Whitecaps’ Boehmer Reflects on BCSPL Career After Voyageur’s Cup Success

The Vancouver Whitecaps have won their third straight Canadian Championship with a shootout victory over Toronto FC. The match saw plenty of chances for both sides, but it was the Whitecaps’ goalkeeper, Isaac Boehmer, who stole the show. 

“I love it. Just watching what Isaac has done makes you feel great,” says Kai Tolpinrud, Thompson Okanagan FC’s (TOFC) General Manager.

The 22-year-old shot-stopper played every minute on the journey to the championship, conceding just twice in five games. The standout moment for Boehmer on this Voyageurs Cup run was when his side gave away a penalty in the first half of the final. Up steps former Italian international Federico Bernardeschi. However, all that European experience was no match for Boehmer as the Penticton product dove to his right and made the save with ease. 

The match would finish 0-0, but Boehmer wasn’t done there as he made another save in the shootout and propelled the Whitecaps to victory yet again. In the end, Boehmer would lift three trophies that night: The Voyageurs Cup, The George Gross Memorial Trophy as the Most Valuable Player of the whole tournament, and the Best Young Canadian Player Award. 

“It’s more than just one game, it’s the 4 previous games I played in the Canadian Championship. It’s years of being patient. I’m glad I took my opportunity, but there’s still a lot of work to be done,” says Boehmer 

As a product of the Penticton Pinnacles, Boehmer owes a lot of his success to the many great coaches throughout British Columbia who helped him get to this point. Having played in the BCSPL and the Provincial Program on his journey to the Whitecaps, Boehmer knew that every step along the way was important for his development. 

“TOFC allowed me to get out there more. I wanted to get seen by the academy in Vancouver and this allowed me to get scouted” 

TOFC General Manager and Goalkeeper Coach, Kai Tolpinrud, knew from the beginning that Boehmer was committed. “He couldn’t get enough training; he worked like a dog every session,” says Tolpinrud. 

A good coach is very important for a player’s development, but it’s not the most important aspect. “I can work you so hard or teach you so much but if you don’t take it in or you don’t do the work, you won’t get all of the benefits from it,” says Tolpinrud. “He’s [Boehmer] the one that went the extra mile and he’s reaping the rewards of it now.

As Boehmer is firmly on this journey of what looks like a long professional career, he hasn’t forgotten where he came from. “It’s so great to see everything growing here in BC and in Canada,” says the BCSPL product. 

They haven’t forgotten about him either. 

 “We get questions all the time, ‘Is Isaac going to be out at an event?’ A lot of the current players are very aware of what he’s done and what he’s accomplished, and they look to follow his path,” says Tolpinrud.  

In the same week as the Voyageur's Cup victory, Boehmer and the Whitecaps also clinched a spot in this year's MLS Playoffs. The regular season will wrap up for Vancouver on October 19th when they visit Real Salt Lake.