Zaya Morro has looked good this season and that really isn’t a surprise to anyone. He is entering his third full season in the VIJHL and first full campaign with the Glacier Kings after coming over from the Oceanside Generals part way through last season. It seems like a better fit for Comox than Oceanside. Yes he played in Nanaimo for the North Island Silvertips during his Midget tenure but he is a local Comox Valley kid. In fact he played a couple exhibition games for the GKings in 2022 but ended up going back to the Silvertips as a 16 year old in the U18 league. Also, last season Morro went pointless in 10 games with the Generals but scored a goal in just his second game with the Yeti and ended up with 13 points with his hometown club. By all accounts he is well-liked by his teammates and was just named an assistant captain less than a week ago.

It hasn’t always been all roses for Zaya however. In a well documented case, he was racially discriminated against by an opposing player on the ice. He was just 16 years old at the time. Chirping has always been a part of the game but I have ZERO tolerance for racial slurs. The slurs have even come from parents in the stands. I applaud him and his family for not backing down and hiding from the issue. They went public to educate people that this was still a part of modern day hockey. A big “stick tap” to the Morro’s.

Getting back to his excellent start, the 19 year old forward leads Comox in goals (4) and points (9) in just 8 games. He’s also second on the squad in assists (5). Those are pretty good stats for someone playing on a sub .500 team that is having trouble scoring goals. To put in perspective, he’s scored or assisted on almost 40% of the team’s goals this season. Because Morro has intrigued me so far, I asked Curtis Toneff about what kind of kid he is. The coach said, “He’s a very thoughtful person, he doesn’t react, he thinks before he speaks and does things. I have even learned from him over the past year. I can get heated and intense. He stays pretty level. Sometimes there’s pros and cons to that. For Zaya, it’s mostly a positive thing. I think guys look up to him. His effort and conditioning speaks for itself.”

Morro is currently in the Top 15 in VIJHL scoring. Not bad considering he still has another year of junior eligibility left. By all accounts, he’s a great player on the ice but even a better person off the ice.

Darryl Skender