Merritt Centennials add to scouting staff, look to bolster roster

Marius Auer NEWSROOM@MERRITTHERALD.COM

The Cents have added two scouts to their staff, looking to seek out prospective players in B.C. and across the country. Brian Campbell will serve as the team’s BC regional scout, while John Eminger will take on the role of Toronto regional scout.

The team announced the two hirings in recent press releases.

Campbell recently worked for the Langley Rivermen of BCHL as a scout, and is the owner and director of TwoWayHockey.com, a hockey training program. The team said in a release that Campbell’s passion for the sport began at the young age of five, living in Edmonton, Alberta. At the age of nine, his family moved to Vancouver, where his hockey career really took off.

His father, being a former professional soccer player, sought out the best training available. This happened to be Joe McKeekan, founder of Two Way Hockey. Brian soon became one of the elite players of his age group and was chosen to play in the u18 ‘AAA’ All-Star tournament at the time. The following year, he began his BCHL career with the Kelowna Buckaroos and the North West Caps. His final two seasons were spent with Richmond Sockeyes. Campbell has been training and developing hockey players in the 40 years since.

“Brian takes great pride in the development and mentoring of his students and strives for them to be the best hockey players, on and off the ice,” said Cents head coach Brian Passmore, noting that Campbell is considered one of the top professional power skating coaches in B.C.

“He accomplishes this by forming great relationships with each individual.”

John Eminger, a former Ontario Hockey League (OHL) defenseman with an impressive hockey background, has been appointed as the Toronto regional scout for Merritt Centennials. Eminger resides in Vaughan, Ontario, with his wife and three children. Eminger brings years of playing experience in the OHL, as well as coaching and scouting experience in the Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL) and Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL).

“With experience as a coach in the GTHL and as a scout in the OJHL, John is dedicated to discovering and nurturing hockey talent,” noted a release by the team.

For more information on the team, including schedules and season tickets, visit www.merrittcentennials.com.