By: Dante De Caria | Photo: Chloe Garvey
This week we will congratulate all of the graduating Kings players, and thank them for their contributions to the organization. Today, we start with Kings captain and local hero – Jack Long.
Powell River, BC – The Powell River Kings organization would like to congratulate Kings captain Jack Long for an amazing five years in the BCHL (all with the Kings), and thank him for his hard work and dedication to the team.
Long, 20, just finished up his fifth and final season with the Kings after playing game #281 of his BCHL career (playoffs and regular season) on Friday night, as the Kings were eliminated by the Capitals in overtime. Long finished with 231 regular season games, ranking second in franchise history in that department, coming just one game shy of tying Mike Wakita’s all-time record.
The Powell River native joined the Kings organization for the 2015-16 season, less than a month before his 16th birthday. At the time, Long was the second local player on the team, joining Hunter Findlater, before later being joined by Ethan Schmunk and Nic Porchetta. He was set to play Jr. B in the VIJHL, but made the Kings out of camp, and impressed the coaches, scoring a goal and four points through his first five games.
“He played the first 10-games, and he was doing well, so we kept him on the squad,” said Powell River Kings Assistant Coach Brock Sawyer. “To be with him for the past five years, and watch him develop, and see the sacrifice and commitment he put in for five whole seasons is special. Watching him develop as a player and most importantly as a man.”
This season, Long became just the third local player to captain the team, leading the second youngest group in the BCHL to an Island Division third place finish with a 29-23-6 record.
“I think for our group, there wasn’t a better choice for captain in terms of doing things the right way, on and off the ice,” said Sawyer. “There are few to play junior hockey for five years, especially now a days. Hopefully in a few years, they can come up and talk about what they learned from Jack Long, or Levi Glasman, Devin Leduc and Derek Krall.”
Thank you for five tremendous years, and thank you for all that you did for the community of Powell River
