The Brooks Bandits start their BCHL season Friday in Okotoks against the Oilers. Matt Piotrowski Photography/Brooks Bandits Facebook

By Jesse Gill

Brooks Bandits kick off first full season in the BCHL on Friday

Sep 19, 2024 | 6:40 PM

The Brooks Bandits start its first full season in the British Columbia Hockey League Friday night on the road against a familiar foe in the Okotoks Oilers.

The expectations remain high with a Bandits team that dominated last season throughout their schedule split between the Alberta Junior Hockey League and BCHL.

Assistant Coach Luke Israel, new to the Bandits this year, said fans can expect the same strong team they are used to.

“We’re really lucky to have a really strong group of returning guys, as well as, a really exciting group of new players that are going to step in,” Israel said.

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“Obviously there’s an adjustment period when coming into junior hockey in an organization like this, but they all seem ready for the task and it’s no easy task going into Okotoks tomorrow night,” he added.

“That’s going to be a tough one. They play hard and they play well in their building, especially.”

The Bandits capped off last season with a Rocky Mountain Challenge win over the Surrey Eagles, who where the top team coming from BC.

Eyes will be on the Fred Page Cup this season, the official BCHL Championship.

Israel said since he came to Brooks he has felt the organization and fans have been very excited about their first full season in the BCHL.

“Having an opportunity to prove ourselves on a nightly basis against teams that haven’t seen the way we do things before, haven’t seen the type of players we have before,” Israel said.

“It’s going to be a great opportunity for our guys to gain some experience and us to kind of show up and show out when we have the opportunity.”

The Bandits will head out to B.C. for five different road trips throughout the season including a showcase, and also have a number of long home stands this season.

Israel said they are excited to get to play a full 54 game regular season in Canada’s best Jr. A league.

“How excited and eager these young men are to get to take a crack at this new league first year, full-time in the new league, there’s a lot of proving to do,” Israel said.

“We all know that anytime someone plays the Brooks Bandits, they want to beat them, they want to send a message. So we need to be ready for the task, ready to answer the bell and we’re going to jab away and eventually we’ll end the knockout blow. So it’s exciting.”

After taking on the Oilers of Friday night, the Bandits will welcome the Okotoks team to the Centennial Regional Arena for their home opener Saturday at 7 p.m.