Oh Brother, from the frying pan into the Fryer!

August 25, 2022
North Saanich, British Columbia

The Fryer boys Reid and Seth are cut from the same cloth and yet are set to travel down a path that diverges in the woods.  They are a pair of hard-nosed and honest hockey players who will help to form a formidable back end for the Peninsula Panthers this season.  Reid is 19 years old, has toiled on the Cats for the past two years and was a very significant part of the Panthers Championship run last season.  Seth, who will be a rookie on the squad at the tender age of 16, played last season at the Pacific Coast Hockey Academy but had a lion's share of practice time out on the Peninsula practicing with his older brother, usually on Monday evenings.  He played one game last season as an affiliate player against the Victoria Cougars.

Reid came to the Panthers Summer Identification camp as a raw but willing 17-year-old and was a long-shot to crack the roster.  But he grew on the Coaching Staff and Management and ended up being a rugged defenceman whom the Club fell in love with.  Seth began showing up at Panthers games and practices at the age of 14 and it was hard not to miss him.  He stands at 6' 6", three inches taller than Reid and he comes with the same gritty demeanor.  There were a number of Clubs who pushed for Seth to sign with them but in the end, the family decided that it was best for the two boys to play together on the Panthers.  And both players made it clear that family is most important and each made special note that their father Rich has made the most significant impact on them in terms of the game.

Both played their Minor Hockey at JDF and both started playing hockey at a very young age.  Reid is currently not enrolled in post-secondary education however has plans on entering the Engineering Program at the University of Victoria in the future.  Here is where their paths diverge.  Seth is a solid student and is currently in High School but his focus is taking the game as far as he possibly can.  He was drafted by the Victoria Royals of the Western Hockey League and his goal is to play professional hockey at the highest level he can achieve.

"These two kids will be huge fan favourites out on the Peninsula," exclaimed Panthers General Manager Pete Zubersky.  "Reid is one of the toughest kids that has ever played here.  There have been a lot of tough kids come through over the years.  Reece Costain played here for several years and his toughness was absolutely incredible.  Reid is right there with him.  In the playoffs last year, he was having difficulty with his shoulder and I decided to keep him out of the lineup.  He forced his way back in after missing a game in the finals and although his heart was willing, his shoulder was not.  I think it was a good lesson moving forward for both of us.  I think we both know a little bit more about his body and his heart and sometimes heart alone does not trump, sometimes only time will help.  I think Seth is the same guy.  Reid is a big kid but Seth is going to be bigger.  He probably has a couple more inches in him and will probably end up being the same size as Zdeno Chara who had an amazing career in the NHL.  Chara was 6' 9" and 250 lbs and was downright nasty.  I think Seth will end up being that guy, its a great comparable."

Zubersky has seen a lot of players come through the Panthers, a number of them who played games in the NHL including Dallas Stars Captain Jamie Benn, his brother Jordie, Ryan O'Byrne and Kyle Greentree to name just a few.  "I believe that if Seth keeps his head screwed on straight, continues to develop and stays healthy, he has an honest chance at playing at the top level.  Ryan O'Byrne played here when he was 16 and ended up being drafted by the Montreal Canadiens and played for the Habs, Avalanche and Maple Leafs over a decade.  Seth is as good as OB was at the same point in their development.  Seth is more physical at this stage in his development than OB was and although OB was an absolute monster in terms of size, Seth is going to be much bigger when he is full-grown.  

The two brothers have been going through their Main Camp paces with the Panthers and Head Coach Chris Driebergen and both will be inserted into the lineup on Friday night when the Panthers play host to the visiting Victoria Cougars at 7:30 pm in Exhibition Game action.  The Panthers will go with most of their Regular Season roster on Friday night including some of the recently signed players and Zubersky is excited to see the group start to build some chemistry in lead up to the Season Home Opener in two weeks against the Westshore Wolves.  "I like our group a lot," quipped Pete Zubersky.  "The majority of our roster has now been through a protracted playoff run and now know what it takes.  There is a lot of leadership in our room right now, Reid Fryer being one of those leaders.  I like the new guys we have signed and they will be on display this Friday night."

New acquisitions to the Club this season who will be playing Friday are:

#1 Mason Kelly - 20-year-old Goaltender from Michigan Jr. A
#6 Evan Birks - 17-year-old Defenceman from South Island Major Midget
#9 Seth Fryer - 16-year-old Defenceman from PCHA
#15 Malcolm Fletcher - 18-year-old Forward from PMHA Midget Tier 1
#19 Spencer Cotie - 17-year-old Forward from Victoria Admirals Midget T1
#29 Zach Warren - 18-year-old Forward from Kelowna Midget T1
#33 Dane Jensen - 18-year-old Goaltender from Kelowna Midget T1
#43 Ethan Warnes - 18-year-old Forward from Kelowna Midget T1

"We are waiting to see what happens to Luka Jansen Van Rensburg who is in Humbolt Broncos Junior A Camp right now and depending how he does there, could be heading to Trail Smoke Eaters Camp next weekend.  He has committed to the Club and we are waiting to see what happens with his Junior A tryouts.  Aleko Sdrakas is away at a Junior A Camp and like JVR, we are waiting to see how he makes out.  Seth Fryer is heading to Camp next weekend with the Royals of the WHL and Ethan Lingard has been invited to Main Camp with the Victoria Grizzlies.  Julien Phillips has an invite for next weekend to Swan Valley of the Manitoba Junior A League.  Goaltender Brady Kelly is in Estevan in their Junior A Camp this weekend.  This time of year is always tough, we are juggling everything but by our opener on September 9th, everything should be sorted out.  We pretty well have our Club right now and we are just trying to navigate through the next 7-10 days to see where most of the chips will land.  We have 16-year-old Cameron Sneek in Camp and he will play in one or two of the Exhibition Games against the Cougars this weekend.  Mason Kelly will get the start on Friday at home and then Jensen will go on Saturday back in Victoria.

One thing is for certain, with so many moving parts right now, Reid, Seth and the Peninsula Panthers Management are jumping from the frying pan to the fryer .....oh Brother!

Panthers Tracks....Mason Kelly is the identical twin brother of Brady Kelly, both goaltenders with the Club....the only way to tell the two apart is Mason's small birthmark on his face....Ryan Grambart, Payton Braun and Tanner Banks will most likely start the season on a line together....Panthers Mascot Percy will be ready to go at the Home Opener....former Panthers gritty forward Kai Turner joins the coaching staff along with new Bench Boss Driebergen and returning coaches Len Dawes and Spencer Loverock....Panthers play a home-and-home against the Cougars this weekend and will then travel to Westshore to play the Wolves next Wednesday evening....the Club will host the Wolves next Friday, September 2nd in their final tune-up before the Home Opener on the 9th ....Patrick St-Denis has taken over as the Club's Director of Hockey Operations.