The Penticton Vees have netted the top scorer they were after.
Scott Conway comes to the BCHL team after having spent last season with Penn State University Nittany Lions.
Conway was dismissed from the program in early May as Penn State announced he violated team rules and didn’t provide further comment on the incident.
“Yeah, that’s a personal thing,” said Vees coach-general manager Fred Harbinson, adding that it would be kept between Conway and the Vees. “Our program speaks for itself. We really don’t have issues, off-ice issues or bad kids in our program very often. I’ve done my due diligence and believe that Scott is a great player. I also think he is a good person. I think he is going to fit in real well with us here. He had a chance to meet some of our guys. They thought the same. Today (Tuesday) he started the Anaheim Ducks camp.
“These are kids. Sometimes things happen,” continued Harbinson. “It’s water under the bridge and we move on.”
Conway, 20, brings plenty of high-end skill and valuable experience. As a freshman, the Basingstoke, England product tallied 10 goals and 26 points in 34 games with the Nittany Lions and was fifth in team scoring. He was named to the Big Ten All-Rookie team; second-highest scoring freshman in the Big Ten.
Harbinson likes that Conway has won a championship, which he earned with former Vee Patrick Newell while playing for the Indiana Ice in the United States Hockey League (USHL) two years ago. He led the Ice in playoff scoring with 11 points in 12 games.
“He was obviously an intrical part of that team,” said Harbinson.
Conway led the Ice in scoring with 33 goals and 68 points in 57 regular season games; those 33 goals were the second most in the USHL, a league that is not considered high scoring. The crafty forward also had one of the best plus-minuses in the USHL that year, finishing tied for a league-best plus 40 rating.
He was named to the USHL First All-Star team and played in the 2013-14 USHL All-Star game. Before Indiana, Conway started his junior hockey career in the NAHL with the Texas Tornado and had 18 goals and 54 points in 57 games.
Harbinson added that with Conway having played college hockey last year, he knows what it takes to get there. That is something he can pass on to his news Vees teammates seeking a scholarship.
Conway is looking for a new start as he pursues a scholarship to another university program. To do that he has to go back to junior hockey.
“Fortunate for us, he has decided this is where he is going to be,” said Harbinson. “He’s a player that can play both the wing and centre. He’s a dynamic player. He can do a bit of everything. He just adds another veteran guy to our lineup.”
Conway lives just outside of Orlando, Fla, in the off-season but is a dual British-Canadian citizen through his father Kevin. Kevin had a very success junior career in the Ontario Hockey League before he crossed the Atlantic for the British Hockey League, which is now known as the ELITE Ice Hockey League. Kevin had a decorated career in Great Britain and was inducted into the British Ice Hockey Hall of Fame in 2005.