18 WHL players named to Team British Columbia for Canada Winter Games
Led by 2018 Western Hockey League Bantam Draft fifth overall selection Logan Stankoven (Kamloops, B.C. / Kamloops Blazers) British Columbia will take aim at their second Canada Winter Games gold medal in three tournaments with 18 WHL players named to the province’s roster Wednesday.
The WHL will be represented by two goaltenders, five defencemen, and 11 forwards on the province’s roster at the games, which will be held in Red Deer, Alta. from February 15 to March 3, 2019, though the men’s hockey tournament takes place from Saturday, February 16 to Friday, February 22.
Stankoven will be the top offensive threat for British Columbia as the first-round selection has produced 48 points (26G-22A) in 20 games for the Thompson Blazers of the British Columbia Major Midget AAA Hockey League. Forward Steel Quiring (Vernon, B.C. / Kelowna Rockets) will also be a player to watch, with 24 points (9G-15A) through his first 17 games with the Okanagan Rockets.
Including Stankoven, five first-round selections from the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft are on B.C.’s roster for the tournament, including defencemen Nolan Bentham (Victoria, B.C. / Victoria Royals) and Graham Sward (Abbotsford, B.C. / Spokane Chiefs) as well as forwards Jake Chiasson (Abbotsford, B.C. / Brandon Wheat Kings) and Trevor Wong (Vancouver, B.C. / Kelowna Rockets)
Four different WHL teams have a trio of prospects on B.C.’s roster at the tournament. The Edmonton Oil Kings, Kamloops Blazers, Kelowna Rockets, and Victoria Royals are all tied among teams with the most prospects at the tournament. The Brandon Wheat Kings, Calgary Hitmen, Everett Silvertips, Seattle Thunderbirds, Spokane Chiefs, and Swift Current Broncos each have a single player at the tournament.
British Columbia opens the tournament Saturday, February 16 (4:00 p.m. MT) against Manitoba, followed by games against Saskatchewan and Alberta.
The province’s history in men’s hockey at the Canada Winter Games includes two medals of each colour, with their last medal a golden performance at the 2011 edition of the tournament in Halifax, N.S.
| Position | Name | Hometown | Team | Draft Selection |
| G | Keegan Maddocks | Langley, BC | Victoria Royals | 8 – 165 |
| G | Thomas Milic | Coquitlam, BC | Seattle Thunderbirds | 3 – 51 |
| D | Nolan Bentham | Victoria, BC | Victoria Royals | 1 – 13 |
| D | Elias Carmichael | Langley, BC | Kelowna Rockets | 2 – 40 |
| D | Tyson Galloway | Kamloops, BC | Calgary Hitmen | 2 – 25 |
| D | Ty Gibson | Victoria, BC | Everett Silvertips | 3 – 64 |
| D | Graham Sward | Abbotsford, BC | Spokane Chiefs | 1 – 17 |
| F | Michael Abgrall | Richmond, BC | Edmonton Oil Kings | 4 – 67 |
| F | Caedan Bankier | Surrey, BC | Kamloops Blazers | 3 – 49 |
| F | Jake Chiasson | Abbotsford, BC | Brandon Wheat Kings | 1 – 15 |
| F | Cage Newans | Qualicum Beach, BC | Victoria Royals | 7 – 147 |
| F | Carson Latimer | Surrey, BC | Edmonton Oil Kings | 3 – 48 |
| F | Trevor Wong | Vancouver, BC | Kelowna Rockets | 1 – 18 |
| F | Steel Quiring | Vernon, BC | Kelowna Rockets | 5 – 89 |
| F | Matthew Seminoff | Coquitlam, BC | Kamloops Blazers | 5 -93 |
| F | Logan Stankoven | Kamloops, BC | Kamloops Blazers | 1 – 5 |
| F | Kobe Verbicky | Victoria, BC | Edmonton Oil Kings | 2 – 23 |
| F | Finlay Williams | North Vancouver, BC | Swift Current Broncos | 3 -54 |
