The exhibition season for the Kerry Park Islanders began with back-to-back wins over the weekend.
The Isles beat the Peninsula Panthers in two Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League preseason games, winning 4-2 in North Saanich on Friday and 7-3 in Mill Bay on Saturday.
Head coach Aaron Spotts wasn’t with his team on Friday as he helped the Cowichan Valley Capitals with their intersquad game, but he heard good things from his assistants as both Kerry Park and Peninsula iced lineups that were mostly prospects.
“From what I understand, all the kids played hard,” he said. “It was a little sloppy, both teams, but they both had a lot of guys competing for spots on the teams.”
Both teams had a few more regulars in the lineup on Saturday, and the returning players looked good as Evan Easton scored twice and Riley Windsor had one goal and set up another by veteran Tanner Tiel.
“Overall it was a pretty good team performance,” Spotts said.
Spotts is pleased with the group he has assembled so far. The Isles are still waiting to hear if a few players might stick with B.C. Hockey League teams.
“I think the team has a lot of chemistry, on and off the ice,” he said. “It’s exciting going into the season. There are going to be some tough decisions.”
Among the players Spotts is looking forward to seeing in action are returnees like Easton, who Spotts expects will get more of an opportunity to play than he did last year, Braydon Nelson, Isaac Leik, and McClintick brothers Brandon and Tory.
The Isles will continue the preseason schedule this week when they visit the Westshore Wolves on Wednesday, then host the Saanich Braves on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. The players will get the weekend off before they really get things going next week in preparation for the beginning of the regular season the following weekend.
“Monday, it’s full steam ahead,” Spotts said. “Ideally we’d like to have the roster set after the game on Thursday. I think we’ve got a good core. We need a couple other pieces, but we will be competitive anyway.”
The Isles open the regular season on Friday, Sept. 7 at the Saanich Braves. Their home opener is on Saturday, Sept. 8 against the Victoria Cougars.