AVMHA Alumni – Somerville

After two seasons of Junior B hockey, Luciano Somerville was ready to hang up his skates and focus on school, even with two years of eligibility remaining.  He didn’t even know that there was a hockey program at the University of Victoria.  Now, the freshman forward is eight games into his BCIHL season with the Vikes.

“I was just planning on going to school and not playing hockey anymore,” Somerville said after helping out with the Alberni Valley Hockey Academy Wednesday. “When I found out they had a team, I talked to the coach and got a try-out.”

Somerville managed to make the team and is now playing college hockey, something he dreamed to do but thought was unattainable if he didn’t play Junior A.  “It’s definitely a route I didn’t expect to take,” said Somerville, 19.  “I was expecting to play Junior B then try to play Junior A and try to get a scholarship somewhere. That’s the only way I thought I could do it. I never thought this would happen.”

Somerville is majoring in sciences at UVic.

Playing in the BCIHL, he said, is comparable to playing in the BCHL, just with older players.  “Most of them are at least 20 and they’re all ex-Junior A guys. It’s like playing with men.”

Somerville spent four years with the Alberni Valley Hockey Academy and he said it played a big role in his journey to playing in college. Going through practices with his rep teams throughout his minor hockey career, Somerville felt he didn’t have enough time to work on individual skills, rather, his team’s practices were more focused on systems.

While those are an integral part of the game, it was the hockey academy that allowed him to succeed by helping him take his shooting, stick handling and skating to another level.  It is part of the reason why he helps out with the hockey academy whenever he is back in Port Alberni. Despite not playing Junior B anymore – he had two years left – Somerville is still traveling around the province playing a high level of hockey, and has the chance to do so for the next four years.

The University of Victoria men’s hockey team plays in the B.C. Intercollegiate Hockey League against teams such as Simon Fraser University, Eastern Washington University, Trinity Western University and Thompson Rivers University.

SMcKenzie@avtimes.net

November 16, 2012 | Categories: -News-, Alumni, Links In The News | Comments Off

Edward Dyson Signs with BCHL Surrey Eagles

Port Alberni’s Edward Dyson is set to spend his final year of junior hockey in the BCHL, as he recently signed with the Surrey Eagles.

Dyson, who will be playing his 20-year-old season in 2012-13, spent the last two years in Dawson Creek as the starting goalie for the Dawson Creek Rage, a Tier 2 Junior A team in the North American Hockey League.

When the Rage folded after just two years in the league, Dyson had discussions with multiple BCHL teams to finish out his junior career with them, and that included his hometown Alberni Valley Bulldogs.

However, he believes Surrey was the most committed to him and were offering more playing time – the Eagles lost both their goalies from last season and the only other one on their roster is a rookie – and more exposure.

“[Earning the starting job] will be based on performance, though,” he said.

Dyson does have experience in the BCHL. He had a brief stay with the Cowichan Valley Capitals where he played one game, and it came in a home loss to the Bulldogs.

Dyson will get a chance to play the Bulldogs in Port Alberni in front of friends and family on Feb 23 for the first, and, barring a playoff series, last time.

“That’s going to be a neat experience,” Dyson said.

Making the switch from the NAHL to the BCHL will have some similarities. Dyson said the NAHL is better than it’s made out to be.

“Not many people know about the NAHL because it’s an Amer-ican league, but it’s pretty competitive,” he said.

However, making the jump to the BCHL is part of the plan for the 6’4″ goalie who is heading closer to home in search of an NCAA Div. 1 scholarship.

“I had a few options to go to school at the beginning of last year, but they didn’t really work out,” Dyson said. “My personal goal is to get more recognition from Div. 1 schools.

The difference, though, will be the travel.

Playing in Dawson Creek, the shortest road trip for the Rage was 16 hours long. With the BCHL’s new scheduling format, 32 of the team’s 56 games will be played within the Mainland Division, with the only real road trip in that division being to Prince George.

Being a ferry ride away from home won’t hurt, either.

Another difference will be the competitiveness of his team.

Last season, Dawson Creek finished with the second worst record in the 28-team league. Dyson went 6-27 with a 4.27 GAA.

In Surrey, Dyson will join a team that finished second in the Coastal Conference and reached the second round of the BCHL playoffs.

There will still be work to do, though, as the Eagles lost their three leading scorers to graduation, as well as two of their top three defencemen.

SMcKenzie@avtimes.net

July 24, 2012 | Categories: -News-, Alumni, Links In The News | Comments Off