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Evin called to lead Selkirk Saints

Alex Evin is stepping from assistant coach to head coach for the upcoming 2014-15 BCIHL season.

The Selkirk Saints men’s hockey team didn’t need to look far to find the man they feel can lead the squad to a third straight British Columbia Intercollegiate Hockey League (BCIHL) title.

The Saints announced last week that Castlegar-raised Alex Evin is stepping from assistant coach to head coach for the upcoming 2014-15 BCIHL season. He will replace Jeff Dubois, who moved to the Creston Valley Thunder Cats of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL) earlier this summer.

“I think it’s a good fit,” Evin says. “Having been part of the program for the last two years and two championships, I made a contribution to that overall success as an assistant coach. I think I can help keep the program going in the right direction. There’s an expectation to win and I love to win.”

Selkirk College Athletics and Recreation Coordinator Kim Verigin says the choice was obvious.

“Alex understands this team and understands this community,” says Verigin. “We’re excited to give him the opportunity to see what he can do calling the shots. He is young, enthusiastic and has the hockey knowledge that will enable our players to succeed both on and off the ice.”

Now 27, Evin grew up in Castlegar and was drawn to the position of goaltender at a young age and was a standout between the pipes while helping several Castlegar Minor Hockey Association rep teams take on the best in the province. With the likes of Clinton Pettapeice and Lindsay Walker adding offensive firepower, Evin helped backstop the Castlegar Bantam Rep team to a coveted B.C. Provincial Championship.

Drafted by the Western Hockey League’s Calgary Hitmen, Evin chose a more academic route in his hockey journey and joined the Powell River Kings of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) as a 16-year-old.

Evin finished his junior hockey career with the Penticton Vees where he helped the squad win a BCHL title in 2008.

His play with Penticton that season earned him a scholarship at the prestigious Colgate University in New York State where he played four seasons of NCAA hockey at the highest level. Though he took a shot at the professional game after graduation in 2012, Evin decided to return to the Kootenays to start training the next generation.