At 106 games and counting, Vernon’s Ryan Kakoske is a veritable greybeard in the world of Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) men’s hockey.
A defensive stalwart with the UBC Thunderbirds, the 24-year-old Kakoske will end a four-year university career and step right into an associate training position with CIBC’s commercial banking sector this spring in downtown Vancouver.
It’s not a position one lands with so-so grades. Kakoske, who played Junior A with the B.C. Hockey League’s Vernon Vipers, maintained an 80 per cent average while balancing school and hockey. An academic All-Canadian, he chose a “nice, light final semester” course load comprising e-commerce, finance and, just for fun, an elective in geology.
“I had some pretty solid coaching between Ferns (Mark Ferner) and Mark Holick (in Vernon)… instilling some pretty hard-working principles in me,” said Kakoske.
“That competitiveness has translated over to school. You put in that extra time to do well and playing those two-and-a-half years in Vernon really helped me out with that.”
Compared to the marathon Junior schedules, Kakoske says it is a wonder he even reached the 100-game plateau in university.
“It’s a little weird only playing 28 games (in a regular season). As an 18-year-old, when I was between Sicamous (Eagles, KIJHL) and Vernon, I played 89 games that year alone.
“It’s definitely taken a little more time to get to 100 here than it did there. I’m kind of the wiliest of wily vets as far as games played is concerned.”
Kakoske has amassed two goals, three assists and six penalty minutes in 26 games with UBC this season, while continually drawing the toughest defensive assignments. He recorded four goals and 14 assists in 106 career games.
“Ryan has been our top d-man for the past three years, and this year is not different,” said UBC head coach Milan Dragicevic. “He plays against the teams’ top lines and plays close to 30 minutes a night. He comes to compete every night and always leads example.”
After alternating wins and losses for their first eight games of the season, the T-Birds dropped five of six games in November before catching fire with six consecutive wins in December and January.
“We have quite a few first-year guys so it was kinda nice to get their confidence going into the second half,” said Kakoske.
More than anything, he would have loved to end his university career by helping the T-birds host a playoff game, something the program hasn’t managed to do since 1971. However, four straight losses to start February have left UBC fifth in Canada West at 12-11-3 (top six teams make playoffs).
Kakoske will play his final regular-season games this weekend as the T-Birds visit the Canada West-leading Manitoba Bison for a doubleheader in Winnipeg.
