Overseeing the hottest team in the Pacific Junior Hockey League hasn’t stopped Richard Petrowsky from fine tuning his roster.
The Richmond Sockeyes general manager made another move last week by signing defenceman Ian Ross. The 19-year-old Surrey native spent two seasons in the B.C. Hockey League with the Powell River Kings, playing a total of 69 games. He released by Powell River in late November. Previously he was part of a powerhouse Valley West Hawks team in the B.C. Major Midget Hockey League that won its first-ever championship in 2016.
“He was sitting at home waiting for a place to play. We tried to sign him two years ago and he attended a couple of our camps too,” explained Petrowsky.
“It’s another step in our good defensive core. He likes to carry the puck, is good defensively but gives us a little offence too. We didn’t expect him to get released. He came and skated with us and we signed him.”
Ross made his debut at last weekend’s PJHL Winter Classic on home ice in the top six d-man pairings. He scored an unassisted goal in Richmond’s 5-1 win over Langley on Sunday night. The Sockeyes also defeated Grandview 3-1 on Friday and have now won 13 straight.
“You are always looking for good d-men,” added Petrowsky. “You always seem to have injuries in the back end and that’s been the case for us the last couple of years. We also have some that can play up front too.”
With this week being the final roster deadline, Petrowsky wouldn’t rule out making another move. He still has one player card available and says the potential signing or trade would be for a forward.
The Sockeyes season is guaranteed to last until April as hosts of the 2018 Cyclone Taylor Cup provincial junior “B” championships. They sit second in the Tom Shaw Conference with a 23-5-1-2 record — 13 points back of the Delta Ice Hawks but with three games in hand.
The lack of parity in the league this season is evident. While the Sockeyes have reeled off 13 straight, third-place North Vancouver have won seven in a row. Both are trying to gain ground on the Ice Hawks (30-2-0-2) who have gone 14 games without a loss in regulation time.
Brett Gelz led the way against Langley with a pair of goals. Seafair product Jacob Latrace made his first start in net since suffering a high ankle sprain on Sept. 28. The 20-year-old made 24 saves.
“He is back sooner than we expected,” said Petrowsky. “He worked really hard over the Christmas break to be ready.”
The Sockeyes host Langley again on Thursday at 7 p.m.
