From The Pats To The Cougars

May 27, 2010 []

REGINA, Sask. – University of Regina men’s hockey head coach Blaine Sautner announced Saturday that former Regina Pats centre Matt Strueby has committed to the Cougars.

Strueby, who finished second on the Pats as a 20-year-old last season with 37 goals, is expected to fill an offensive role with the U of R next season as the team moves into its new home at The Co-Operators Centre.

“We’re a team that will benefit from his offence, and he’ll bring size and skill up the middle for us,” Sautner said. “It’s a great conference and always tough to come in as a rookie, but he has the skill and competitiveness needed to have success at this level.”

Strueby added 22 assists last season to register a career-high 59 points for the Pats. Over three full seasons in the WHL, he accumulated 70 goals, 57 assists, and 127 points in 206 regular season games.

Strueby, the first member of Sautner’s 2010-11 recruiting class, has family ties to the Cougars. His uncle Darren Wilcox was in net for the Cougars during their march to the Great Plains Athletic Conference title in 1982, while his cousin Nathan Strueby played with the Cougars during the 1998-99 and 2000-01 seasons.