Jump to content

2017-18 Manitoba Bisons/U Sports


Hollywood

Recommended Posts

U-SPORTS/CIS BOOKMARKS

Usually a recruiting announcement tells me it is time to switch into next year mode. This year, it is a CanadaWest.tv story. So, as has become the usual, here is the comprehensive list of bookmarks for U-Sports (U Sports? USports? US?) hockey.

League Sites:
U Sports Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
... sub-links : Standings : Schedule/Results : Playoffs : U-Cup
Canada West Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB  
... sub-links : Schedule/Results/Links : History and Records : Media Stats
OUA Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
... sub-links : Schedule/Results
AUS Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
... sub-links : Schedule/Results
ACAC Men's Hockey Site
... sublinks: No Schedule Link  : CCAA History
BCIHL Site
... sub-links Schedule

Canada West Team Sites:
Alberta Golden Bears - Tw - FB
Calgary Dinos - Tw - FB
Lethbridge Pronghorns - Tw - FB
Manitoba Bisons - Tw - FB
Mount Royal Cougars - Tw - FB
Regina Cougars - Tw - FB
Saskatchewan Huskies - main - Tw - FB
UBC Thunderbirds - Tw - FB

AUS Team Sites:
Acadia Axemen
Dalhousie Tigers
Moncton Aigles Bleus- Google Translate
New Brunswick Varsity Reds
UPEI Panthers
St. Francis-Xavier X-men
Saint Mary's Huskies

OUA-West Team Sites:
Brock Badgers
Guelph Gryphons
Lakehead Thunderwolves
Laurier Golden Hawks
Ryerson Rams
Toronto Varsity Blues
Waterloo Warriors - Tw - FB
Western Ontario Mustangs
Windsor Lancers
York Lions

OUA-East Team Sites:
Carleton Ravens
Laurentian Voyageurs
Nipissing Lakers
Ottawa Geegees
Queen's Golden Gaels
RMC Palladins
UOIT Ridgebacks

RSEQ (OUA-East) Team Sites:
Concordia Stingers
McGill Redmen
UQTR Patriotes  - Google Translate  - Tw - FB

ACAC Team Sites:
Augustana Vikings
Briercrest Clippers
Concordia Thunder
MacEwan Griffins
NAIT Ooks
Portage Voyageurs
Red Deer Kings
SAIT Trojans

BCIHL Team Sites:
Eastern Washington Eagles
Selkirk Saints
Simon Fraser Clan - Tw
Trinity Western Spartans
Vancouver Island Mariners
Victoria Vikings

Media Sites/Blogs:
SportsNet CIS Page - SNU
TSN CIS Page
CISblog.ca
The Attacking Zone
MyToba.ca
ChrisD.ca
Boxscore News - CIS Hockey Page
Winnipeg Hockey Talk
Independent Sports News
UNBHockeyFans.com
Hockey Scene - AUS
Ryerson Rams Hockey Alumni
AcadiaAxemenHockey.com
RedmenHockey.com (McGill)
Horns Hockey Alumni (Lethbridge)
Golden Bears Hockey Alumni (Alberta)

Online video/audio:
CanadaWest.tv - YareTV link
sportscanada.tv
AUSTV.ca
OUA.tv
CITR.ca - UBC radio
Rock 94 FM - Lakehead away games
UMFM.com - occasional Bison games
SSN Canada

Canada West stats and data:
CW LeagueStats - Standings
CW LeagueStats - Daily Schedule - New Format
CW LeagueStats - Rosters
CW LeagueStats - Skaters' Stats
CW LeagueStats - Team Schedules
CW LeagueStats - Season Schedule - links to summaries

Stats:
Elite Prospects : CIS Page - individual player stats on everybody
Internet Hockey Data Base (IHDB) : CWUAA Page - like Elite Prospects
CIS Stats - 2009-10 to 2016-17
CIS Schedule/Results - 2009-10 to 2016-17
CIS Standings - 2010 to 2017
CIS Playoff Schedule/Results - 2010 to 2017
AUS Archive
OUA LeagueStat
ACAC LeagueStat
Bob Adams' Archives - CIS hockey from 1995-96 to 2008-09
Wikia - University Cup - 1963-present
Wikia - Canada West - 1972-73 - present
Wikia - GPAC - 1972-73 - 1984-85
Wikia - WIAA - 1962-63 - 1971-72
Wikia - WCIAU - 1918-19 - 1961-62
Wikia - OUA/OUAA - 1971-72 - present
Wikia - QUAA - 1971-72 - 1986-87
Wikia - OSLC - 1949-50 - 1970-71 (Ottawa St. Lawrence Conference)
Wikia - OIAA - 1958-59 - 1970-71 (Ontario Intercollegiate Athletic Association)
Wikia - QOAA - 1953-54 - 1970-71 (Quebec-Ontario Athletic Association)
Wikia - CIAU - 1902-03 - 1952-53 (CIAU Central)
Wikia - AUS/AUAA/AIAA/MIAA - 1920-present
Wikia - North American Championship
Wikia - Universiade
Atlantic Canadian Hockey History

Old threads:
OHT34 2009-10
OHT34 2010-11
OHT34 2011-12
OHT35 2012-13
OHT36 2013-14
OHT36 2014-15
OHT36 2015-16
OHT36 2016-17
Manitoba Bisons 2007-08
Manitoba Bisons 2008-09
Manitoba Bisons 2009-10
Manitoba Bisons 2010-11
Manitoba Bisons 2011-12
Manitoba Bisons 2012-13
Manitoba Bisons 2013-14
Manitoba Bisons 2014-15
Manitoba Bisons 2015-16
Manitoba Bisons 2016-17

2016-17 Exhibition Schedule -2017-18 to come!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 124
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Manitoba-banner-180x70.jpg

There are no new recruiting announcements, which usually kick off a new thread. However, there is one significant announcement. CanadaWest.tv is switching to Yare Media for their on-line broadcasts. I will be able to watch on TV via Chromecast!

Links:
• [CWUAA Announcement]
• [U of M Announcement]

ubcwo50x50.jpg

Meanwhile, former Moose defenceman Sven Butenschon has dropped the "interim" tag and is UBC's head coach.

Links:
• [CWUAA Link]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Off-Season Stories

CW-50x50-1.gif
Most teams in the CW have a story posted this off-season, and here's a summary, other than the previously posted stories on the new TV deal and Butenschon getting a contract at UBC.

Sask-green-50x50-1.jpg
Sask's plans to replace with long-condemned Rutherdump with a new facility appear to be well underway. The rumour mill states that this will be Saskatown's 3rd building with indoor plumbing.

Link: [U of S Story]

6opmg8oymjfmnwox.jpg

MRU-50x50.jpg
The MRU Bluegars will be going through a transition this coming season. Two stalwarts, Cam Maclise and Matt Brown, have signed pro deals with the Colorado Eagles of the ECHL.

Link: [MRU Story]

Lethbridge-50pxw.jpg
The Hørny Ønes have two significant announcements, one an arrival and the other a departure. Their captain, conference all-star defenceman, and 3rd leading scorer, Tim Campbell has signed in France. He will be replaced by Kamloops Blazer defenceman Dallas Valentine. Tough shoes to fill, but still a quality recruit for a building program.

