The B.C. Hockey League’s storied history was well represented at Penticton’s outdoor rink on Saturday, Jan. 20.
Close to a dozen of the province’s most beloved stars took to the ice for the league’s annual Alumni and Friends Game, as part of the BCHL All-Star Weekend.
Scott Gomez, a two-time Stanley Cup champion with the New Jersey Devils and current assistant of the Surrey Eagles, was among the veterans to lace up the skates and take part in the fun.
Gomez was joined by former Ottawa Senators forward Kyle Turris and Dave Babych, a Vancouver Canucks defenceman during the team’s run to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1994.
“This is great at the outdoor rink, we grew up like this in Edmonton,” Babych said. “It’s quite a treat…nothing better.”
BCHL alumni were split into two teams for a three-on-three game, marking the second year in a row such an event has come to the city’s downtown venue.
Other participants included Dylan Playfair and Tyler Johnston, two of the stars from the hit TV show ‘Letterkenny.’
“Having a blast,” Johnston said from the bench, in between shifts.
The BCHL Alumni and Friends Game was joined by the league’s skills competition and three-on-three all-star tournament.
Current BCHLers — Tyler Hodges from the Nanaimo Clippers and Penticton Vees’ Sharky Nowek — served as the game’s goaltenders.
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Other players to suit up in the alumni showcase included:
• Colton Gillies - First-round pick of the Minnesota Wild before playing five NHL seasons
• Neil Eisenhut- Member of the Langley Eagles, Merritt Centennials and Penticton Knights before suiting up for the Canucks during the
• Angus Redmond - Salmon Arm Silverbacks goaltender from 2013 to 2016 before a five-year professional career
• Mark MacMillan- Member of the Alberni Valley Bulldogs and Penticton Vees from 2009 to 2011 and current assistant coach for the latter
• Mitch MacMillan- Recorded 165 points in 172 BCHL games with the Powell River Kings, Cowichan Valley Capitals and Alberni Valley Bulldogs from 2007 to 2010
• Neil Clark - Member of the Langley Hornets, Merritt Centennials, Cowichan Valley Capitals from 1999 to 2002, and current actor on the TV show ‘Shoresy’
• Dave Tomlinson -Starred for the Summerland Buckaroos and Richmond Sockeyes before playing four NHL seasons