The Merritt Centennials have announced a new leadership team after trading three of their four former captaincy group members at the BCHL’s January 10 trade deadline. Christian Lowe will take on the role of Captain, assisted by Jackson Murphy-Johnson, Jaxson Murray, and Mark Thurston.
The Centennials currently sit at a 10–22–3–1 record for the 2022/23 BCHL season, already a significant improvement from last season’s franchise-low of three total wins. The newly-minted Captain sees the promotion as a distinct honour from the league’s longest active franchise.
“It’s definitely a really cool feeling, this team has been around for such a long time, and to have my name basically in history here is really cool,” Lowe told the Herald.
“If I had nothing on my jersey, I’d still be doing the same stuff. I try to lead on the ice and off the ice, and I don’t try to babysit or undermine any of the other guys on the team. Everyone here is here for a reason, so I just try to lead by example and with some of my experience that I have.”
The new Cents leadership team from L to R: Asst. Captain Jackson Murphy-Johsnon, Asst. Captain Jaxson Murray, Captain Christian Lowe, and Asst. Captain Mark Thurston. Photo/Merritt Centennials
The 2002 forward from Port Moody has established himself as a solid player, clocking 23 points in the form of 10 goals and 13 assists this season with 36 games played so far. The BCHL veteran has played in 90 total games with four teams, even seeing playoff action during his time with the 2021/22 Trail Smoke Eaters.
The Cents currently sit at the bottom of the BCHL’s nine team Interior division, with the top eight teams making the playoffs. The Trail Smoke Eaters currently hold the bottom playoff spot, racking up 32 points against the Cents’ 24, with 18 regular season games to go. Despite the uphill battle, Lowe said the Cents will give it their all and learn along the way.
“We’re not going to look too far ahead,” noted Lowe.
“I think that our goal here is definitely to try and win every game, or as many games as possible, but we’re just going to take it one game at a time. We’ll take all the learning experiences we can get from it too, and just try to enjoy the game.”
The Cents next see action on Wednesday, January 25, taking on the Warriors in West Kelowna before coming back home for a Friday game against the Salmon Arm Silverbacks.
