BCHL Bulletin

BCHL Today: Cents add QMJHL draft pick Patella, Warriors bring in UNO commit Van Houtte-Cachero, and more!

Brian Wiebe

Cents bring in Patella for 2021-22 season

The Merritt Centennials announced the signing of 2004-born forward Davide Patella for the 2021-22 BC Hockey League season.

Patella, who hails from Laval, QC, was with the Laval-Montréal Rousseau Royal of the Quebec Midget AAA League in 2020-21 but didn’t play any games due to the pandemic. The centre had seven goals and 14 points in 42 games with Rousseau Royal in 2019-20.

He was a fourth-round choice of the Saint John Sea Dogs in the 2020 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Draft and a first-round pick, ninth overall, by the Terrebonne Cobras in this year’s Quebec Junior Hockey League Draft.

Warriors add Nebraska-Omaha commit Van Houtte-Cachero

On Sunday evening, the West Kelowna Warriors announced the signing of 2003-born forward and University of Nebraska-Omaha commit Alexi Van Houtte-Cachero for the upcoming season.

The Pointe-Claire, QC product played 39 games with the Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks of the North American Hockey League in 2020-21, putting up three goals and six points. He was a seventh-round selection of Lincoln in the 2020 US Hockey League Draft.

Van Houtte-Cachero was also chosen in the seventh round of the QMJHL Entry Draft by the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada.

Gibson signs a deal in Coventry, England

27-year-old forward Dane Gibson (54 goals, 105 assists in 153 games with Cowichan Valley and Victoria from 2012-15 has signed a contract for 2021-22 with the Coventry Blaze of the UK’s Elite Ice Hockey League.

The Sidney, BC native didn’t play in 2020-21 due to COVID-19 restrictions but is coming off three seasons of U SPORTS hockey at the University of Calgary. In 70 games with the Dinos, Gibson posted 12 goals and 24 points.

Brian Wiebe

Brian's been involved in the BCHL in a variety of capacities for 17 years. From 2002 to 2012, he served in several roles around the Merritt Centennials organization, including as team president, board member, beat writer, colour commentator, webmaster, media and communications coordinator and marketing assistant. He's been writing about the BCHL since 2008 and served as colour commentator on the TSN 1040 broadcasts in 2012-13. BCHLNetwork is one of Brian's many passion projects that he balances around his full-time job as an instructor in the Radio Arts and Entertainment Program at BCIT in Burnaby.