In his lone season with the Virden Oil Capitals, Landyn Cochrane proved he could put up points.
Last winter the Russell product, who played part of the 2017-2018 campaign in Virden, is showing he can do the same at the university level. Cochrane, a forward, was fourth in scoring on the Minot State University men’s hockey team with 35 points, including 10 goals, in as many games. In 2018-2019, Cochrane’s first season with the North Dakota-based American Collegiate Hockey Association team was limited to only five games due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament. The MSU squad was pleased to have him back on the ice.
“Landyn gave us a huge boost this season,” Beavers head coach Wade Regier said. “After losing his freshman year to knee surgery he came back better than ever. Motivated to really take his game to the next level. The potential is endless for Landyn and I look forward to seeing him become the elite forward he can be.”
Cochrane split the 2017-2018 season between the Manitoba Junior Hockey League’s Oil Caps and the North American Hockey League’s Minot Minotauros. In Virden, he had 14 goals and 39 points in 34 games in his fourth and final junior season.
“Playing for the Virden Oil Capitals is a memory I will always cherish,” Cochrane said. “We had a special group on and off the ice while being a part of a top tier junior hockey program. I was also blessed with great billets, Greg and Cathy Tough.”
In the MJHL playoffs that season, Cochrane had three points in 11 games. His efforts helped the Oil Caps make it to the MJHL Finals.
In 2019-2020, the ACL injury prevented Cochrane from playing in the ACHA national tournament in Frisco, Texas, but he served as the team’s equipment manager as it claimed the Division I championship. Cochrane, a physical education major, sees some similarities between that Beavers title team and the Oil Caps team he played on.
“How close every player on each team was and the depth the teams had; you could play any line in any given situation.”
This past winter he was pleased to be back on the ice with the Beavers. He said after a long season rehabbing after ACL reconstruction surgery he learned to never take the game of hockey for granted. Cochrane enjoyed “being able to help my teammates battle every game.”
Written by Robin Wark