A pair of local bantam hockey players have been determined to be some of the best in the province and will get a chance to showcase their skills at the upcoming BC Cup.
Defenceman Gavin Damstrom (5’11, 167 lbs) and forward Dayton Nelson (5’8, 155 lbs) were both invited to play in the U16 BC Cup tournament, which is a jamboree style event mixing elite 2003-born players from various regions to make eight teams.
The event is set to take place in Salmon Arm from April 19 to 22 and includes on-ice combine testing, off-ice testing, team practices and a round robin tournament, which culminates in a championship between the top two squads.
Teammates during the 2017-18 season with the East Kootenay Bantam Ice Avalanche, Damstrom will be representing Team BC Grey, while Nelson will be playing for Team BC Yellow. Grey and Yellow kick off the tournament with a head-to-head match at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 20.
Top performers at the event will be invited to the U16 Provincial Camp in late July, with the potential of making the final stage of the Team BC selection process in December. Those who make the team will represent the province at the 2019 Canada Winter Games, taking place in Red Deer, Alberta from February 16 to 22.
The U16 BC Cup has many notable alumni, including NHL players Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and former Kootenay Ice star Sam Reinhart. This year’s participants include players expected to be top picks in the upcoming WHL Bantam Draft, highlighted by Logan Stankoven of Yale Hockey Academy and Cole Sillinger of the Okanagan Hockey Academy.