Christian Weidauer, a 20-year-old defenceman with the Prince George Spruce Kings, has signed a letter of intent to play for the University of Alaska-Anchorage Seawolves on scholarship next season.
The six-foot-three, 190-pound Weidauer, a native of Keswick, Ont., played three seasons for the Carleton Place Canadians of the Central Canada Hockey League before he made the move west last summer. In 44 games with the Spruce Kings he's collected 10 goals and 26 assists for 36 points, tied for third in team scoring and the second-highest point total among BCHL defencemen.
"We are very happy that Christian was able to achieve his goal of obtaining an NCAA Division 1 scholarship," said Spruce Kings general manager, Mike Hawes. "Christian is a tremendous young man and a very talented hockey player. I know he is excited to be going to an excellent program at UAA and is also excited to be helping the Spruce Kings achieve our goals for the rest of the regular season and into the playoffs."
Weidauer will join former Spruce Kings captain Ben Matthews, who left for Anchorage two seasons ago.
Weidauer was recruited by former Prince George Spruce Kings forward Josh Ciocco, who is now an assistant coach for the Seawolves.
NCAA recruiting rules forbid Ciocco from mentioning publicly the Spruce Kings players he's trying to recruit but it's not hard to figure the likes of Chad Staley, Jeremiah Luedtke, Brogan O'Brien, Brent Lashuk, Justin Rai, Jake LeBrun and goalies Alex Murray and Jesse Jenks have drawn his attention, as well as Weidauer.
Ciocco watched the Kings in action last month at the Coliseum against Surrey and he says the success of the team speaks volumes about the individual talent pool.
"I don't think it's an accident where they are in the standings, I think they have some good players, it's just that location is a bit of a challenge and sometimes it's more convenient as a college coach to catch them when they're in Vancouver," said Ciocco.
"When you watch guys on the road, sometimes they're not at their best, which was why I wanted to come here. They definitely have five or six guys who will end up with something in the next three to six months. This team here is one of the better ones they've had and I think they'll be set up well for next year too. If they can plug some holes it certainly should be a team that will compete for a title next year."
Ciocco, 31, is a native of Atco, N.J., who played 1 1/2 seasons for the Spruce Kings from 2000-2002 before he was traded to Vernon as an 18-year-old.
Ciocco played four seasons for the University of New Hampshire and also had a stint in the ECHL before he was hired to coach the Seawolves this season.
Defenceman Mitch Eden, 19, is the only other Spruce King to have locked up a college scholarship. He'll skate for NCAA Division 1 St. Lawrence University next fall. Kings head coach Dave Dupas expects a few more scholarship announcements are imminent.
"I would imagine within the next month we should have three or four, it's getting that close," said Dupas. "A lot of guys haven't taken the SATs [Scholastic Aptitude Test] and I would imagine after that there will be a few scholarships. We've heard from a few different [college] teams that we're the team to watch right now in North America. There are five or six of them getting all kinds of attention, it's just a matter of getting those SATs done."
Some of the Kings will be writing that test this Saturday, before they play the Coquitlam Express in the first of a two-game set Saturday night (7 p.m.) and Sunday afternoon (3 p.m.).
