Skip to content

Scholarship No. 5 for Victoria Grizzlies

Nathan Looysen announces he will attend Brock University beginning in the fall.

The chance to pursue a career in sports management was an opportunity Nathan Looysen simply couldn’t pass up.

The 20-year-old right winger with the Victoria Grizzlies of the B.C. Hockey League announced this week that he has committed to Brock University in St. Catharine’s, Ont.

“They have a reputation for one of the best sports management programs in the country,” Looysen said. “I felt it would be a good move in terms of pursuing job opportunities, and there are lots of internship opportunities that come along with the program as well.”

Speaking French fluently will be an asset in that regard as well, he added, crediting his parents for instilling in him the importance of education.

The Central Saanich native, who started playing minor hockey at the age of four in the Peninsula Minor Hockey Association, is in his first full season with the Grizzlies.

Originally drafted by the Western Hockey League’s Kamloops Blazers, Looysen has played with the Peninsula Panthers and Victoria Cougars junior B teams.

Because his time in the WHL cost him eligibility to play U.S. college hockey, the decision to play for the Brock Badgers was an easy one, especially after hearing great things about the program from Grizzlies teammate Drayson Pears, whose older brother, Braden, plays for the Badgers.

“Obviously playing in the NHL is a goal when you start out,” Looysen said. “You reach a point where reality hits and you look for a plan B,” he said.

“My parents have always emphasized having a back-up plan, so that’s where the decision to go to school came in.”

reporter@goldstreamgazette.com