The Norman Wolves have confirmed that they will be back in the Winnipeg AAA League for the 2022-23 season.

They will compete in a 34 game season, and two Showcase Tournaments.

It will be a 18 team league which will start on September the 30th.

Try-outs will take place in late August and is open to any players born between 2008-2009.

More information will be available later in the summer and in the mean time contact Andre Murphy at : u15normanwolves@gmail.com or call 204-623-0433.

Congratulations to former Flin Flon Bomber Assistant and OCN Blizzard bench boss Gardiner MacDougall on winning the Memorial Cup Championship last night.

Macdougall was able to guide the QMJHL'S Saint John Sea Dogs to a 6 to 3 win over the Hamilton Bulldogs.

This was a huge upset as the Sea Dogs were knocked out of the first round of the playoffs and MacDougall was brought in just before the tournament began.

MacDougall has been the Head Coach of the New Brunswick Men's Hockey program the last several seasons where he has managed to pick up,  7 U Championships , a FISU Gold Medal and over 500 coaching victories.

Now he can add a Memorial Cup to the list.

MacdDougall has deep roots in Northern Manitoba including a stint in Cranberry where he coached the Midget Winter Hawks program before moving on to become a Bomber Assistant in the early 90's.

He would also coach the Lebret eagles in the SJHL  between 1993-96 before returning to Northern Manitoba.

MacDougall would be the first ever Head Coach of the OCN Blizzard who were awarded an MJHL franchise in the 1996- 1997 season.

MacDougall would coach the Blizzard for three seasons including a league title in his final year of 1998-99.

He would go on to coach the University of New Brunswick in 2000 and has remained there since.

His stint with the Sea Dogs was just temporary and he will return to the University of New Brunswick for next season.

 The Manitoba Junior Hockey League  is pleased to announce the 2022-23 regular season schedule, set to begin on Friday, September 16, 2022.

Opening weekend will feature divisional matchups taking place over the course of the weekend involving all 13 member teams.

The expansion franchise Niverville Nighthawks will play in their inaugural MJHL regular season game on Friday, September 16 in Steinbach before returning to the ice the following night for their home opener.

The MJHL will continue with two-divisions for the 2022-23 season featuring a West (6 teams) and East division (7 teams).

The OCN Blizzard will begin the season with a home and home against the Swan Valley Stampeders. The two teams will open up in Swan Valley on Friday September the 16^th at 7.

The Blizzard will play their home opener at the GLMC, the next night September the 17^th also at 7.

OCN will then host  the MJHL Champion Dauphin Kings on Tuesday September the 20^th before embarking on their first road trip on September the 23^rd starting in Steinbach.

The full MJHL schedule can be seen at mjhlhockey.ca.

courtesy of bombers.ca

The Flin Flon Bombers are excited to announce that graduating defenceman Cole Vardy has committed to Acadia University (U-Sports).

The Hammonds Plains, Nova Scotia, product played 3 seasons for the Bombers from 2019-2022 and produced 32 points (10g, 22a) in 83 regular season games. Vardy suited up in 16 games during the Bombers 2022 playoff run and chipped in with 4 assists.

Prior to the 2021-22 season, Cole was named an alternate captain for the club.

The Acadia Axemen compete in the Atlantic University Sport conference. Cole will be joined by former Bombers forward Cole Rafuse who has suited up with the Axemen since 2020. Vardy and Rafuse were teammates  in Flin Flon during the 2019-20 season.

The Phantom Lake Soccer Club wrapped up a very exciting season this past weekend with their wind up tournament.

This was the first time they were able to hold it in the last three years due to the pandemic.

Over 300 kids took part and a big thanks to the volunteers, coach's, parents and players for comig out and making it a great way to wrap up the year.

Here are the results:

U11-13 Division

OT and penalty kicks were needed to decide this division.

The CO-OP Red Racers won Gold, The Legion took Silver and the CO-OP Rush, Bronze.

U13-15 Division

OT was once again needed to determine the winners.

Team Blue won Gold, with Maroon getting Silver and the Vic Inn picked up the Bronze.

The Norman Northstars Have announced co-coach's for the up coming season.

Ryan Stuart and Greg Long. Ryan has served as Head Coach for the previous 2 seasons and Assistant Coach in 2010/11 and 2011/12.

Greg has been a skills coach for the team in previous seasons and has served as Northstars Alumni President for a number of years while coaching at many levels throughout TMHA and Norman Minor Hockey.

After a few tough seasons. the Northstars did show dramatic improvement last year and finished with 9 wins and 22 points and stayed in the playoff picture til late January.

Norman will open up training camp in late August.

