It will still be a couple of months before 100 Mile House finds out if it will have a Junior B hockey team for the 2012/13 season, but preparations are going full steam ahead.
A recent public poll done by the 100 Mile House Wranglers Junior B Hockey Club confirmed the traditional 100 Mile House hockey colours of blue-and-yellow are the favourites by 93 per cent of those who responded.
The next task for the public is to express their opinion on jersey style, and the club has a choice of six posted on its website that people can vote on.
Club president Tom Bachynski says the designs were picked carefully.
“We wanted something that would show the colours well, and was fairly current, eye-catching and would carry some pride.”
The jerseys can be seen on the club website at www.100milewranglers.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/100milewranglers.
The public is also invited to design a third jersey and a goalie mask. The template for both can also be found on the club website.
Bachynski says the third jersey will be worn for special occasions and the designs can be as detailed as people want. Prizes will be awarded for the winning designs.
The Kootenay International Junior Hockey League, from where a prospective team will come, recently finished its regular season and began the playoff round. Bachynski says it will be the end of April, when it’s all over, that decisions and announcements about the future of existing teams will be made.
Meanwhile, he notes the Wranglers organization will keep moving ahead in a positive direction.
“We’re feeling good and it’s coming together just the way it should. If it comes down to it, we’ll be ready to hit the ground running 100 miles an hour.”
A major milestone will be the hosting of a spring player evaluation camp, which is booked for April 13-15 at the South Cariboo Rec. Centre. Bachynski says he would like to see 120 hopefuls attend and among them, he expects to see about half a dozen local players.
Junior B players are generally aged 16-20 years.
Veterans in the hockey business will be running the camp, and while the camp is in progress, prospective coaches and trainers for the team will also be evaluated.
Registration information for the camp can be found on the Wranglers website.
