Cariboo athletes make up a solid contingent of the Northern Capitals U18 AAA roster.
Quesnel’s Avery Bautista will suit up at forward for the team. Bautista also took part in a BC Program of Excellence camp on Aug. 19-22, looking to represent Team BC at the National Women’s U18 Championships.
Vanderhoof’s Ella Boon also attended the camp, and will be suiting up on Defense for the capitals in the 2021/2022 season. Boon is joined on the team by fellow Vanderhoof resident, forward Lindsey Goncalves.
Two Williams Lake players will be hitting the ice for the Capitals. Keira Vermeulen at forward and Rachel Loewen on defense.
Two players on the Capitals, Fort St. John’s Keagan Goulet and Prince George’s Brooklyn Hutchings have committed to a USports program. Goulet is set to play for the University of Calgary Dinos, and Hutchings for the Trinity Western Spartans.
Like most sports, COVID-19 played havoc with the Northern Capitals’ schedule last year. The team played under 10 games during the year.
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Despite that, Caleb Wilson, the Director of Media Relations for Cariboo Hockey, noted the season had silver linings, with several players moving on to play University-level hockey.
“There wasn’t much of a season for anybody,” he said. “Despite COVID we still had players who made enough of an impact the season before, to sign at the college level.”
The team is planning to host another outdoor hockey game this January, with a game in Vanderhoof planned for the day before.
The Capitals played an outdoor game in the 2019/2020 season.
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“That was an incredible experience for those girls two years ago,” Wilson said. “We were really looking forward to it last year, but COVID prevented a lot of things for a lot of people.”
The Capitals hit the road on Sept. 15, heading off to a tournament in Calgary to kick off their 2021/2022 season. The regular season of the BC Hockey U18 Female AAA league begins for the Capitals on Sept. 25 in Prince George. The team will be following all city and BC Hockey COVID-19 rules for spectators.
Do you have something to add to this story, or something else we should report on? Email: cassidy.dankochik@quesnelobserver.com
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