Men's Hockey Team Info
Men's Hockey became the newest addition to the WolfPack Sporting Family when they joined in 2009-10. Being run as a 'club', similar to Men's Golf and Baseball, Hockey plays in the BC Intercollegiate Hockey League. There are 7 teams in the league; Selkirk College, Simon Fraser University, Trinity Western University, University of Victoria, Eastern Washington University,, Okanagan College and TRU. With the support of the City of Kamloops the team will continue to use the historic Memorial Arena as its home venue.
The WolfPack have made a big impression in their first two years of operation. 2010-11, saw TRU win their first BCIHL regular season title. For the second straight year, they finished second in the playoffs: falling both times to arch rival Simon Fraser University.
They have also made an impact on the local sports scene. Saturday night University Hockey at Memorial Arena has become the 'thing to do'. Most of those nights, they had more than a thousand fans cheering them on.
They set the standard in the BCIHL not only for competition, but on how to run a franchise as well.
Darcy Huisman (defence, Smithers, BC) and Jassi Sangha (forward, Kamloops, BC) were named to the BCIHL All-Star team in 2010-11. Coach Lorne Cumming was named the BCIHL Coach of the Year.
2011-12 has seen a third head coach for the TRU Program. Cumming stepped down due to family comittments. His replacement is Don Schulz. He is a former Cariboo College Chief player and assistant coach. Schulz is stepping aside from being a scout with the WHL Tri City Americans to devote all his attentions to the WolfPack. Last season, he coached the Kamloops Jardines "AAA" Bantam Blazers. They won a number of events including the Kamloops International Bantam Ice Hockey Tournament.
Andre Larouche is back as goaltending coach for a third straight year.. Former UCC/Cariboo College Assistant Athletic Director Terry Bangen has joined the team in the assistant coach role. He is a former assistant with the WHL Kamloops Blazers, NHL Vancouver Canucks and NHL New York Rangers. Most recently, he was the Director of Player Development with the WHL Tri City Americans and still works with the organization.
Former player Joel Leonard is also an assistant coach this year.
This isn't the first time the school has had hockey. The Cariboo College Chiefs were a power house in the old BC College Athletic Association Totem Conference for years. A number of their alumni still live in the Interior and plan to be active members in the operation of this hockey team.
The Thompson Rivers University Wolfpack Men’s Ice Hockey Team is governed and funded by the non-profit Kamloops Collegiate Hockey Society that works in partnership with TRU Athletic Department and is structured within the institution’s athletics and student services department.
The team works under the Thompson Rivers University’s athletic department’s code of conduct, rules and guidance. The team in collaboration with the TRU Athletic Department monitor player’s academic standing and results and ensure a high academic level of success in conjunction with superior athleticism.
The team’s primary recruitment market will be from current and future students. The secondary market will be Junior A and B, and Major Junior individuals that want to pursue advanced education at TRU. Finally, the team will be recruiting players who reside outside the region and province to attend TRU and play for the Wolfpack Hockey Team.
Follow TRUHockey On Twitter.
TRU Wolfpack Hockey Operations:
Just a couple of things regarding the men's hockey Wolfpack Website. When you click on Info and then scroll down to where it says TRU WOLFPACK HOCKEY OPERATIONS, please delete Steve Gainey as an assistant coach and replace with Terry Bangen, Terry's email is bangen@shaw.ca; also Shane Zulyniak and Joel Leonard should be included there as well. I don't have emails for those two.
Kamloops Collegiate Hockey Society Members:
For Sponsorship or Support opportunities please contact Troy Clifford.
For Season Tickets please contact André Larouche.