Links:
[U of L Story on Campbell]
[U of L Story on Valentine]


Calgary-pre-2012-hockey-50x50.jpg
Elgin Pearce left the Bedrock Dinos to join Bison goaltender Byron Spriggs with the Manitoba Moose (AHL). Twenty goals in 28 games will earn a guy a shot. He still has a year left and previously played in the ECHL. He was on an ATO so, like Spriggs, could still play in the CWUAA.

Link: [U of C Story]

Alberta-green-50x50.jpg
The Evil Monkeys had some dubious goaltending last year and have lined up some competition in the crease with Moose Jaw Warrior goalie Zach Sawchenko.

Link: [U of A Story]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Manitoba-banner-180x70.jpg
The Bisons have no story posted as I write but they do have games in their schedule link.

They open in Northern Ireland and Scotland with one game TBA. Here's the latest European Tour Schedule:

Sat August 26, 2017 - Belfast Giants
Sun August 27, 2017 - Belfast Giants
Wed August 30, 2017 - TBD
Thu August 31, 2017 - Braehead Clan

And in North America the usual hodge-podge:

Fri September 15, 2017 - Saskatchewan Huskies (at Regina)
Sat September 16, 2017 - Calgary Dinos (at Regina)
Fri September 22, 2017 - Regina Cougars (at Seven Oaks Arena)
Sat September 23, 2017 - Regina Cougars (at Wayne Fleming Arena)
Sat September 30, 2017 - at University of North Dakota

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to June! Two teams have new official announcements. Here's the skinny.

MRU-50x50.jpg
Former MRU Bluegar Cam Maclise is having success in the ECHL playoffs. He scored the tieing and insurance goals in the Colorado Eagles' decisive semi-final win over the Toledo Walleyes.

Link:
¶ [MRU Story]

ubcwo50x50.jpg
The UBC T-irds have announced two signings. One is centre Matt Revel, who played for the Saskatoon Blades, Kamloops Blazers, and Portland Winterhawks of the WHL. His best years were in Kamloops. His peak season was 2015-16 when he scored 23 goals in 66 games. Also signed was right winger Graham Millar. He played for Saskatoon Blades, Everett Silvertips, and Edmonton Oil Kings in the WHL. His peak season was 15 goals in 70 games with Everett in 2015-16.

Links:
¶ [UBC Revel Story]
¶ [Revel at Eliteprospects]
¶ [UBC Millar Story]
¶ [Millar at Eliteprospects]

Thus far recruiting announcements across the CW have been slower than in most years. I expect official news to pick up now that it is June. And, of course, exhibition schedules should be coming out hot and heavy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

June 9: Fab 4 Bison Recruits

Manitoba-banner-180x70.jpg
The first announcement of the recruiting season is out and the Herd has three forwards and one defenceman coming aboard, all with major junior (or higher) experience.

Links:
[U of M Announcement]

Michael St. Croix - C - Greenville (ECHL)

- St. Croix was a redshirt last year so this announcement was a formality. He's a Winnipeg boy coming home to play. His peak numbers in junior were impressive (45-60-105 in 2011-12 with the Edmonton Oil Kings). He was a 4th round draft choice of the New York Rangers and has spent the last three years in the ECHL and AHL.

Links:
Stats: [Elite Prospects] : [Hockey DB] : [Wikipedia] : [NHL]
Profiles: [Dobber]
Stories: [Hockey News (2011)] : [Hockey's Future]

Zach Franko - LW - Acadia (AUS)

- Franko is a former youth hockey team-mate of St. Croix's. He was better than a PPG player with the Kelowna Rockets in the WHL (peaking at 24-48-72 in 2012-13). In two years at Acadia he had 53 points in 55 games (21-32-53). Throw a right-winger in there and the Bisons will add one very strong line. He is also a former Blue.

Links:
Stats: [Elite Prospects] : [Hockey DB] : [Wikia]
Profiles: [Acadia] : [WHL Fans]
Video: [YouTube]

Calvin Spencer - RW - Swift Current/Vancouver (WHL)

- Spencer is a rugged right winger an half-brother of Jet Dustin Byfuglien. Maybe he could ride shot-gun for St. Croix and Franko. He is from Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. He doesn't have the big numbers but check out the YouTube hockey fights! He also played 3 games on an ATO with Tulsa of the ECHL.

Links:
Stats: [Elite Prospects] : [Hockey DB]
Video: [YouTube] : [HockeyFights.com]

Lucas Skrumeda - D - Everett (WHL)

- Skrumeda is another Winnipegger coming home. He played for the Blues and then went to Everett in the WHL. I always like it when they get some defencemen from the major junior ranks.

Links:
Stats: [Elite Prospects] : [Hockey DB] : [Wikia]
Profiles: [Everett]
Videos: [HockeyFights.com]  : [Vimeo]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

June 16: UBC signs 2 more

In a slow news week in the CW, it took the UBC T-irds to prevent the shut-out.

ubcwo50x50.jpg
The newest T-irds are forwards Tyler Sandhu and Thomas Foster. Both are WHL grads. Last year Sandhu was captain of the Tri-City Americans and his offensive numbers (23-60-83) were all career highs. Foster was dealt to Moose Jaw mid-season after spending his junior career with the Vancouver Giants. His career high was also last season (21-27-48).

Links:
[UBC Sandu Story]
[Sandhu at Eliteprospects]
[UBC Foster Story]
[Foster at Eliteprospects]

I expect the CW schedule to be released next week, which should then be followed by a raft of exhibition schedule announcements.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

June 19: Bison Schedule Released

Manitoba-brown-50x50.jpeg.png
The Bisons released their regular season [Schedule] today, without a covering story. The CW site is still at 2016-17. Here it is (all times CT):
Sat Oct 07 7:00 UBC
Sun Oct 08 1:00 UBC
Fri Oct 13 8:00 @ Alberta
Sat Oct 14 6:00 @ Alberta
Fri Oct 20 7:00 Saskatchewan
Sat Oct 21 6:00 Saskatchewan
Fri Oct 27 7:00 Mount Royal
Sat Oct 28 7:30 Mount Royal
Fri Nov 03 CONFERENCE BYE
Fri Nov 10 7:00 @ Regina
Sat Nov 11 3:00 @ Regina
Fri Nov 17 8:00 @ Lethbridge
Sat Nov 18 2:00 @ Lethbridge
Fri Nov 24 7:00 Calgary
Sat Nov 25 1:00 Calgary
Fri Dec 01 9:00 @ UBC
Sat Dec 02 4:00 @ UBC
HOLIDAY BREAK
Fri Jan 05 7:00 Alberta
Sat Jan 06 6:00 Alberta
Fri Jan 12 7:00 @ Saskatchewan
Sat Jan 13 7:00 @ Saskatchewan
Fri Jan 19 8:00 @ Mount Royal
Sat Jan 20 4:00 @ Mount Royal
Fri Jan 26 7:00 Regina
Sat Jan 27 1:00 Regina
Fri Feb 02 7:00 Lethbridge
Sat Feb 03 1:00 Lethbridge
Fri Feb 09 8:00 @ Calgary
Sat Feb 10 3:00 @ Calgary


I don't know why they have a "conference bye". It also comes right before back-to-back away weekends, meaning no home games for 4 weeks.