Hapnot officially wrapped up their athletic season by recognizing all the athletes and teams who had a tremendous year with their Athletic banquet.

Mackenzie Taylor was the MC and did a tremendous job announcing all the winners for their respective sports in basketball, volleyball, curling, soccer and track and field.

The night wrapped up with the announcements of the Male and Female Athletes Of The Year.

Congratulations to Addie Neill who was the JV Female Athlete Of The Year. Addie was a cornerstone for the JV volleyball team. Kenny Macdonald was the JV Male Athlete Of The Year. Kenny just won a Provincial Gold Medal at Track Provincials in Winnipeg.

The Senior Female Athlete Of The Year went to Rene Thompson and Cadence McIntosh. Rene played both Senior basketball and volleyball. Cadence played Senior Volleyball.

Senior Male Athlete was also a tie between Joel Williams and Ethan Patterson. Both athletes played multiple sports including soccer, basketball and track and field.

The defending Northern Saskatchewan Football Champion Creighton Kodiaks are ready to defend their title.

Head Coach Ryan Karakochuk says preparations have already begun for getting back on the field this fall.

Training Camp will start on Thursday August the 18th at 6:30. For any new players they will be hosting Mini Training Try-outs for any current grade 8's on Tuesday August the 16th at 6:30.

The Northern Saskatchewan Football League also announced their fall schedule and the Kodiaks will play 6 regular season games.

Here is their full schedule

Wednesday September 7th at Ahtahkakoop

Wednesday September 14th at SMVS

Friday September 23rd home to Sandy Bay (Night Game)

Wednesday September 28th at Cumberland House

Wednesday October 5th home to WestSide Warriors

Wednesday October 12th home to Pinehouse Lakers

October 19th-20th- Bye Week

Provincials Saturday October 29th

The Flin Flon Bombers have announced their Annual General Meeting will take place on Wednesday July the 6th.

Due to the Bomber season going til almost June the meeting is a little later than normal.

The meeting will take place at the Creighton Community Hall starting at 7.

The agenda will include a Coach's report with Mike Reagan who will recap the past season plus talk about their recruits and plans for this year.

There will also be a Treasurer's report, a report from the President and different dirctor's reports.

The evening will conclude with  election for board  of director positions  and questions from the floor.

After a very extensive search the OCN Blizzard have announced a new Head Coach for the up coming MJHL season.

Darren Naylor who hails from White Rock BC, brings a ton of experience to the table as a player and a coach.

Naylor played in 8 different  leagues as a player including a stint in the WHL with the Swift Current Broncos and Victoria Cougars.

The last 4 seasons he has been the Head Coach and GM of the Nanaimo Clippers of the BCHL.

In 192 games his coaching record was 111- 71- 1-9 and he took his team to the finals this past season.

The Blizzard are hoping under the direction of Naylor that they can get back to the post season for the first time since the 2017-18 season.

Naylor replaces Billy Keane who did not have his contract renewed after the end of the 2021-22 regular season.

OCN Blizzard goaltender Steven Bacovsky will get a chance to continue his hockey career at an elite level.

Bacovsky has committed to play NCAA Division 1 for Merrimack College .

The Calgary native came over from the Melfort Mustangs in October,  and Bacovsky established himself as one of the league's top netminders and gave the Blizzard a chance to win every night.

He played 34 games going 12-13-2 with a 3.30 GAA and a .914 save %.

Merrimack has a rich history of recruiting players from across the Prairies including a good crop from both the MJHL and SJHL.

The Phantom Lake Golf Club will be hosting their annual Trout Festival Golf Tournament on Saturday July the 2nd.

This is open to everyone including Men. Ladies, Juniors and Seniors.

There is a $60.00 entry fee per player and shotgun start is at 10 am.

They will be limiting it to 72 players so make sure you sign up asap at 306-688-5555.

The Flin Flon Bombers continue to bolster the line-up for the up coming season.

Flin Flon signed a pair of forwards today.

The Bombers have signed 2004 product Mason Hartley from the Northern Alberta Extreme U-18 Prep in the CSSHL. He put up 43 points in 31 games. Hartley also suited up for the AJHL'S Whitecourt Wolverines for a pair of games.

Flin Flon also signed 2004 born forward Matthew Langdon from Sherwood Park Alberta. Langdon played U-18 for his hometown team the Sherwood Park Kings the past couple of seasons.

He put up 28 points including 14 goals this past season.

The PBCN Selects  Sportsman's Dinner which was supposed to take place in May has been rescheduled  to Tuesday July the 12th.

The event will feature keynote speaker Hockey Hall Of Famer Doug Gilmour,  who played for 7 different NHL clubs including a Stanley Cup victory with the Calgary Flames in 1988-89.

