The Alberni Valley Bulldogs are proud to announce their leadership group in advance of the 2021-2022 BCHL regular season.
Head coach and general manager Joe Martin has named Stephen Castagna as the club’s next captain. Castagna will be joined by fellow 20 year old’s Ryan Nause, Josh Van Unen, and Josh Zary as the club’s assistant captains.
“We’ve got a lot of experience with this group” said Joe Martin. “They play the game with a lot of passion, practice very competitively, and are outstanding teammates to their peers. All four of them have a determination to win this year and when it’s all said and done, their jerseys will be hung up better than how they found them.”
The newly minted captain brings 138 BCHL games over parts of 4 seasons with the Bulldogs. Castagna first broke into the BCHL back in 2017-2018 when he suited up in 5 games. In his BCHL career, Castagna has 30 goals and 43 assists. During the 2020-2021 “Pod” season, Castagna broke out with 14 goals and 15 assists for 29 points in just 20 games and earned a commitment to Bentley University.
Partnering with Castagna on the Bulldogs top line last season was Josh Van Unen. After 42 games with the Merritt Centennials, Van Unen joined the Bulldogs and posted 5 goals and 25 assists in the pod season as he exploded on the scene. Van Unen will enter the season with expectations to pick up where he left off last spring.
After missing extended time recovering from surgery, Josh Zary missed all of the 2020-2021 “Pod” season. The Nanaimo native returns looking to build on his 10 goal, 10 assist effort in 2019. Zary is as dominant in the face-off circle as anyone in the BCHL and his return is no doubt a welcomed addition to the Bulldogs line-up and more importantly the Bulldogs locker room.
The final assistant captain position was awarded to Ryan Nause. The Riverview New Brunswick native joined the Bulldogs last year and produced nicely on the back end for the Bulldogs in the “Pod Season”. Nause had 2 goals and 12 assists and will be the leader of a solid, but younger defence corps for the Bulldogs this season.