Those Monkeys and Mutts series in first 3 weeks will tell whether the team is a contender.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

June 20: Full CW Schedule Is Here!

CW-50x50-1.gif

Links:
¶ [CW Schedule]
¶ [U of M Story]
¶ [Calgary Schedule] (regular season only)
¶ [Regina Schedule] (regular season and exhibition)
¶ [Saskatchewan Schedule] (regular season and exhibition)
¶ [Saskatchewan Story]


The whole thang is out. I have not seen a cover story but after the Bisons jumped the gun yesterday, the CW has their schedule ready for clicking. A lot of home-and-home on the weekend of October 6-8. I don't think UBC and Manitoba will have a home-and-home series any time soon. The countdown is on!

Fri Oct 06
Lethbridge at Calgary 7:00 PM MDT
Mount Royal at Alberta 7:00 PM MDT
Saskatchewan at Regina 7:00 PM CST

Sat Oct 07
UBC at Manitoba 7:00 PM CDT
Alberta at Mount Royal 6:00 PM MDT
Regina at Saskatchewan 7:00 PM CST
Calgary at Lethbridge 7:00 PM MDT

Sun Oct 08
UBC at Manitoba 1:00 PM CDT
Link to comment
Share on other sites

June 23: Lots of Stories and Schedules

CW-50x50-1.gif

Links:
¶ [CW Schedule]
¶ [Alberta Story]
¶ [Alberta Schedule] (regular season and exhibition)
¶ [Calgary Story]
¶ [Regina Story]
¶ [UBC Story]
¶ [UBC Schedule] (regular season and exhibition)


Most teams have now issued a complete schedule and a cover story. The only hold-outs are Lethbridge and MRU. Calgary has not released a pre-season schedule.

The new stuff from this week is that Alberta and UBC have now released pre-season schedules.

Sep 08 NAIT (ACAC) v Alberta (at Athabasca)
Sep 10 Alberta (ACAC) v Augustana (at Athabasca)
Sep 22 Saskatchewan at Alberta
Sep 23 Calgary at Alberta
Sep 29 Alberta at Minnesota State (NCAA)
Sep 30 Alberta at Minnesota-Duluth (NCAA)

Sep 15 Simon Fraser (BCIHL) at UBC
Sep 22 Queen's (OUA) at UBC
Sep 23 Queen's (OUA) at UBC
Sep 30 Trinity Western (BCIHL) at UBC
Link to comment
Share on other sites

July 1: Tour Schedule Completed

Manitoba-brown-50x50.jpeg.pngBelfastGiants-50x50.jpgEdinburghCapitals-2009-no-words-50x50.jpBraeheadClan-50x50.jpg
The Bisons have completed the schedule for their pre-season tour to Northern Ireland and Scotland. The 3rd game has been shifted to Aug 29th and they will face the Edinburgh Capitals at the Murrayfield Ice Rink. The revised schedule is as follows:

Sat Aug 26 at Belfast Giants
Sun Aug 27 at Belfast Giants
Tue Aug 29 at Edinburgh Capitals
Thu Aug 31 at Braehead Clan

There were no other schedule announcements in the CWUAA.

Links:
¶ [U of M Schedule]
¶ [Belfast Giants Site]
¶ [Attendance Story @IIHF] ∞ [@Giants]
¶ [Adam Keefe @eliteprospects]
¶ [Edinburgh Capitals]
¶ [Mike Cazzola Story] ∞ [@eliteprospects]
¶ [Braehead Clan]


I looked through the Bison opponents' team sites and there are a few factors of interest.

First, the Belfast Giants are one of Europe's Top 100 teams in crowd support. In 2016-17 they were 70th in European attendance, and first in the EIHL, with an average crowd of 4,603 per game. The EIHL as a whole ranks 7th in Europe, at 2,842 per game. That's first amongst hockey's little countries. The details are in the links.

Second, former Manitoba Moose useless forward Adam Keefe is the Giants' coach. What I remember about Keefe is that he would get in a useless fight with some other non-fighter at a time when there was no apparent reason for it. Then he'd give his hair a flick in a "Pantene moment" when separated by the linesmen. He was definitely not AHL-calibre. He must have somehow picked up some hockey knowledge along the way.

And third, former Acadia Axeman Mike Cazzola has been signed by the Edinburgh Capitals. He averaged more than a point per game with Acadia (130 in 107 games). Last season he scored 30 goals in the ECHL.

Alberta-green-50x50.jpgubcletters50x50.jpgCalgary-red-50x50.jpg
The Hockey Hall of Fame announcement this year had a CIS component, affecting three CW teams. Clare Drake, former UBC T-ird player and Alberta Evil Monkey coach, was inducted along with Danielle Goyette, Bedrock Dinos women's coach and national team player.

Links:
¶ [U of A Story]
¶ [CWUAA Story] ∞ [@ USports]
¶ [UBC Story] ∞ [UBC 1948-50 Story]


Drake played for UBC when they played an independent schedule in 1948-50. That team was inducted into the BC Hall of Fame. The linked story talks of their trips to the States and their annual Hamber Cup series with Alberta.

1949-50-UBC-400x225.jpg
1949-50 UBC Thunderbirds

Alberta-hockey-50x50.jpg
Former Monkey Derek Ryan has re-signed with the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes.

Link:
¶ [U of A Story]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

July 8: Stories at UofM and UBC

Manitoba-brown-50x50.jpeg.png

Links:
¶ [UofM Story]


GoBisons.ca has a small story confirming the British Tour which was already posted on the team schedule. The only new information is that they are still fundraising for it. They also start a mini-camp in mid-August.

ubcwo50x50.jpgKunlun-redstar-50x50.jpg

Links:
¶ [UBC Story]
¶ [Kunlun Red Star KHL Page]
¶ [Kunlun Wikipedia] ∞ [Elite Prospects] ∞ [Eurohockey]
¶ [Sportsnet: Keenan Hired]
¶ [CBC: Kunlun Women's Team in CWHL]
¶ [Brandon Yip @Wikipedia]
¶ [Zach Yuen @EliteProspects]


UBC has posted a story about the departure of centre Luke Lockhart and goaltender Derek Dun. They are on their way to play for Kunlun Red Star, a Beijing based team in the KHL.

Lockhart was a decent forward with one year of eligibility remaining. He was 9-9-18 last year, 4th in team scoring. He scored exactly 9 goals per season in each of his four seasons with the T-irds. He is one of the many small forwards UBC tends to attract (5-11, 183).

Dun played just one season for UBC. He managed to wrestle the starting job away from Matt Hewitt after they both went 50-50 most of the way. His stats were 7-4, .910, 2.87. He is also quite small (5-11, 171).

Both players are of partial Chinese descent. With China hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics they will no doubt be looking for any decent player they can claim. The Kunlun team was designed in part to cultivate national team players. There was only one player listed on the team as coming from China, but several others who might just qualify. Two names that jumped out at me were Brandon Yip, who had a cup of coffee with the Colorado Avalanche a while back, and Zach Yuen, a one-time Winnipeg Jets' draft pick who has toiled all over the place.

