The Battlefords North Stars got off to a winning start with a 5-1 victory over Kindersley in the rookie game played yesterday.
Now the team gets down to business for real. The returning and “veteran” players are on the ice day, the roster has been trimmed down and now there are around 34 players with a chance to carve out a spot on this year’s team. That process will include an intersquad game tomorrow night at the Civic Center.
The black versus white game will likely feature most if not all returning players. Igor Leonenko, Brenden Heinrich, Jake Erickson, the Yew brothers, Kendall Fransoo, Nick Fountain, Ryne Keller, Reed Delainey, and Jake McMillen.
There will be players that were picked up in trade like Adam Smith, Matt Saharchuk, Spencer Tremblay, Brock Weston, Michael Statchuk and the recently acquired Connor Vermeulen. Vermeulen was picked up from Dauphin and is a skilled puck moving defenseman who is really excited to be here. He played last year as a 17 year old with Drayton Valley in the AJHL.
There will also be the young guys and new recruits that will be pushing for a spot on the team. I have an idea of who they will be but let’s leave this part up to the imagination. I can say for certain that there will be really talented players on display that you are going to want to see.
I have to say when I found out about the addition of the intersquad game I was pumped. It should be a lot of fun. The game gets going tonight at 7:15.
North Stars Beacon 