Meredith earns commitment from Adrian College of the NCAA Division III

Written by: Scott Savard

Headline graphic: Kiana Briscoe

Headline photo: Chad Goddard

Okotoks, AB (April 1, 2026) – The Okotoks Oilers are proud to announce that Joey Meredith (Toledo, OH) has earned a commitment from Adrian College of the NCAA Division III next season.

Meredith, who earned the assistant captain honours this season, first made his debut with the Green and Gold back on September 20, 2024. He would end up playing 99 games for the Oilers across two seasons (2024-2025 and 2025-2026) while accumulating 49 points (20G, 29A).

“Yeah, it’s a little weight off the shoulders, been waiting a few months; it’s been in the back of my head. Obviously, with the season winding down here now, that’s over, so definitely a weight off the shoulders, and I’m super pumped to head out there at the beginning of next school year,” Meredith said.

With the commitment, Meredith will join both Michael Kowalski (Chicago, IL) and Luke Calabria (Huntington, NY) in playing in the NCAA Division III, accomplishing a goal he set out to achieve when he joined the BCHL during the 2024-2025 season.

“Oh yeah, it’s huge for me and my family. I’ve put in so much time and effort over the years. I started playing hockey when I was three years old, and I knew since day one that I wanted to play college hockey somewhere, and the next step will be pro, so this is just one step forward to that main goal. Super exciting for everyone, and I’m proud of myself as well,” he added.

As for potentially playing against Kowalski and Calabria next season, Meredith explained that he’s excited about the opportunity of being on the opposite side of the ice from his former teammates.

“That’s just super exciting. You know, we won’t probably play throughout the year, but the goal would probably be to play them in the tournament somewhere. So, kind of gives me an extra little push to try to make it there and see those boys towards the end of the season next year, so that’ll be cool if we ever meet up at some point in the year,” Meredith explained.

Meredith also mentioned that he’s thrilled to be able to play close to home, as Adrian is around 35 minutes from his hometown of Toledo, Ohio, with Adrian located in Michigan.

“Yeah, that’s awesome. It’s nice to be a little closer to home since being across the country the last couple of years. I know my parents and all my siblings are excited for me to be closer to home; they’ll be able to watch in person, instead of on the TV now, so yeah, definitely super excited to be back in the States and a little closer to home,” he added. ” I’m about 35 minutes away from Adrian, so it’s seriously right in my backyard compared to Okotoks.”

As mentioned before, Meredith’s parents, Rhonda and Scott, are ecstatic to have their son back close to home and plan on getting back to watching Meredith more frequently at the rink.

“Oh yeah, they’re super excited, like, I know my dad, the first thing he said, the first text, he’s like, ‘Congrats, man, I’m excited to be able to drive 30 miles instead of having to fly over 1500 miles to see you play’. So, they’re both pumped up for me, and I couldn’t be more excited to be able to play in front of them now, besides, obviously, away games, but every home game, being able to play in front of them instead of only a handful of games throughout the last couple years out here,” Meredith said.

The BCHL still proves to be a premium spot for athletes to grow and get opportunities to continue their hockey careers. Meredith gave credit to both the league and the Oilers for helping him reach his goal of getting a commitment to post-secondary hockey.

“Oh yeah, all the guys around me, all the coaching staff have put me in this position to succeed, and I couldn’t thank them enough, and they’ve given me everything. I’m blessed for the opportunity to come out here, and I wouldn’t change it. I’d recommend it for every hockey player trying to make it to the next level. Okotoks itself is a great spot also, but the BCHL league as a whole is an amazing league for development and trying to make it to the next level. So yeah, it’s been awesome, and I couldn’t thank the coaching staff enough for everything they’ve done for me the last two years,” he added.

“Okotoks as a whole, like the town, the fans, the community, everyone’s behind you. It’s a great spot to live. You got everything you need here. Billets are unbelievable. The coaching staff’s unbelievable. They’ll do anything for you, any time of the day, any day of the week. It’s definitely a great development; coaches really care about your development. You know, some teams, all they care about is winning, right?  They don’t care about the development, but here I think it’s a little more special and a little more focused on your development than maybe some other teams around the league, so I very highly recommend Okotoks as a place to live for a few years of your hockey career. I don’t think anyone would regret it. I didn’t regret it at all. I wish I could come back another year, but you know, it’s time to move on with my career, so I’m excited.”

Meredith would also give a shoutout to his Billet mom, Bev Lee, as she has made an impact on him over the two years he was in Okotoks.

“I’m super spoiled, I can’t say it enough, and she has done more than enough for me. Even her son and daughter, Erin and Cody, and her grandkids, and all that kind of stuff. They’ve been around the last two years, they come to every home game just about, and they do everything for me, if I need something they’re there for me, and you know, um, they have, it’s gonna be a little sad leaving here, but I know she’s super proud of me as well, and I can’t thank her enough for doing everything she does. The late nights waiting for us to get home, the bus trips, and she doesn’t sleep till we get to get in the house. So, that makes a good billet mom, right there,” Meredith said about Bev and her family.

While Meredith and the Oilers would have enjoyed a nice playoff run, the team did end the season on a high note with two thrilling overtime wins to close out the 2025-2026 BCHL campaign, something he will remember for a lifetime.

“Oh yeah, we went around the room the other day at the last team dinner, and we were saying our favourite memories of the year, and I listed a few out of the year, but honestly, this last weekend was seriously one of the most special weekends of my hockey career. Obviously, it hasn’t been the greatest year for the guys, and a lot of learning went into it, but also, you got to take out the positives from this past weekend, and yeah, that was absolutely unbelievable. All the boys didn’t quit; some guys, you know, would hang them up in a month or two ago, and kind of put it in the bag, but no, we all came together and beat two top teams in the league. That’s pretty special to do so, I will definitely remember this weekend for as long as I can remember,” he mentioned.

Meredith will be playing with a long-time friend, D.J. Ott, with Adrian next season, which will make the transition to NCAA Division III hockey a little easier for him. Ott and Meredith grew up with one another back in Sylvania and played youth hockey together, and will both play their rookie seasons with Adrian College for the 2026-2027 season.

“I played with him in Sylvania for 6/7 years, and we moved on. We played each other, played against each other up in Michigan, just different teams, and it’s probably one of my best friends at home, so, hopefully, I’ll get the chance to live with him too next year, so that’s another reason why I’m ecstatic to go to Adrian, too,” Meredith added.

As for the Green Army, Meredith is grateful for every fan who made his experience an unforgettable one.

“Honestly, just thank you guys for showing up, you know this year was a little tough here, but you guys still showed up for everybody, and the whole team. Can’t thank you guys enough for all the support and everything you guys did for us throughout the year; all the boys really do appreciate it,” he said.