One team will be chopped the weekend of Friday, March 13 when the Williams Lake Stampeders challenge the Powell River Regals for a berth at the 2015 Coy Cup Senior Men’s ‘AA’ Championship.
“It’s going to be an unlucky day for somebody,” joked Stampeders president Marko Zurak of the Friday the 13th reference, noting the series will be a best-of-three.
Game one goes March 13, followed by game two March 14 and, if necessary, game three on March 15. All three games will be played in Powell River.
“They have a decent team, and I think it will be fairly good games,” Zurak said. “We’re hopeful we can go in there and do what we need to do. It would be nice to get another shot at Terrace.”
The Terrace River Kings recently defeated the Stampeders in the Central Interior Hockey League playoff finals in a gruelling three-game set.
In the other senior men’s backdoor challenge for a Coy Cup slot the Fort St. John Flyers defeated Whitehorse to earn a spot.
During last year’s Coy Cup Championship, hosted in Williams Lake, the Stampeders defeated the River Kings in the final to claim its third Coy Cup in franchise history.
During this year’s 2014/15 CIHL regular season the Stampeders finished with a 15-win, one-loss record.
The Regals play an independent schedule under the supervision of the BC Amateur Hockey Association, which qualified them for a chance to play at the provincial championship.
This year’s Coy Cup will be hosted by the Fort Nelson Yeti from March 24-28.