Local Hockey Players Achieving Great Success

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Several local hockey players are achieving great success since moving up the ranks to play in Fort Saskatchewan. The 2019-’20 season has been very eventful for each of the players who continue to work hard and pursue their own goals.

Dawson Bilyk started playing hockey at the age of five as a Vegreville Initiation Wrangler. He played as a Vegreville Wrangler through to Bantam. In his first year of Bantam he became an affiliate to the Bantam AA Rangers in Fort Saskatchewan. He did this while still playing full-time as a Vegreville Wrangler. Dawson made the transition to playing full time in Fort Saskatchewan in his second year of Bantam. Dawson is currently enjoying a successful season with the Minor Midget AAA team. The team currently sits in first position in the North Division. They are fourth overall out of 24 teams. The team is excited to head into playoffs in early March!

Miller Komarniski is enjoying an exciting second year with the Fort Saskatchewan Pee Wee AA Rangers. Miller and the Rangers are working towards finishing off their stellar season and hoping to play well enough to capture the league title in March at the league year end tournament in Camrose. Their record sits at 20-4-1 with three games to go, good enough for second place in the Pee Wee AA Northern Hockey League. Miller sits third on his team in scoring with 33 points, incl. 19 Goals and 14 Assists in 25 games played. Miller played his Novice and Atom levels with the Vegreville Wranglers. Proud of where his roots are, Miller represented Vegreville in the 2020 Alberta Winter Games in Airdrie Feb 14-17, with Zone 7 in the Male Hockey category. Miller is the son of former professional hockey player Zenith Komarniski.

Drayden van der Torre started his hockey career at the age of five, proudly wearing a Vegreville Wranglers jersey for many years. Highlights of his Wranglers days were donning the “C” as the team captain and hosting Atom Provincials, where he scored the first goal of the game with many community members, classmates and peers in the crowd. The live broadcast by local 106.5 radio host Jamieson Brown, was an added bonus as he saluted the crowd with his celly.

Drayden moved toward playing at a more competitive level as a second year PeeWee player, making the Fort Saskatchewan PeeWee AA Rangers team. In his third year playing as a Ranger he currently plays for the Bantam AAA Rangers. “Vander” serves as an Assistant Captain on the Right Wing and is known for his positivity towards his teammates and his quick wit, which isn’t always appreciated by his opponents. Currently fourth on his team for points with a respectable eight goals and nine assists totaling 17 points in the 2019/2020 season, #17 Drayden van der Torre looks to continue a promising hockey career.

Carson Pewarchuk is playing his first year in the Fort Saskatchewan Minor Hockey League after playing the past eight years for the Vegreville Wranglers. He is a second year Bantam playing for the Fort Saskatchewan Bantam AA Rangers, who are having a great season and currently tied for third place in their division after 29 games with a record of 16 wins, 8 losses, and 5 ties.

Carson is leading his team in scoring with 19 goals, 22 assists for 41 points in just 26 games, currently tied for 12th overall in the Edmonton Rural Bantam AA League and is affiliated with the Fort Saskatchewan Bantam AAA team. His team participated in two tournaments, one in Calgary with a strong finish and the other in Medicine Hat in which they brought home the bronze medal.

With a few games left in the season, they hope to better their standings and finish the season strong and continued this momentum leading into the playoffs.

Beckett Langkow plays for the Major Midget AAA Rangers in Fort Saskatchewan.

(Shelly Priest Photography)

Beckett Langkow began his hockey career in Vegreville at age four at the Initiation level. He spent the next five years playing in Germany, winning nationals twice at ages eight and nine respectively. The following three years playing in Vegreville were memorable as his dad Scott Langkow, newly retired from an eighteen year pro career, was able to coach him and help develop his goaltending skills.

In his fourth year playing in Fort Saskatchewan, Beckett is enjoying a great season with the Major Midget AAA Rangers. The team currently sits in third place in the North Division as part of a league that includes 17 teams across Alberta. Beckett’s solid season to date of 12 wins, three losses and four ties has him ranked second in the league with a save percentage of 0.939 and fourth with a goals against average of 1.81. With his focus set on the future, Beckett is currently protected by the Medicine Hat Tigers in the WHL and affiliated with the Sherwood Park Crusaders in AJHL for the 2019-2020 season.