Two Trail Smoke Eaters alumni were awarded the BCHL Canucks Alumni Scholarship for the 2021-22 season.
Greater Trail products Jeremy Lucchini and Spencer McLean are two of six former BCHLers who will received the award that assists student/players in achieving their academic goals.
“The Vancouver Canucks Alumni have supported many scholarship programs over the past 40-plus years – totalling over $900,000,” said Arthur Griffiths, Chair of the Vancouver Canucks Alumni Foundation. “We’re proud to continue with our tradition of supporting the BCHL and the many young men who go on to post-secondary schools. We view education as the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for their future today.”
Lucchini attended York University in Toronto, while McLean studies at Grant MacEwan University in Edmonton. Lucchini played on the Smoke Eaters for four seasons from 2014-18, and the talented defenceman scored nine goals and 75 points in 175 games, while McLean played in 214 games from 2015-19 and tallied 76 points.
The Canucks scholarship program has been in place since 1987. Selected students receive a $2,500 scholarship to go towards their education and are determined by a selection committee from the BCHL, based on the individual’s academics, hockey and community service.
This year’s winners also include Jackson Doucet (Alberni Valley Bulldogs/University of Regina), Brady Lynn (Nanaimo Clippers/Cowichan Valley Capitals/Marian University), Cameron Thompson (Victoria Grizzlies/Dalhousie University) and Zach Zorn (Merritt Centennials/Concordia University).
“Our partnership with the Canucks Alumni has provided scholarship funds for former BCHL players for the past 35 years,” said BCHL CEO Chris Hebb. “When a player comes through our league, he is an alumnus for life, so it gives us great pleasure to reward these young men who work so hard to follow their academic goals, even if it’s years after they have graduated from the BCHL.
“Education remains a key pillar of our league and this initiative is a great way for us to emphasize that.”
Read: Trail hockey products receive Canucks alumni scholarship