KEVIN ROTHBAUER
COWICHAN VALLEY CITIZEN
Brothers Jordan and Kyle Topping are squaring off in the Western Hockey League playoffs.
The Toppings call Saltspring Island home, but both played their minor hockey in the Cowichan Valley and spent a season in the B.C. Hockey League with the Cowichan Valley Capitals before moving to the major junior ranks. Now they are on opposite sides as Jordan’s Tri-City Americans and Kyle’s Kelowna Rockets battle in the opening round of the WHL playoffs.
Jordan, 20, has the upper hand through two games as the Americans won 5-0 in the opening game last Thursday and 9-7 on Saturday, both games taking place in Kelowna. Jordan had an assist in the first game, then added two more in the second contest. Kyle, 18, was held off the scoresheet like the rest of his teammates in the opener, but finished Saturday’s game with a goal and two helpers.
Jordan finished his final WHL season with 80 points (38 goals and 42 assists) in 72 games, while Kyle posted 65 points (22 goals and 43 assists) in 66 contests. This was Jordan’s fourth season with Tri-City and Kyle’s second with Kelowna. Jordan has drawn interest from multiple NHL teams since going undrafted in 2015, and Kyle is ranked 64th among North American skaters ahead of the 2018 draft.
Among Jordan’s teammates in Tri-City is defenceman Dylan Coghlan, a Vegas Golden Knights prospect whose hometown is listed as Nanaimo, and has strong ties to the Cowichan Valley as well.
The Americans will attempt to take a 3-0 stranglehold on the series when it resumes in Tri-City on Wednesday.
Also competing in the WHL playoffs is Duncan’s Josh Anderson, whose Swift Current Broncos have a 2-1 lead over the Regina Pats after winning 4-1 in Regina on Monday. Anderson, who was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche in 2016, recorded an assist in Swift Current’s 3-0 win in the series opener last Friday.
The series will continue on Wednesday night when the Broncos and Pats meet again in Regina.