Following the departure of general manager and head coach Tyler Kuntz, the Powell River Kings promoted assistant coach Brock Sawyer and brought in Chad Van Diemen as GM. The two are tasked with improving a team that finished third in the Island Division and lost to Cowichan Valley in five games in the first round of the playoffs.
The Kings lose leading scorer Levi Glasman to college, but Brett Roloson, who was just seven points behind Glasman, returns for his 20-year-old season. Roloson scored 20 goals and 22 assists in 2019-20. Rookie Michael Abgrall impressed in his first full season of junior hockey and put up 13 goals and 24 assists. 13-goal scorer Ethan Schmunk will also chip in on the Kings’ offensive attack in his final season of junior.
There is a big void to fill on the blueline, with all due respect to returnees Ian Kern and Dylan Hewlitt. Both are sophomores and while Kern played a regular shift in 2019-20, Hewlitt only got into 32 games. Gone are college-bound blueliners Davis Pennington, Ben Wozney, PJ Garrett, and Dylan Finlay, while Jack Long has aged out.
In goal, Thomas Wardle is the returnee as Derek Krall just wrapped up his overage season. Wardle, who turns 18 in October, was 5-6-0 with a 2.51 goals-against-average, a .917 save percentage, and two shutouts in 13 games since coming over from Coquitlam in early November.
The depth chart is based on coaches going with a 23-man roster of 13 forwards, eight defencemen and two goaltenders.
*All college commitment years are collated from each player’s profile on the Kings roster on the BCHL website.
Graduating Players
Reilly Moran (St. Lawrence University)
Levi Glasman (Colgate University)
Jacob Badal (Western Michigan University)
Jack Brackett (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute)
Ben Wozney (Bowling Green University)
PJ Garrett (Colgate University)
Dylan Finlay (University of Vermont)
Davis Pennington (University of Nebraska-Omaha)
Devin Leduc (aged out)
Jack Long (aged out)
Derek Krall (aged out)
Eligible Returnees
(* indicates an open spot – assuming the team goes with 13 forwards and eight defencemen)
Forwards
Dawson McKay (00)
Brett Roloson (00)
Ethan Schmunk (00)
Nolan Krogfoss (01)
Rowan Miller (01)
Jacob Slipec (01)
Brett Pfoh (02)
Nic Porchetta (02)
Michael Abgrall (03)
*
*
*
*
Defencemen
Ian Kern (02)
Dylan Hewlitt (02)
*
*
*
*
*
*
Goaltenders
Thomas Wardle (02)
*