The Kunlun team started play in 2016-17 and made the KHL playoffs, losing the opening round 4 games to 1. The advent of the team was attended by Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping.

Former Toronto Varsity Blues coach Mike Keenan has been hired to coach the team. He has a Stanley Cup and a Gagarin Cup on his coaching resume. One of his jobs is to get regular ice time for 5 Chinese players.

Also, the same Kunlun organization has a women's team based in Shenzhen, which is near Hong Kong. That team is joining the CWHL this year.

How will this impact UBC? Hewitt has one year of eligibility left, but I don't know if he plans a return. His numbers in 2015-16 were quite good (6-6, .920, 2.53) but otherwise have ranged from so-so to bad (5-9, .885, 3.53 last year). Up front, their top 6 forwards included a 5th year and two 4th year players last year. So they may need a boat-load of recruits.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

July 15: UBC signs another, CWUAA exhibition to date

UBC-wo-birds-50x50.jpg
The T-irds have landed a groovy recruit, centre/right wing Austin Glover. He played 5 seasons in the WHL, split between Kelowna and Prince Albert, before a mid-season trade last year sent him to Red Deer. His combined stats last year were 22-36-58, by far his career high.

Links:
¶ [UBC Glover Story]
¶ [Glover at Eliteprospects]


CW-50x50.gif
The only teams yet to announce their non-conference schedules are the Bedrock Dinos and the MRU Bluegars. So here is the schedule for the rest:

Aug 26 Manitoba at Belfast (EIHL)
Aug 27 Manitoba at Belfast (EIHL)
Aug 29 Manitoba at Edinburgh (EIHL)
Aug 31 Manitoba at Braehead (EIHL)

Sep 08 Lethbridge at Calgary
Sep 08 N.A.I.T. (ACAC) v Alberta (at Athabasca)
Sep 09 Calgary at Lethbridge
Sep 10 Alberta v Augustana (ACAC) (at Athabasca)

Sep 14 Saskatchewan v Regina (at Ochapowace)
Sep 15 Calgary at Regina
Sep 15 Lethbridge at Western Ontario
Sep 15 Manitoba v Saskatchewan (at Regina)
Sep 15 Simon Fraser (BCIHL) at U.B.C.
Sep 16 Lethbridge at Western Ontario
Sep 16 Manitoba v Calgary (at Regina)

Sep 22 Red Deer College (ACAC) at Lethbridge
Sep 22 Regina at Manitoba (at Seven Oaks Arena)
Sep 22 Queen's at U.B.C.
Sep 22 Saskatchewan at Alberta
Sep 23 Calgary at Alberta
Sep 23 Queen's at U.B.C.
Sep 23 Red Deer College (ACAC) at Lethbridge
Sep 23 Regina at Manitoba
Sep 23 Saskatchewan v Mount Royal (at Edmonton)

Sep 29 Alberta at Minnesota State (NCAA)
Sep 30 Alberta at Minnesota-Duluth (NCAA)
Sep 30 Lethbridge at Colorado College (NCAA)
Sep 30 Manitoba at North Dakota (NCAA)
Sep 30 Regina at St. Cloud State (NCAA)
Sep 30 Trinity Western (BCIHL) at U.B.C.
Oct 01 Alberta at Minnesota (NCAA)
Oct 01 Lethbridge at Denver (NCAA)
Oct 01 Regina at Minnesota State (NCAA)
Oct 02 Lethbridge at Air Force (NCAA)

Oct 06 CWUAA regular season starts
Link to comment
Share on other sites

July 20: UBC gets a goalie

UBC-wo-birds-50x50.jpg
Goaltender Rylan Toth is going from one team of T-irds to another. He played for the Seattle T-irds of the WHL last year and will play for the UBC T-irds this year. He went to Seattle after two seasons with the Red Deer Rebels. He has played in the last two Memorial Cups. The numbers are kinda so-so, but UBC really needed a goaltender and should be quite happy. UBC is by far the leader in off-season news in the CW.

Links:
¶ [UBC Toth Story]
¶ [Toth at Eliteprospects]


CW-50x50.gif
The Bedrock Dinos have posted their schedule leaving the MRU Bluegars as the only laggard.

Aug 26 Manitoba at Belfast (EIHL)
Aug 27 Manitoba at Belfast (EIHL)
Aug 29 Manitoba at Edinburgh (EIHL)
Aug 31 Manitoba at Braehead (EIHL)

Sep 08 Lethbridge at Calgary
Sep 08 N.A.I.T. (ACAC) v Alberta (at Athabasca)
Sep 09 Calgary at Lethbridge
Sep 10 Alberta v Augustana (ACAC) (at Athabasca)

Sep 14 Saskatchewan v Regina (at Ochapowace)
Sep 15 Calgary at Regina
Sep 15 Lethbridge at Western Ontario
Sep 15 Manitoba v Saskatchewan (at Regina)
Sep 15 Simon Fraser (BCIHL) at U.B.C.
Sep 16 Lethbridge at Western Ontario
Sep 16 Manitoba v Calgary (at Regina)

Sep 21 Mount Royal at Calgary (Brick)
Sep 22 Red Deer College (ACAC) at Lethbridge
Sep 22 Regina at Manitoba (at Seven Oaks Arena)
Sep 22 Queen's at U.B.C.
Sep 22 Saskatchewan at Alberta (Brick)
Sep 23 Calgary at Alberta (Brick)
Sep 23 Queen's at U.B.C.
Sep 23 Red Deer College (ACAC) at Lethbridge
Sep 23 Regina at Manitoba
Sep 23 Saskatchewan v Mount Royal (Brick at Edmonton)

Sep 27 Calgary at Mount Royal
Sep 29 Alberta at Minnesota State (NCAA)
Sep 29 Calgary at SAIT (ACAC)
Sep 30 Alberta at Minnesota-Duluth (NCAA)
Sep 30 Lethbridge at Colorado College (NCAA)
Sep 30 Manitoba at North Dakota (NCAA)
Sep 30 Regina at St. Cloud State (NCAA)
Sep 30 Trinity Western (BCIHL) at U.B.C.
Oct 01 Alberta at Minnesota (NCAA)
Oct 01 Lethbridge at Denver (NCAA)
Oct 01 Regina at Minnesota State (NCAA)
Oct 02 Lethbridge at Air Force (NCAA)

Oct 06 CWUAA regular season starts
Link to comment
Share on other sites

July 24: Lots of players are going pro.

I found a cross-section of official and unofficial stories, dealing mostly with players moving on from the CWUAA.

Alberta-50px.jpgGuildfordFlames-50x50.jpg
Three Monkeys are on their way to play for the Flames, the Guildford Flames that is. The former Apes are Rhett Rachinski, Brennan Yadlowski, and Jesse Craige. Craige had already gone pro a year ago and the others had no further eligibility left. Guildford is moving up from the EPHL where they enjoyed immense success, to the EIHL. Remember that the Bisons face three EIHL teams in the pre-season.

Links:
¶ [U of A Story]


UBC-wo-birds-50x50.jpgHC-Asiago-50x50G.jpg
The T-irds are losing their leading scorer from a year ago. Anthony Bardaro has signed with HC Asiago of the Alps Hockey League. He still had a year of eligibility left. The Alps league is Austria-based and is their 2nd tier league (behind the EBEL). The league also has the better teams from Slovenia and Italy.

