It was a dream scenario for both Chris and Steven Jandric on Wednesday night.
Not only did they return home to Prince George and play in the Rolling Mix Concrete Arena, they were able to take two points from one of the teams they grew up watching as the Vernon Vipers skated past the Prince George Spruce Kings 5-3.
Both brothers also found the score sheet in the win as Chris netted a power-play goal in the first period while older brother Steven added two assists in the contest.
MYPGNOW caught up with Steven and Chris after the game with the younger sibling showing his appreciation for all the local support in the building. “It feels good, it’s always nice to play at home plus we won so that was cool too, a lot of family and friends came out to support us which was everything,” says Chris.
Despite being a year apart when it comes to age the Jandric brothers have always had the luxury of playing together every second year since coming up through the Prince George Minor Hockey system.
It won’t be any different in the Junior A and NCAA ranks either.
Steven is a second year forward with Vernon and is enjoying a breakout campaign with 33 points in 40 games after compiling just 22 points in 57 games last season.
On the flip side, Chris is well into his rookie BCHL season with the Vipers potting 2 goals and 12 assists from the back-end with some additional opportunities on the power-play.
And the similarities don’t stop.
Chris and Steven played one year each of major midget hockey with the Cariboo Cougars during separate seasons.
Chris recorded 34 points in 39 games last season with the Cats while Steven notched 54 points in 2014-15 and was on the team that captured the Mac’s Midget AAA Championship who defeated the Regina Pat Canadians.
If that wasn’t cool enough, both recently committed to the University of Alaska-Fairbanks for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.
Steven says while separation can be good for a while, continuing on the same path with his brother is a lot more compelling. “It’s always nice being away from your brother but you always miss him since we are pretty close so it’s good having him here. Growing up our parents wanted us to stick together to make it easier to come and watch so it was nice for us to attend the same school.”
While they may not play exactly alike, the same cannot be said for the journey they are set to embark on in the hockey world.