Chemainus product Brad Bagnall has become such a fixture on the Kerry Park Islanders’ blueline, it’s hard to believe he still has two more seasons of eligibility remaining in the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League with the Mill Bay-based team.
Bagnall, 18, a 2017 graduate of Chemainus Secondary School, first came up with the Islanders as an affiliate call-up player from the Major Midget North Island Silvertips for the team’s playoff run in 2016. He joined the team full-time in 2016-17 and continued into the 2017-18 campaign.
“I think it was harder going back this season, being out of school and into work now,” Bagnall noted.
It’s a considerable time commitment for him to travel on a regular basis to the south end of the Cowichan Valley for games and practices.
“There’s always guys to travel down with,” Bagnall pointed out. “We had a guy from Ladysmith this year.”
He’s become a dependable defenceman for the Islanders and the lone representative on the team from this area. Instead of schoolwork, Bagnall now balances his work schedule as a welder at Paulcan Enterprises in Chemainus with hockey.
The Islanders had high hopes for this season, but recently lost a first round best-of-seven playoff series to the Saanich Braves in five games.
“I think we had a better team,” observed Bagnall. “We should have done more. It just didn’t work out for some reason.”
Bagnall started playing hockey at an early age at Fuller Lake Arena. His first seasons of rep hockey came at the Atom B level, followed by Peewee B and moving into A hockey during his first year in Bantam.
“That was definitely a change,” Bagnall recalled. “I’d never played A before.”
After a second year of Bantam A and one with the Cowichan Valley Midget A team, Bagnall went to Nanaimo to play for the Silvertips in Major Midget against similar teams from around the province.
“It was a lot of travel, a lot more than I liked,” he conceded.
After being moved up to the Islanders, Bagnall received a taste of what was to come and has settled into the team nicely ever since. He’s not a flashy, high-scoring defenceman, but takes care of business in his own end as well as anyone.
“I fit in pretty good,” Bagnall assessed. “I felt I knew what was going on. My first year was all right. I think I started off stronger than I finished.”
He wasn’t entirely satisfied with his play this season and thought the Islanders could certainly have done better in the playoffs.
“We had a couple of close games,” Bagnall noted. “They just didn’t go our way.”
He’s content to complete his junior eligibility by playing the next two seasons for the Islanders.
“I plan on it, trying to find that balance between hockey and work,” Bagnall indicated.
He’s never given Junior A or trying to advance in the ranks a second thought at this point. “That’s as far as I want to go for me personally.”
The Islanders are glad to have him as a steadying influence to their team and whose presence will continually become more valuable with experience.