Links:
¶ [UBC Story]
¶ [CWUAA Story]


Calgary-2013-50x50.jpgTilburgTrappers-50x50.jpg
Bedrock U has no story posted but there are links for a few departures, all of whom played just one season for the Dinos. Two back-up players are moving down the hockey ladder. Darcy DeRoose is going to the Red Deer College Kings and Mac Colasimone is off to the S.F.U. Clown. Meanwhile, Parker Bowles is going pro with the Tillburg Trappers, a Dutch team playing in the Oberliga, Germany's 3rd tier league. Bowles had 12 points in 12 games. Colasimone dressed in 7 games and had 2 goals and 1 assist. DeRoose had 1 goal and 2 assists in his 11 games.

Links:
¶ [Tillburg Story on Bowles (in Dutch)]
¶ [SJHL Story on DeRoose]
¶ [SFU Story on Colasimone]


Mount-Royal-50x50.jpgDundeeStars-50x50.jpg
Meanwhile, across town, the M.R.U. Bluegars will bid farewell to defenceman Emerson Hrynyk. He is off to the Dundee Stars of the EIHL. This former Dauphin King had a year of eligibility left. No word on whether Dundee has restaurants that serve perogies with haggis.

Links:
¶ [Dundee Story]


Regina-50x50.jpg
Amidst the stories of departures, I also see that the Regina Banjo Cats landed a goaltender. Michael Herringer has the unenviable task of facing the onslaught of shots in the Regina goal. He'll see more rubber than ... ah forget it. He's had some OK numbers, so Regina must be happy getting a recruit from the Dub. They need many more of those.

Links:
¶ [Tweet from Kelowna]
¶ [Elite Prospects Page]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

July 25: A T-ird wins gold

UBC-wo-birds-50x50.jpg
Once again, the T-irds have more off-season news. Defenceman Kyle Becker helped Canada win gold at the Maccabiah Games, the "Jewish Olympics". There was a 5-team round-robin, where Canada went 4-0-0 to place 1st. In the final Canada beat USA 7-2 for gold. Russia beat Israel for bronze, and Germany placed 5th. There were almost 10,000 fans in the sold-out arena for the final game.

Links:
¶ [UBC Story]
¶ [Games Standings]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
Aug 4: Slow News Is Some News

The teams in the CW have not had much to say so far. UBC is the exception, albeit mostly with stories of players moving on lately.

UBC-wo-birds-50x50.jpgAlbaVolanSzekesfehervar-50x50.jpg
It is appropriate that Antilla the Hun is off to Hungary. T-ird grad Joe Antilla has signed with Hungarian team Alba Volán Székesfehérvár from the Austria-based EBEL. Bison coach Ryan Bonni played for that team back in 2008-09. That's a pretty good league.

Links:
¶ [UBC Story]


Sask-hockey-50x50.jpg
The Banjo Mutts announced their annual Off The Leash Luncheon will be held November 2nd and guest speaker will be Brendan Shanahan. No doubt Shanny has always wanted to spray a fire hydrant.

Links:
¶ [U of S Story]


Manitoba-50px.gifBelfastGiants-50x50.jpgEdinburgh_Capitals-2009-no-words-50x50.jBraeheadClan-50x50.jpg
The Bisons' British Tour is now only 3 weeks away. The tickets are fairly pricey. The Belfast Giants charge £25-£35 (C$41-C$58) for adults for two games, and for children its £14-£22 (C$23-C$36). Edinburgh Capitals are much cheaper, £5 for children and £10 for adults. Braehead's links for tickets are not up and running yet. But for their other exhibition games the range is £9-£27. So if I were on tour the tickets would cost me more than a season pass over here! In fact, AHL Moose tickets are cheaper.

Links:
¶ [Belfast Giants Announcement]
¶ [Edinburgh Capitals - Ticket Page]
¶ [Braehead Facebook Event Page] ∞ [Braehead Fixtures]


CW-50x50.gifHockey_Canada_red_50x50.jpg
Lots of CW (and CIS) coaches have made it big and two, former Calgary Dinos' head coach Willie Desjardins and former Saskatchewan Huskies' head coach Dave King, were named to Hockey Canada's coaching staff for the upcoming Winter Olympics. Desjardins will be the head coach. Mike Babcock (Lethbridge) was at the helm in 2010 and 2014, and Dave King himself led the way in 1984, 1988, and 1992. Clare Drake (Alberta) was one three "head coaches" in 1980, along with Tom Watt and Lorne Davis. George Kingston (Calgary) and Wayne Fleming (Manitoba) have served as assistants.

Links:
¶ [CWUAA Story]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Aug 6: Merasty to Wichita, and more

Manitoba-50px.gifwichita-thunder-2017-50x50.jpgEdinburgh_Capitals-2009-no-words-50x50.j
Shaq Merasty has been signed by the Wichita Thunderof the ECHL. He was one of the leading scorers for the Bisons and although he has been out of junior for 5 seasons already, he still had one year left. (He played in the NCAA3, got 2nd team all-American honours, red-shirted, and then spent 3 years with the Bisons.) In 28 NCAA3 games he was 22-16-38. His peak season in the CW was 14-16-30 in 2015-16.

Also, upcoming Bison opponent Edinburgh Capitals signed yet another Acadia alum, Dylan Anderson. That gives the Caps two former Cajuns and the Bisons one for that game coming up on August 29th.

Links:
¶ [Merasty @Elite Prospects]
¶ [Findlay @Twitter]
¶ [Edinburgh @Twitter]
¶ [Edinburgh Story]



UBC-wo-birds-50x50.jpgTrinity_Western-2010-white-50x50.jpgSimonFraser-hockey-2015-50x50.jpg
No post would be complete without a UBC story. This one tells us that the T-irds previously-announced exhibition games against the Trinity Western Spartans and the **** Clown are part of a tournament sponsored by the Vancouver Giants called the "Captains Cup". Seems silly, since the games are so spread out, but if it generates some interest so be it. The BCIHL schedule is still stuck at 2016-17.

Captains Cup Schedule
Sep 15 SFU at UBC – 7 p.m.
Sep 16 TWU at SFU – 7 p.m.
Sep 30 TWU at UBC – 2 p.m.

Links:
¶ [UBC Story]
¶ [UBC Schedule]
¶ [BCIHL Schedule]



Lethbridge-50x50.jpg
There has been nothing official from the Hørny Ønes in a long time. And there still has not been. Twitter tells us that Vancouver Giants' defenceman Jeff Rayman is going to Lethbridge. With 7 goals in 205 WHL games he is not being brought in to light up the scoreboard. They should find a 6'3" big guy in front of the net to be useful.

Links:
¶ [Findlay @Twitter]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
Aug 19: A week away from 1st game, and CW gets new look

CW-2017-50x50.jpgCW-2017-secondary-50x50.jpgCW-2017-_Manitoba-50x50.jpg
The CW got a new logo, and a secondary abbreviation version. They even have different colour schemes for each team to use. I display the Bison colours here.

