One of the most important items in Brett McLean’s hockey equipment bag is his passport.
Over the course of 21 years in the sport, the 37-year-old from Royston has skated in eight leagues in five different countries.
This year he is playing for EHL Black Wings Linz (Erste Bank Eishockey Liga) in Austria, where through 26 games he is second in team scoring (4g, 24a) behind fellow B.C.er Andrew Kozek (20g, 9a) of Sicamous.
Drafted by the Dallas Stars in the ninth round (242nd overall) of the 1997 NHL Entry Draft after a productive four-year stint with the WHL Kelowna Rockets, McLean had stops in the AHL, ECHL and IHL before NHL gigs with the Chicago Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers.
A veteran with Canadian national teams (including a gold medal at the 2012 Spengler Cup), McLean has also played in Sweden and Switzerland.
Kole at World Cup
As the Mount Washington Ski Club celebrates its 35th year, another former member has stepped on to the world stage.
Kole Harle was a forerunner at the recent World Cup downhill in Lake Louise. He is also a product of the Podium of Life Snowsports Academy which used to operate on Mount Washington before relocating to Whistler.
Sign up for Snowsports
Applications for the Vancouver Island Society for Adoptive Snowpsorts 25th annual Winter Snowsports Festival on Jan. 3-7 must be received by Dec. 11 to be eligible.
VISAS provides free instruction, lift passes, equipment, two banquets and daily transportation between Courtenay and Mount Washington. The event is limited to 35 students and open to anyone aged six years or older with reasonable potential to learn snowsports.
For additional information contact Peter Gardiner-Harding at 416-363-4972 or email peter@playsthatwork.com.
Ice 10th at B.C.s
The Isfeld Ice senior girls volleyball team finished 10th at the 16-team B.C. AAA championships, held Dec. 3-5 in Vernon. The Ice won the Island championship the previous weekend in Powell River.
