The Virden Oil Capitals are pleased to announce that graduating defenseman, Owen Solecki, has committed to play for the Keyano College Huskies hockey program next season.
The Burns Lake, BC native was acquired by the Oil Caps prior to the January 10 trade deadline this season where he had a three points (1 G, 2 A) in 30 games for Virden. The 20-year-old blue liner played a crucial role for the team down the stretch and provided them with the experience and grit they needed to advance to the league semifinal.
“We’re proud to see Owen achieve his goal of playing college hockey,” stated Troy Leslie, the Oil Caps Head Coach and General Manager. “Owen is a very mature and focused guy who had a good idea of what he wanted to do after junior hockey… this step seems to fall right in line with his plan.”
Solecki plans to pursue a degree in power engineering while patrolling the blue line for the Huskies. “The school is a good fit for me and it allows me to keep playing the game which I’m excited about,” stated Solecki during a phone interview from his parent’s cattle ranch in Northern BC. “I plan to return to the farm one day, but for now I’m looking forward to this next step.”
The recent Oil Caps alum is moving on, but he soon won’t forget his time in Virden. “Obviously I didn’t get to spend a full season with the team, but it was my favourite place to play junior hockey in my career. The fan support is awesome, we had a great group of guys, and my billets were unreal,” praised Solecki who played two seasons with La Ronge in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League before starting this past season with the OCN Blizzard.
Keyano College is located in Fort McMurray, AB where the Huskies hockey program plays in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference. During the 2014-15 campaign, the Huskies went 14-12-2-4 before falling to the eventual league champions, NAIT Ooks, in the league semi-finals. Keyano’s hockey program is led by Head Coach, Nate Bedford.