Manitoba-80s-sunlasses-white-50x50.pngBelfast_Giants-50x50.jpg
MANITOBA BISONS (0-0-0, 0-0-0)
BELFAST GIANTS (0-0-0, 0-0-0)


Saturday, August 26th, 1:00 PM CDT @ The SSE Arena (Belfast, Northern Ireland)
Sunday, August 27th, 10:00 AM CDT @ The SSE Arena (Belfast, Northern Ireland)


The Herd opens the season in one week. They face the Belfast Giants on Sat Aug 26 and Sun Aug 27. There are a whole lot of links from the Irish. The Bison roster page is still on 2016-17.

Links:
¶ Launch Day:
[Giants' Story] ∞ [Facebook Event]
¶ Roster: [@Elite Prospects] ∞ [@Giants] ∞ [@UofM]
¶ Elite Prospects career stats: [Paul Deniset] ∞ [Kevin Saurette]
¶ Giants': [Facebook] ∞ [Twitter] ∞ [Wikipedia]


The Giants have one of those free events for fans today. They are the EIHL's best franchise when it comes to putting fans in seats. So the Bisons should be in an AHL-type environment for the games.

The team is also quite successful on the ice. Founded in 2000-01, they have won the championship (finishing 1st overall) four times, and the playoffs twice (this is considered secondary in British hockey). In the last 8 years they have been 1st twice and 2nd three times, including last year.

The Giants have been successful because they identify with neither Irish nor British, nor Catholic nor Protestant. Sports teams over there usually do, which adds spice (and sometimes violence) to rivalries.

Two former Bison stars played for the Giants in the past but are now retired: Kevin Saurette and Paul Deniset.

Kevin Saurette was with the Bisons for 5 years starting in 2001-02 and finished his pro career in Belfast. He arrived there during the 2012-13 season and stayed for 2.5 years, finishing in 2014-15. His peak Bison season was 21-32-53 in 40 games (Elite Prospects included non-conference games in some stats) and his peak Giants' numbers were 31-34-65 in 52 games.

Paul Deniset was a Bison for 4 years starting in 2002-03 during which he was usually lined up with Saurette. He had two stints in Belfast, 2008-09 and 2011-12. Hard to choose his best Bison season. Is 34-22-56 in 42 games better than 26-25-51 in 32 games? He was a dynamic goal-scorer for the Bisons no matter how you look at it. His numbers were also impressive in Belfast, peaking at 27-39-66 in 39 games.

A smattering of Giants pictures shows they have a choice of colourful jerseys. And their fans seem to appreciate a tussle once in a while.

Belfast-_Cardiff-fight-350w.jpg
Belfast-championship.jpg
Belfast-pink-v_Cardiff.jpg
Belfast-teal-v_Edinburgh.jpg
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Aug 22: Around the horn round-up

CW-2017-_Manitoba_Banner-116x73.jpg

The Bisons still don't have a new roster page. But we do have their new banner logo. And The Manitoban has posted a tour story with comments from Brett Stovin. Saturday the Belfast Giants displayed their four different jerseys for this season. I am not a fan of the heavy advertised Euro-look.

The Bisons also reposted the CW story on CanadaWest.tv. A hockey pass is $35.99 ($29.99 early bird) and other prices are stated in the story. The debut broadcast is an exhibition football game on Wednesday.

Links:
¶ [UofM rp @CW Logo Story]
¶ [Manitoban: Tour Story]
¶ [CanadaWest.tv Story]


2017-4jerseys.jpg

CW-2017-_Lethbridge_Banner-116x73.jpg

The Hørny Ønes made it official with four new recruits, bringing their total announcements to six. The new players are:

- Jeff Rayman - defence - Vancouver Giants (WHL)
- Taylor Fisher - defence - Selkirk Steelers (MJHL)
- Tyler Maltby - right wing - Sherwood Park (AJHL)
- Jonny Hogue - goaltender - Odessa Jackalopes (NAHL)
- Ty Edmonds - goaltender - Prince George Cougars (NAHL)

Maltby had committed to Arizona State but that fell through for some reason. He scored a ton in Junior A, just over a PPG.

They also continued their flood of new stories with word of a new assistant coach, Kevin Higo, who was the head coach of the Grand Prairie Storm of the AJHL.

Links:
¶ [UofL Recruiting Story] ● [rp @CW]
¶ [UofL rp @CW Logo Story]
¶ [UofL Higo Story]


CW-2017-_UBCBanner-116x73.jpg
Nate Fleming became the 5th T-ird to sign a pro deal. He is going to the Manchester Storm of the EIHL.

Links:
¶ [UBC Story]


Mount-_Royal-50x50.jpg
The Bluegars have nothing at all on their website this off-season. But they have retweeted a few recruiting announcements.

- Bradley Kennedy - forward - Weeks (MHL)/Halifax (QMJHL)
- Mitchell Lipon - centre - Whitecourt (AJHL)
- Kord Pankewicz - defence - Brooks (AJHL)/Lethbridge (WHL)

All of them have split time between Major Junior and Junior A. Kennedy had been in the QMJHL until mid-way through last season. Lipon once played in the WHL but has been back in Junior A for 2½ years. Pankewicz had four seasons in the Dub before splitting last season between that and Junior A.

Links:
¶ [Kennedy retweet]
¶ [Lipon retweet]
¶ [Pankewicz retweet]


CW-2017-_Sask_Banner-116x73.jpg
The Banjo Mutts tweeted their CW conference banner and issued a press release with their recruits. They landed more players than I thought they needed. Here are the newest fire hydrant-cleaners:

- Taran Kozun - goaltender - Rosetown Red Wings (redshirt after minor league season with 4 teams)
- Collin Shirley - left wing/centre - Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
- Carter Folk - left wing - Victoria Royals (WHL)
- Taylor Sanheim - forward - Penticton Vees (BCHL)
- Jesse Shynkaruk - forward - Saskatoon Blades (WHL)
- Alex Forsberg - left wing/centre - Victoria Royals (WHL)
- MacKenzie Johnston - defenceman - Rosetown Red Wings (redshirt after MRU)

Links:
¶ [UofS Story]


Regina-50x50.jpg
The Banjo Cats previously announced the signing of a goaltender. They have now announced more signings. They must be purring with five additions from the Dub, much more than in recent seasons.

Michael Herringer - goaltender - Kelowna Rockets (WHL)
Troy Murray - defence - Kootenay Ice (WHL)
Zak Zborosky - forward - Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
Ben Duperreault - forward - Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
Jacob Cardiff - forward - Spokane Chiefs (WHL)

Links:
¶ [UofR Story] ● [rp @CW]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Aug 25: Puck Drops Tomorrow

CW-2017-_Manitoba_Banner-116x73.jpg

The puck drops tomorrow for the Bisons-Belfast series but nothing new on the Bison tour, nor of the roster. Hopefully I can find a LeagueStat kind of source for rosters etc. If you have £10 you can watch on-line, or £12 for both! Post-game highlights will likely be on their YouTube page.

