The British Columbia Hockey League promotes itself aggressively as a path to the United States college system, and the Cowichan Valley Capitals have certainly done their part for the players they recruit. Last month, three more Caps committed to colleges, signing on for full-ride scholarships at Division I schools.

Second-year Caps forward Bryce Reddick committed to Michigan Tech and defenceman Corbin McPherson signed on with Colgate, both beginning in 2008/09, while rookie winger Mickey Spencer accepted an offer fron Alaska-Anchorage commencing in the 2009/10 season.

Each of the players acknowledged that securing a scholarship at this stage in the season is valuable in that it removes one more distraction.

"It's nice to put it out of the way," said Spencer. "There's less to worry about."

Added McPherson, "We can concentrate on the game and helping the guys out in the room."

Players need to consider both the quality of the hockey program and the academics at the school they choose, and Reddick noted that it was "a bit of both" that attracted him to Michigan Tech.

"It's a good hockey school, and it's not very big," he said. "And I used to live in Michigan."

McPherson picked the Madison County, New York school for an opportunity to play in the ECAC Hockey conference, one of the top U.S. college hockey leagues.

"It's a great opportunity to play against good guys," he said.

Spencer is following in the steps of other recent Caps grads, including 2006/07 stars Winston DayChief and Craig Parkinson, by heading north to Alaska.

"It's a good hockey school," he pointed out. "And I'll get lots of opportunities to play there."

All three players attested to the role played by the Caps organization in helping them secure scholarships. The Caps contacted schools the players were interested in and informed the hockey programs of the players' progress.

"They supported any decision we wanted to make, and they made sure we knew what else was out there," said Spencer.

McPherson was drafted by the National Hockey League's New Jersey Devils in the third round of the 2007 Entry Draft, but the Devils had no role in McPherson's choice of school.

"They can't have a say in that," he said. "I talked to their representatives and they supported me in whatever decision I made."

While McPherson's path to the NHL seems more sure, Reddick and Spencer also have aspirations of making it to the big league, hopes made more realistic by their scholarships.

None of the players has declared a major yet, but Reddick and Spencer are leaning toward marketing and accounting. McPherson is considering history, a choice made more attractive when he is assured that the mathematical content of the program is minimal.

McPherson, Reddick and Spencer join Brooks Robinson and Zack Currie in committing to college programs. Robinson and Currie committed earlier in the season to play for Quinnipiac, also of the ECAC, in 2009/10.