Top Prospects roster: “That guy’s really smooth. Give him the puck and you’ll get it back in a good position. That’s the best thing about playing on a team like this. There’s so much skill.”
Walchuk is not sure about his relationship with Sam Mellor. “I think we beat them every time last year, but they’ve taken two of three this fall, so he might be trash talking me a little. He’d be good to play with, though. Give him the puck and it’s in the net.”
The Viper scoring leader is certain of one thing: “We’ll have a pretty good hate for Canada East, probably more than any other team in the tourney.”
The two Canadian teams lock horns in a pre-tournament exhibition tilt at Vernon’s Wesbild Centre at 7 pm, November 5. Tickets are just $10. Plenty of good seats are still available through the Viper ticket office, at 250-542-6022.