The CW is also releasing stories on each team's CW recruits. The Bisons already announced theirs. To remind you, here they are again:

Lucas Skrumeda - defence - Everett Silvertips (WHL)
Calvin Spencer - forward - Vancouver Giants (WHL)
Michael St. Croix - forward - SEPT (Allan Cup, red shirt after 3 seasons in AHL/ECHL after Edmonton in WHL)
Zach Franko - forward - Innisfail (Allan Cup, red shirt after 2 seasons with Acadia after Kootenay in WHL)

Links:
¶ [CW Story re: Bison WHL recruits]
¶ [Belfast Story: Keefe Wants Wins]
¶ [Webcast at Giants Live]
¶ [Belfast YouTube]


Belfast-_Bisons-_Banner-_Ad-400w.jpg


CW-2017-_Alberta_Banner-116x73.jpg

The Evil Monkeys confirmed their new collection of Apes, one of whom (Sawchenko) was previously announced. Magee finished his junior career in Victoria (WHL) then went pro.

- Clayton Kirichenko - defence - Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
- Brandon Magee - forward - Lacombe Generals (red shirt after season in ECHL)
- Steven Owre - forward - Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
- Zach Sawchenko - goaltender - Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL)

Links:
¶ [UofA Story]


CW-2017-MRUBanner-116x73.jpgCW-2017-MRUBanner2-116x73.jpg

The Bluegars' conference banner was out, briefly, and then replaced with one featuring a new logo. How about that. Their website still has no feature stories. However, one commitment story is part of a batch of releases on the CW site. They have Riley Lindgren, a forward from Swift Current (WHL). He had 74 points in 72 games. I suppose the rest of their recruits will be from Junior A. Their 2017-18 schedule has been posted, but their only listed exhibition game is the one announced by and against Saskatchewan.

Links:
¶ [CW Story]
¶ [MRU Schedule]


CW-2017-UBCBanner-116x73.jpg
The CW's story on the previously announced CW recruits for the T-irds is out there now. To recap:

Rylan Toth - goal - Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL)
Graham Millar - forward - Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL)
Matt Revel - forward - Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
Tyler Sandhu - forward - Tri-City Americans (WHL)
Austin Glover - forward - Red Deer Rebels (WHL)

Links:
¶ [CW Story]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Aug 26-27: Bisons Split in Belfast

Manitoba-50px.gifBelfast_Giants-50x50.jpg
The only links I could find were from Belfast's Twitter feed. They have loads of good photos but no summary nor boxscore. They did not mention who scored the Bison goals. So I have posted what is there.

Saturday, August 26, 2017

MANITOBA BISONS 6
BELFAST GIANTS 4

Links:
Giants' Tweets: [1st] : [2nd] : [Final]
UofM: [Schedule/Results Page]

The Bisons held period leads of 3-1 and 5-2. The Giants pulled to within 1 before the Bisons put it away.

170826-_UM-_BG-_Bresciani-_Brooks-400w.j
Channing Bresciani and Brett Brooks in mid-ice.

170826-_UM-_BG-creasecrash-400w.jpg
Justin Augert and the new #16 can't stop a crease crash goal. I hope he's a defenceman.

170826-_UM-_BG-_Spriggs-400w.jpg
Byron Spriggs got the win.

170826-_UM-_BG-_Franko-celeb-400w.jpg
Zach Franko takes over Jordan Depape's #27.

Sunday, August 27, 2017

MANITOBA BISONS 6
BELFAST GIANTS 7
(in overtime)

Links:
Giants' Tweets: [1st] : [2nd] : [Final]
UofM: [Schedule/Results Page]

This must have been wild. The Bisons had period leads of 2-1 and 4-2. But Belfast scored 4 goals in the 3rd to take a 6-4 lead. The Bisons rallied to force overtime, including a last-minute goal.

170827-_UM-_BG-_Christensen-400w.jpg
Looks like Sean Christensen is back.

170827-_UM-_BG-_Henry-400w.jpg
Adam Henry is one of many Bison defencemen to have a picture taken.

170827-_UM-_BG-_Hunter-400w.jpg
I wonder if Rene Hunter crushed anybody.

170827-_UM-_BG-_Skrumeda-400w.jpg
Newcomer Lukas Skrumeda got Shaq's #25.

170827-_UM-_BG-_Sydora-400w.jpg
Dasan Sydora played at least part of the game in goal.

UP NEXT

Aug 29 Bisons at Edinburgh
Aug 31 Bisons at Braehead

MountRoyal-2017-73x73.jpgMountRoyal-2017-blue-73x73.jpgMountRoyal-2017-MRU-214x73.jpgMountRoyal-2017-words-73x73.jpg
The Bluegars posted two stories on their new look.

Links:
¶ [Aug 25th Press Release]
¶ [School Release - with alt logos]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Preview: Aug 29-31: Bisons in Scotland

 

Manitoba-50px.gifEdinburgh_Capitals-2009-50x50.jpgBraehead_Clan-50x50.jpg

 

MANITOBA BISONS (0-0-0, 1-0-1)
EDINBURGH CAPITALS (0-0-0, 0-0-0)
BRAEHEAD CLAN (0-0-0, 1-3-0)

 

Tuesday, August 29th, 1:30 PM CDT @ Murrayfield Ice Rink (Edinburgh, Scotland)
Thursday, August 31st, 1:30 PM CDT @ Braehead Arena (Glasgow, Scotland)

 

Links:
¶ Capitals' Stories: [Focus on the Bisons] ∞ [Strong Squad Ready]
¶ Roster: [@Elite Prospects] ∞ [@Capitals]
¶ Elite Prospects career stats: [Taylor Stefishen] ∞ [Mike Cazzola] ∞ [Dylan Anderson] ∞ [Michael D'Orazio]
¶ Capitals': [Facebook] ∞ [Twitter] ∞ [YouTube]
¶ Murrayfield Ice Rink: [History]
¶ Clan Stories: [Ryan Potulny Signed] ∞ [Fixtures/Results]
¶ Roster: [@Elite Prospects] ∞ [@Clan]
¶ Clan: [Facebook] ∞ [Twitter] ∞ [Event Page]

 

The Bison tour has finished its Irish leg and now it is time for the Scottish leg. I believe the last time the Bisons played in Scotland was 1931 when they were touring before and after the world championship tournament. They stopped in England and beat their national team four times (7-0, 7-1, 2-1, and 3-2) and Oxford University once (4-0) before defeating the Scottish national team (11-1).

 

The Edinburgh Capitals are the Bisons' first Scottish opponent of the tour. The Capitals have four former CIS/USports players on their roster. Taylor Stefishen played for the Calgary Dinos from 2011-12 through 2013-14 and has since played in the AHL, ECHL, and various Euro leagues. Mike Cazzola was with Acadia from 2012-13 through 2015-16, then split last season between the AHL and ECHL. Dylan Anderson played for Queen's last year, after four years with Acadia. Michael D'Orazio is entering his second season with Edinburgh after having played five seasons for St. Mary's.

 

Last year the Capitals were last in the EIHL (then a 10 team league). Their record was 16-33-3. Their head coach is former NHLer Dmitri Kristich.

 

The team even has cheerleaders, one of whom is very tall, as seen in the photo. They also incorporate the Scottish flag into their jerseys. Nice touch.

 

Edinburgh-cheerleaders-400w.jpg

 

Ediburgh-_Coventry-400w.jpg

 

The Braehead Clan were 5th in the EIHL last year, at 24-22-6. They have no CIS grads. Of note, Clan goaltender Ryan Nie played for the Johnstown Chiefs (of Slapshot fame) in 2007-08. Was he mentored by Denis Lemieux? Also, forward Tyler Scofield played for the OCN Blizzard (of the MJHL) in 2004-05.

