CBC Hockey Looking to Create New Dynasty

The best of the Missouri Mid-States Club Hockey Association over the past decade can be described in three letters.

C-B-C.

The CBC Cadets were crowned Mid-States champions in seven of the past 10 seasons with two “three-peats” (2001-2003, 2007-2009) during that span. They are looking to start a new streak this season.

"Everyone has a chip on their shoulder from last year, especially the guys that played and we want to show that we still know how to win and how to be champions," CBC senior captain Brennan Devers said.

CBC is putting together another dominant regular season. They are 10-0 in the Metro Division and 17-1 in the league with the Cadet's only loss against Marquette back on Nov. 12.

The Cadets resume play on Jan. 22 against Chaminade.

"We know we're one of the best teams and when we play our best we can beat anybody," senior goaltender Justin Davis said.

CBC is currently enjoying an eight-day layoff after a gritty and signature 4-3 victory over SLUH on Jan. 14. It was the first time this season CBC was outshot by an opponent as SLUH outshot the Cadets 20-18. Davis turned away 18 shots, giving CBC its third win of the season over SLUH.

"It's tough to beat a good team three times in a row," CBC coach John Jost said. "We were actually outplayed at times and Justin was probably the reason we won that game."

Davis is 14-1 with a 1.80 goals against average this season.

The top-ranked Cadets are averaging over six goals per game while yielding less than two goals a game. CBC leans on its senior captains for this success with leading scorer Jack Ryan and stingy defenseman Devers.

"Brennan's got a tremendous amount of energy and plays against the other team's top line every game," Jost said. "Jack can play on any line and he's an outstanding two-way player."

Ryan leads the team with 28 goals and Devers leads a defense that has only allowed 15 division goals in 10 division games. Senior Tanner Bulejski leads the team in assists with 37 and points with 57.

CBC is coming off a year when they didn’t win the Mid-States championship. Metro Division rival DeSmet defeated the Cadets, 5-4 in overtime, last season in the 2010 Challenge Cup Final.

"Losing last year definitely makes every senior on this team work that much harder and want to win that much more this year," Ryan said.

The Cadets have owned the Spartans this year along with every other team in the tough Metro Division. CBC has two division games remaining this season against Chaminade and DeSmet, and is gunning for an undefeated division record and a ninth straight Metro Division title.

"It's always our goal to go undefeated and we want to be known as the toughest team to beat," Devers said. "People should be scared of us because we're here to win and play hard."

The Chaminade game will be the first of three games in a six-day span for CBC. Coach Jost hopes the team can finish the season strong and that this stretch of games will help the Cadets prepare for another long and grueling postseason run.

"I think we've been fresh and that's good as we head into the playoffs," Jost said. "Consistency is the key and being emotionally and mentally ready for every game."

The Cadet seniors are playing for more than just an undefeated division record or redemption from last year’s championship game defeat. They are playing for tradition. The CBC seniors want to leave behind a trail of success so next’s year class can have the opportunity to build on another dynasty.

"Every senior class hopes to start another dynasty and to keep passing it on," Devers said. "Our coaches know what it takes to win and it starts from them to our seniors and all the way down."

Jost said, "We don't put a lot pressure on our players about the past but we do ask that they learn from the teams of the past and learn the ways these teams prepare and we're starting to see that with this team."

The Challenge Cup Final is March 8 at Scottrade Center.