Relaxed. Excited. Confident.
That was the Comox Valley Glacier Kings' state of mind Thursday afternoon at a press conference that kicked off the 2013 Cyclone Taylor Cup tournament.
Adding to Yetis' comfort level is that the team is healthy heading into the B.C. Junior B hockey championship that runs April 11-14 at the Comox Valley Sports Centre.
Glacier Kings' head coach Bill Rotheisler said the four-team tourney will be the first time this season he'll be able to work with a full complement of players.
He said there is no hangover from the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League playoffs, where the Glacier Kings were swept four straight by the Victoria Cougars. "Did we play Victoria in the playoffs?" Rotheisler asked with a smile.
The Cougars are the VIJHL rep at the tourney. The KIJHL rep is the Castlegar Rebels while the PJHL rep is the Richmond Sockeyes.
Glacier Kings' team captain Nicholas Tupper was also at Thursday's press conference, as were the coaches and team captains of all four teams and league executive members from around the province.
Tupper explained the difference between a best-of-seven, two-team playoff series and a round-robin, four-team format is intensity.
"You've got to focus on the game. Every period matters, every shot counts. It comes down to goals for and against, head-to-head (records) and all that.
"We've got to be ready to go, come out flying and play our game. I'm really confident about our chances, for sure,"
Tupper added.
The tourney got underway this afternoon with Richmond taking on Victoria. Opening ceremonies go tonight just prior to the Glacier Kings vs. Castlegar contest at 7:30 p.m. Round robin play continues Friday and Saturday, with playoffs Sunday. The bronze medal game goes at 10:30 a.m. and the gold medal game at 2:30 p.m.
Jet FM will be broadcasting all Glacier Kings' games on 98.9 Jet FM and online at www.jetfm.ca. The championship games Sunday will also be broadcast live.
Updates throughout the tournament (if available; the Cyclone Taylor Cup website was experiencing technical difficulties this week but hoped to be up and running by Thursday night) will be posted on the Comox Valley Record website at www.comoxvalleyrecord.com.