Sports

Garth McLennan
sports @theotherpress.ca

 

 

Royals are tops heading into provincials

By Tristan Noble

 

Te Douglas College men’s Basketball team is
heading into the BCCAA provincial championships
firing on all pistons. Riding an impressive win streak,
head coach Jamie Oei has tremendous confidence in his
players.

When asked about the reason for the team’s
success, he replied that “the team has been successful
this year because we have assembled a group of very
talented players. With this talent, they have put their

egos aside and worked very hard this year. All the hard
work and dedication has led to a great year for the
team.”

Hard work and dedication have paid serious
dividends this year, with the Royals winning final scores
in the triple digits more than five times this season. One
highlight of the year has been the standout play of point
guard Andrew Sturgeon.

“Andrew is a key part of the team this year.
He has continued to be one of our top players and has

been very unselfish this year now that the other teams
know who he is and have double teamed him in most
games,” said Oei.

Not all the credit belongs to Sturgeon or the
team, however. The stellar coaching of Oei has been a
key component to this year’s success. “I coach because
it is my passion. I love coaching student athletes and
enjoy the group of kids we have this year,” Oei said.
When asked to comment on his own coaching style,
Oei said “My coaching style is to give the players
freedom to be players as long as they play hard and
work within the team aspect. I believe in playing the
game at an intense level and our teams run the ball and
play up-tempo basketball”.

Passion and intensity are a prerequisite of all
teams that attend the BCCAA provincial championships,
and the Royals will be counting on it at the start of
the tournament. “Competition is always tough at
Provincials because you are playing the top teams in
your conference,” Oei said. “However, with the team
we have this year we are capable of beating everyone in
our league if we play hard and play together”.

Teamwork remains key, as the CCAA national
championships loom in the distance. Hosted by
Champlain in St. Lambert, Quebec, the Nationals will
be the toughest test for the Royals yet.

 

 

Should Vancouver keep Vigneault?

Garth

McLennan
sports editor

 
    
 

ie Vancouver Canucks are enduring
a dangerous mid-season slump that just
seems to be getting worse lately, and
the question has to be raised, should we
keep the coach?

Now I know what you’re
thinking, fire Vigneault? What! Are you
on crack? He just won the Coach of the
Year award for God’s sake!

All of these statements are
true (except maybe the crack part), but
the fact remains that the Canucks are
in serious trouble and the possibility of
them missing the playoffs is very real.

Last season, Vancouver won a
division championship and the Canucks
advanced to the second round of the
Stanley Cup playoffs before bowing out
to the eventual champions, the Anaheim
Ducks. Really though, Vigneault had little
to do with that. The Sedin twins finally
had a break out offensive campaign
while Roberto Luongo was practically
bulletproof. Luongo’s exemplary play
masked some of the team’s shortcomings
and made up for their serious lack of goal
scoring.

This season, however, Luongo
has not played nearly as well, and the
Canucks have suffered as a result. The
defense has been ravaged by injuries and

Ze

scoring is still a serious problem. The
Canucks went over a full month without
a regulation win from January 3 through
February and they have been unable to
step up their games while a number of
teams have passed them by.

Calgary, Minnesota and
Colorado have all been chalking up wins,
and the Canucks are just hovering above
the Nashville Predators, Phoenix Coyotes
and Columbus Jackets. Nashville,
Phoenix and
Columbus? Are
you kidding ©
me?

area

Now,
a number of
people _ prefer
Vigneault to
previous head
coach Marc
Crawford, who
is currently
languishing in
Los Angeles
with the Kings.
Thefactremains,
however, that
the Canucks
were better
off with Crawford, and certainly more
entertaining.

Think about it. While Crawford
couldn’t get Vancouver past the second
round of the playoffs, Vigneault hasn’t
been able to do that either. When
Crawford was at the helm, the team was
at or near the top of the league in goals
scored, and as a result, they became one
of the league’s most popular franchises
for their fast paced, fire wagon style of
play. Vigneault’s teams have been at the
bottom of the goal scoring lists since he

 

took over from Crawford.

Vigneault, along with General
Manager Dave Nonis, has tried to
construct a winning team with one line
and an excellent goalie, seeking to fill
the rest of the team with grinders. The
approach hasn’t worked. He’s utilized
the team’s top natural offensive talent,
Markus Naslund, horribly, pairing him
with checkers, grinders and rookies
for most of the year, and not with the

_ Sedins.
When the
team is winning,

no one bats an
eye, but when
‘they start to
lose on a regular
basis, questions
have to be
raised. The sad,
sorry fact of the
matter is that
on most nights,
win or lose, the
Canucks are just
plain _ boring.
They play a
~ similar style to

Minnesota and
New Jersey and love to clog up the neutral
zone. Vigneault however, doesn’t care
whether or not his team is entertaining
and enjoyable to watch. He’s even been
quoted as saying that he would rather
win 2-1 than 5-4.

At least when the Canucks lost
with Crawford, the games was a blast.
They played end to end, with tons of
action and excitement.

Think of what Edmonton did in
the 80s. They assembled a high-octane
offense and relied on superstar Grant

Fuhr to manage things in the defensive
zone.

While the Canucks certainly
don’t have Wayne Gretzky, Roberto
Luongo is fully capable of playing the
Fuhr role. Vigneault and Nonis though,
don’t want to do that. There is a plethora
of offensive players available at the
deadline this year, from Mats Sundin to
Peter Forsberg to Marian Hossa, and the
Canucks are in desperate need of another
offensive weapon if they are to have any
hope of getting anywhere.

If the current slide continues for
Vancouver, the team should look at its
options. Pat Quinn is available for both
the coaching and managing roles, and
he is famous for his entertaining style of
play. He also has a history of pulling off
some of the best deals in NHL history.

John Tortarella likely won’t last
much longer in Tampa Bay, but he won
a Stanley Cup in 2004 and has shown
that he can produce a winner by getting
playing fast and furious hockey while
getting the most out of his players.

Then there is the legendary
Scotty Bowman. He is a consultant for
the Detroit Red Wings at present, and is
getting on in years at age 74, but he is
still a hockey genius and the best coach
of all time. Plus, age has proven not to be
much of a factor as the Toronto Maple
Leafs have just hired Cliff Fletcher, 73,
to be their new GM.

So there are plenty of options
open for the Canucks. What the top
management must decide is whether they
want to become the fun, exciting team of
just a few years ago, or stay the dreary,
monotonous club they are now.