Funny Man Nelson Mayer will open up the show. There will also be live auctions, a silent auction, toonie parade and a prime rib dinner.

The event will take place at the Flin Flon Community Hall with doors opening at 5,  cocktails til 6 and dinner at 6:30 courtesy of Chicken Chef.

You can book a table of 6 for $650.00 or purchase a single seat for $125.00. There are still 20 tables available.

This will be a fundraiser for the new Junior B-  PBCN Selects Hockey team who will be hitting the ice in September.

For tickets or to book a table call 431-346-0132 or 306-688-0381.

More opportunities continue to fall in place for many of the graduating Flin Flon Bombers to continue their hockey careers.

The latest signing includes Brandon Manitoba's Rylan Thiessen who has committed to Brock University U-Sports.

Thiessen played the bulk of hIs career in the Whl with stops in Lethbridge, Brandon and Swift Current.

After being released from the Bronco's, Thiessen found a home in Flin Flon and was very instrumental in helping his team make a run for the league title.

In 33 regular season games, Thiessen put up 26 points including 5 goals and was exceptional on the powerplay. Rylan also put up 10 points in the playoffs.

Flin Flon continues to build towards the future with the signing of 6'4 defenseman Aiden Chow.

Chow comes to Flin Flon after being the captain of the CAC Canadiens U-18 AAA program.

Chow finished the season with 21 points and also suited up for a couple of games with the AJHL'S Blackfalds Bulldogs.

Jon Klassen, the Bombers Head Scout describes what type of a player Bomber fans can expect to see. “Aiden is a big framed mobile defenceman who has proven that he can log a lot of minutes at the U18 AAA level. He is a two-way defenceman who is responsible defensively. Aiden has a cannon of a shot that not too many players are going to want to block.”

The Flin Flon Bombers are very excited to announce the signing of forward Zach Vockler from Sioux Falls South Dakota.

Zach is the younger brother of Bomber forward Jacob Vockler.

Vockler put up great numbers with the Badlands Sabres of the NA3HL where he wound up with 51 points including 22 goals.

The Bombers had a chance to evaluate Zach at their spring camp in May and were really impressed with his skill.

Flin Flon also announced that former team captain Zak  Smith will get a chance to continue his hockey career at Dalhousie University in Halifax Nova Scotia this fall.

Smith is coming off a brilliant season with the Bombers that saw him finish second in team scoring with 48 points. He also led the team in goals with 20 and finished with 17 points in their playoff run.

Smith is the fifth Bomber to receive a scholarship this season.

Hapnot Collegiate will be hosting their athletic banquet on Thursday June the 23rd at 6pm at the Hapnot gym.

This year's theme will be Casino and they encourage everyone to dress according to the theme. Supper is going to be provided by Tamara Johnson and will be Roast Beef.

All athletes can pick up a free ticket from Ms. Bortis and any parents or guardians can get a ticket by contacting  Karen Kittle at the office.

Following supper all awards will be handed out for the different team sports and they will also announce the Make and Female Athletes Of The Year.

The Hapnot Collegiate Track and Field team represented the North at Provincials in Winnipeg over the weekend.

It was a great weekend with Hapnot able to take 40 athletes down south with a chance to showcase their skills.

Kenny McDonald had a weekend that he will never forget winning a Gold Medal in the JV High Jump. He jumped 1.83 meters.

McDonald  wasn't done there yet as he also captured a Silver Medal in the Pentathlon  event which consists of 5 different events. 100m, 800m, high jump,long jump and shot put. He tied the previous record which was then broken by the guy who got first. Kenny finished 7 points out of first place.

Other athletes who had good showings included Mackenzie McLean who tied for fourth in the JV High Jump. Gianna Watt placed 6th in the SV Girl's Discuss.

Hapnot overall had a great showing with many of the athletes posting personal bests. It was the first time that many of the athletes got to go to Provincials and the coaching staff was very pleased.

The Flin Flon Bombers continue to get their players to the next level with another Division One commitment.

The Bombers are proud to announce that 19 year old forward Drew Kuzma has committed to play for the Lindenwood University Lions.

Kuzma has been a crowd favorite in Flin Flon since the first time he hit the ice after a trade with the Weyburn Red Wings. Kuzma came over in January and picked up 24 points in 26 games including 10 goals.

Kuzma also led his team in scoring in the playoffs and had 17 points including 9 goals and added 4 points in 5 games at the Centennial Cup.

Lindenwood will be joining the NCAA Division 1 college ranks after winning 4 National Championships at the ACHA Division 1 level.

The SJHL held their annual Bantam Draft online last Friday and the Flin Flon Bombers had 6 selections total.

