Huskies coach says provincials win “even more special” after COVID-19 closures

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. – Fort St John Huskies coach Todd Alexander says Sunday’s win is even more special after the team was cooped up during the pandemic.

Alexander says the past two years were hard on his team’s age group.

“Especially that year where we didn’t even play at all. We just practiced all season. And at one point in time, it wasn’t even about hockey anymore for the group. It was just about mental health and that they were able to get out and do something three days a week,” Alexander said.

Alexander added that he couldn’t have asked for a better effort from the team during the pandemic.

“For them to go through a grind like that, and then come out the other side and go down and represent and win a championship, it’s definitely special,” he said.

Alexander said that because the team was only able to practice during part of the pandemic, it allowed them to build in skills that some of his previous team couldn’t.

“These guys were a little bit ahead of schedule as far as some of the systematical and team play. So we were able to build on top of that this year, and it definitely made us lethal.”

This season the Huskies picked up 50 wins out of 57 games.

“That says it all. The commitment that this group has to each other, their commitment to being a better player, and being a better person, I can’t say enough about these guys,” Alexander said.

“They’re already champions, and now they just have a trophy to go along with it,” Alexander concluded.

The Fort St. John Huskies capped off a historic 2022 season by winning the Senators Cup on March 19th and the Alberta Junior B Provincials on Sunday, beating the Cochrane Generals 6-0.

This was the first time since 2003 that the Huskies made it to the Provincial final.