 

Just today, the Clan inked former NHLer Ryan Potulny.

 

Braehead-trophy-pic-400w.jpg

 

Braehead-game-ad-400w.jpg

 

The two Bison opponents this week are joined by two more teams from Scotland, the Dundee Stars and Fife Flyers. (Fife is a historic team that returned to top tier hockey in the UK the same season as the Jets returned to Winnipeg.) The four Scottish teams also have a competition for the Scottish Cup. The event is being held in Edinburgh September 9th and 10th. The four teams will rotate hosting this each season.

Scottish_Cup-2017-125x125.jpg

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Aug 29: Bisons Edge Capitals

Manitoba-50px.gifEdinburgh_Capitals-2009-50x50.jpg

MANITOBA BISONS 2
EDINBURGH CAPITALS 1

Links:
Capitals' Tweets: [1st] : [2nd] : [Final] : [MoM]
Capitals' Site: [Fixtures/Results Page] ∞  [Match Reports]
Game stories: [Edinburgh Reporter]
Elite Prospects career stats: [Calum Robertson]
UofM: [Schedule/Results Page]

 

Details are sketchy because while the UK teams love their pictures they have not twigged on to boxscores or summaries. But Edinburgh has a newspaper with a story, which tells us that Bison goals were scored by newcomers Lucas Skrumeda and Michael St. Croix. Skrumeda's opener came after 4 minutes and Calum Robertson scored after 10 minutes to tie it up. St. Croix's winner came with just 6 seconds left. Robertson was "Man of the Match" for the Scots and Channing Bresciani countered for the Herd.  

 

Robertson is just 16 years old, and a valuable Scottish non-import. He played Under-16 as a 13 and 14 year old, notching 44 goals in 24 games.While playing Under-20 as a 14 and 15 year old he scored 32 goals in 19 games. Also as a 15 year old, he scored 8 goals in 9 games in the SNL (2nd tier men's league behind the EIHL) and 2 more in 5 games for Britain in the Under-18 worlds.

 

170829-_Bisons-_Edinburgh.jpg
A joint team picture is a nice touch.

 

LATE LINKS

Manitoba-50px.gifBelfast_Giants-50x50.jpg

Some late links from the Belfast series have popped up.

Links:
Game stories: [Giants' Site] ∞ [Belfast Telegraph]

 

UP NEXT

Aug 31 Bisons at Braehead
Sep 15 Bisons v Saskatchewan (at Regina)
Sep 16 Bisons v Calgary (at Regina)

 

OTHER NEWS AROUND THE C.W.

CW-2017-_Lethbridge_Banner-116x73.jpg
The Hørny Ønes are holding a Scholarship Breakfast on September 28th and Michael Landsberg will be the guest speaker. He has done a lot of work speaking on mental health issues.

Link:
¶ [UofL Story]

 

CUSN-73x73.jpg
Nothing has been posted on the Bedrock U nor Bluegar websites yet. So thank goodness for the CUSN!

 

CW-2017-_Calgary_Banner-116x73.jpg
The Dinos have a massive group of 13 recruits from the WHL. I thought they were fortunate to do as well as they did last year. But this many newcomers should improve them. They did incur significant off-season losses due to graduation and pro deals. I can't wait for LeagueStat to update roster pages to see which players are back across the league. Here's the list:

 

Calgary Dinos 2017-18 WHL recruits:
– Jordan Papirny - G - Swift Current
– Colton Bobyk - D - Red Deer
– Shaun Dosanjh - D - Portland
– Ryan Gagnon - D - Victoria
– Aaron Irving - D - Everett
– Matt Alfaro - F - Lethbridge
– Tyler Coulter - F - Brandon
– Ryan Graham - F - Swift Current
– Riley Sheen - F - Red Deer
– Josh Uhrich - F - Seattle
– Tim Vanstone - F - Prince Albert

 

Red-shirt:
– Graham Black* - F - Swift Current

 

Transfer from Regina:
– Trent Lofthouse^ - F - Vancouver

Links:
¶ [WHL Tweet]
¶ [WHL Story]

 

CW-2017-MRUBanner2-116x73.jpg
The Bluegars' list is predominantly Junior A grads. On paper, the Dinos easily won this recruiting war. I always caution to be careful when it comes to Junior A recruits, i.e. don't assume they are below the calibre of Major Junior. But this is pretty tilted.

 

Here's the list:
- Ryley Lindgren - F - Swift Current (WHL)
- Mitch Lipon - F - Whitecourt (AJHL)
- Kord Pankewicz - D - Brooks (AJHL)
- Clive Rozdeba - D - Kindersley (SJHL)
- Josh Bly - F - Nipawin (SJHL)
- Austin Adamson - F - Vernon (BCHL)
- Hunter Zandee - F  - Vernon (BCHL)
- Bradley Kennedy - F - Weeks (MJAHL)

Link:
¶ [CUSN Canada-wide recruiting list]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Aug 31: Big Win for Bisons

Manitoba-50px.gifBraehead_Clan-50x50.jpg
 
MANITOBA BISONS 7
BRAEHEAD CLAN 1


Links:
Clan Tweets: [
1st] : [1st pix] : [2nd] : [2nd pix] : [Final]
Clan Site: [
Preview] ∞ [Fixtures/Results Page]
Audio: [
YouTube: Clan Radio]
Game stories: [
The Gazette - story to come]
UofM: [
Schedule/Results Page]


No game stories are available as I post, so Twitter is my friend. The Bisons enjoyed period leads of 4-0 and 5-1 en route to a convincing win. I included two posts which contain four pictures each, and there were many more if you feel like searching.

An interesting bonus is the YouTube link. If you want to hear play-by-play with a Scottish accent, give it a listen. I listened at the end of the 1st period and it sounded like Wasylak, Franko, Henry, and Zajac scored in that period. Some names don't sound the same in Scottish. I believe that the other scorers were Laurencelle, Brooks, and Shawn Bowles. I suspect they will in due time upload some highlights to that channel.

So the Bisons end the tour 3-0-1, which is decent enough.

170831-_MB-_BC-_Sharonov.400w.jpg
Victor Sharonov is a 6'5" Russian who was on the roster but did not play in the 2nd semester last year.

170831-_MB-_BC-_Spriggs.400w.jpg
Byron Spriggs was between the pipes.

170831-_MB-_BC-_Wasylak.400w.jpg
Opponents hit the ice when Jonah Wasylak is around.

Braehead-2017-jerseys-400w.jpg
Braehead unveiled their new jerseys. They blended the ads better than most Euro jerseys.

NEXT UP

Sep 15 Manitoba v Saskatchewan (at Regina)
Sep 16 Manitoba v Calgary (at Regina)
Sep 22 Regina at Manitoba (7:00 at Seven Oaks Arena)
Sep 23 Regina at Manitoba (2:00 at Wayne Fleming Arena)
Sep 30 Manitoba at North Dakota (7:07 at Grand Forks)

The foregoing are all exhibition games. The regular season starts Oct 7.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.

×
×
  • Create New...