Merritt Centennials aim to create legacy in KIJHL, emboldened heading into Year 2

Cooper Harrington said the Merritt Centennials are an institution, and he never doubted local hockey fans would welcome the club after its rebirth in the Junior A Tier 2 Kootenay International Junior Hockey League.

“I’ve never really been worried about hockey dying in Merritt. It’s a hockey town,” said Harrington, a 5-foot-5, 130-pound forward from Merritt. “Since Day 1, the fans have supported us, and I don’t see anything in the future changing that.”

There was some consternation among players heading into last season, with questions about the warmth of welcome from Merrittonians mourning the passing of their storied B.C. Hockey League franchise.

“I think so, but I think we also came in with a bit of that underdog mentality and, really, starting at rock bottom, you can only go up,” Centennials’ captain Alex Cordero said. “We took that and ran with it.”

Added defenceman Jobie Siemens: “I definitely think it was a little bit hesitant, but then as soon as we started doing some work in the community and showing our appreciation for what they have to offer, they welcomed us with open arms, and it was really good to see.”

Centennials’ head coach and assistant general manager Wes McLeod said his club’s slow start last season likely had something to do with a dip in attendance.

“And then we ended up winning like 10 games in a row at home, and through that stretch, the fans started coming out and the building started getting louder,” he said. “We had 1,100 people in here by the end of the year.”

Harrington praised McLeod for his work in assembling the team from scratch prior to the 2024-2025 campaign.

The Cents would have been excused for languishing in the league basement in their expansion campaign, but posted a record of 26-13-3-2 to place third in the Bill Ohlhausen Division before bowing out in Round 1 of the post-season at the claws of the Revelstoke Grizzlies.

McLeod wants more in 2025-2026.

“We lost our last game of the year last year, so our plan is to win our last game of the year this year and push for our league championship,” said McLeod, noting his club includes nine returnees from last season.

“We understand that’s a big statement and there’s a lot of work to do from now until there.”

The Centennials (1-1-0-0) are scheduled to host their home opener on Friday, a 7 p.m. start against the Castlegar Rebels (0-1-0-0) at Nicola Valley Arena (NVA).

Merritt will play host to the Kamloops Storm on Saturday (7 p.m., NVA), its nearest opponent geographically, but one that toils in another division.

Several Cents were asked if the Coquihalla Clash is, in fact, a rivalry game.

“I think we have bigger rivalries with Princeton and Revelstoke within our division,” McLeod said.

Siemens, a Kamloopsian who plays for Merritt, said the rivalry is real and Harrington agrees with his teammate.

“As a local around here, absolutely,” Harrington said. “I grew up playing against all the Kamloops guys. It’s just always been a rivalry. We’ve always hated each other, so it’s always fun.”

McLeod was asked if the idea of realignment – bringing the two nearby clubs into the same division – tickles his fancy.

“From a travel perspective, 100 per cent,” he said. “It’s our shortest commute and they’re not in our division, so it doesn’t really make sense. But you also understand it just geographically with the other division and how it’s set up.”