WHL NOTEBOOK: Quennevilles cue up band of brothers episode

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This article was published 25/02/2015 (4056 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Westman Place will host the last Quenneville family reunion of the Western Hockey League’s regular season tonight.

Brandon Wheat Kings forwards Peter and John Quenneville will welcome their younger brother David, a rookie defenceman with the Medicine Hat Tigers.

It’s the fourth meeting between the teams this season, but only the second time that all three brothers will be in the same game. David was away for the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge when the Wheat Kings and Tigers played on Nov. 1, and John was injured when they met earlier this month in Medicine Hat, Alta. With Peter, Brandon’s 20-year-old captain, graduating from the WHL this season, it will also be the last game to feature all three unless the teams meet in the playoffs.

“The day I decided to leave school and come here, I was definitely looking into the future excited about this day and the first time it happened as well,” said Peter Quenneville, who left Quinnipiac University and joined the Wheat Kings last season after his WHL rights were acquired from the Prince George Cougars. “And for three brothers to be able to play, two with and one against, it’s special and you don’t see it too often. Family is excited. There’s going to be people here watching and people back home watching, and I think it’s all about having fun and just embracing the competition.”

There is no shortage of competition between the brothers, although John said it still feels strange to be battling it out in a WHL rink.

“I was telling the boys yesterday at lunch there, I’ve probably gone toe-to-toe with David in the backyard rink four times, 10 times the amount of WHL fights I’ve had,” chuckled, John, an 18-year-old centre. “I’ve fought him so many times and we’ve had so many battles. It almost feels less natural to be out there on the ice battling in the corner against him just because we have that bond.”

David is bound to be tested by his brothers and the rest of the Wheat Kings, the highest-scoring team in the WHL. Peter has tallied 18 goals and 40 assists in 60 contests this season, while John has 16 goals and 23 helpers in 47 games.

Still, David is having a fine season himself as a 16-year-old blue-liner, with six goals and 12 assists in 55 games, and his older brothers know there’ll be no fear in the youngster.

“I think Davy’s improved as the year’s gone on and I think with the injuries that they’ve had it’s kind of forced him to step up his game a little bit,” Peter said. “… I think he’s been comfortable and he’s been in the league long enough now where he knows what to expect.”

“He’s got so much pride,” John added. “We have a little group chat, the three of us, so he’s texting us what he thinks he’s going to do (tonight) so you can imagine the words that were sent back. So it’s such an awesome rivalry, it’s such an awesome thing to experience, and I’m so excited.”

AROUND THE WHL:Wyatt Hoflin of the Kootenay Ice was named the Canadian Hockey League’s goaltender of the week on Tuesday. Hoflin won all three of his starts last week, with a 1.00 goals-against average and a .968 save percentage. Hoflin and the Ice will visit the Wheat Kings, who boast this week’s CHL player of the week, Jayce Hawryluk, on Friday and Saturday … Saturday’s game will be the Wheat Kings’ Pink the Rink fundraiser. Their special pink-trimmed jerseys will be auctioned and raffled to raise money to fight cancer. Reid Gow’s jersey was auctioned off on Friday, raising $750, while Hawryluk’s sweater will be auctioned this Friday on the 94.7 Star FM morning show.