The Maroon and White began the day selecting forward Koen Senft with the 8th overall selection. Seft played for the Regina Pat Canadiens U18 AAA program and had 19 points including 7 goals.

Flin Flon had traded away their second and third selections, so they would have to wait to the fourth round to pick again. They would get three picks  in the fourth round.

With the 37th pick, the Bombers chose a defenseman Kolten Bridgeman who played last year with the Regina Vics U18 AAA team. Bridgeman had 23 points in 34 games including 10 goals.

Flin Flon then got the 44th and 46th overall picks and chose another defenseman and goalie.

With the 44th pick, the Bombers selected defenseman Jonah Marshall out of Moose Jaw Warriors U-18 AAA program. Marshall picked up 6 points in 44 games. The Bombers stayed with the Moose Jaw Warriors U-18 program and grabbed goaltender Ryan Bain. Bain appeared in 25 games and posted a 3.57 gaa and a .878 save %.

With their final selection, the Bombers would go and get a forward and picked Hudson Darby. Darby played this past season with the Swift Current Legionnaires of the Saskatchewan Midget Triple A League and had 36 points in 44 games.

We likely won't see him in a Bomber uniform any time  soon as he was also drafted by the Portland Winterhawks in this year's WHL Bantam Draft and has signed a player agreement with the club.

Flin Flon wrapped things up with their only selection in the 2007 Draft and chose forward Ryan Ulmer from Regina. Ulmer played for the Regina Pat Blues U-15 AAA Program picking up 54 points in 31 games. Ulmer was a 7th round selection by the Seattle Thunderbirds of the WHL.

The SJHL Bantam Draft is taking place right now on the SJHL website at sjhl.ca.

The Flin Flon Bombers have made their first selection with the 8th over- all pick.

Flin Flon has selected Forward Koen Senft from the Regina Pat Canadiens. The Regina native put up 19 points in 44 games including 7 goals.

He stands 5"10 and weighs 160 pounds.

The Bombers did not have a pick in round number two as it just wrapped up and going into round three.

The Weyburn Red Wings had the first over-all  pick and selected defenseman Rhett Vedress from the Humboldt Broncos U-15 AA.

Vedress is coming off a season in which he picked up 19 points in 32 games.

We will have a complete wrap up on the Bomber selections after the draft wraps up this afternoon.

The Flin Flon Bombers have signed another prospect ahead of today's SJHL Bantam Draft.

The Bombers have signed Winnipeg product, 18 year old defenseman Liam Foley.

Foley played for the Interlake Lightning of the Manitoba Midget Triple A League the past three seasons dressing for 76 games over that span.

He is coming off a very strong season which saw him put up 25 points in 41 games including 6 goals.

Foley is another graduate out of the Winnipeg Rink Academy where he put up 9 points in 29 games back in 2018-19.

A big weekend for the Creighton Kodiaks coming up as they head to Regina for the Northern Saskatchewan Football Jamboree.

This is the first time this event will happen down south as it usually takes place in Laronge or Prince Albert.

All 6 teams including the Creighton Kodiaks will practise with both the Saskatchewan Rough Riders and Regina Rams at Mosaic Stadium on Thursday and Friday.

Head Coach Ryan Karakochuk  talks about how this opportunity came up. " This is the first time ever we have done this down south as we normally have this in PA or Laronge. The Riders called me as I have been the Commissioner of the Jamboree the last couple of years. They said let's make this one special and you bring all the teams to Regina. You can do the Jamboree at the U of R and Mosaic Stadium. I just couldn't pass it up as I talked to all the coach's and everyone is very excited."

The weekend will conclude with all the teams taking in the Rider home opener against the Hamilton Tiger Cats on Saturday afternoon.

Creighton will take 25 players and three coach's including Ryan Karakochuk, Chad Trumbley and Ryan Biberdorf.

Also, a special congratulations to former Kodiak player Noah Olivier who has cracked the roster for the Saskatoon Hilltops of the Canadian Prairie  JR Football League.

Noah attended the Sask Selects in Moose Jaw and the Senior Bowl in Regina and made both those teams. Olivier played in the Senior Bowl helping team North beat Team South and stood out as one of the best players on the field. 

Oliver would be the first player from both the Kodiaks and Northern Saskatchewan Football League to play at this level.

The Phantom Lake Golf Club has only been open for three weeks and they already have their first hole in one of the season.

Congratulations to Andre Baginski who fired an ace this past Saturday on hole number 6.

Baginski was using a 7 iron and was able to battle a strong  wind for his first career hole in one. 

Andre was golfing with fellow Northland Ford personell Mike Slipp who has two hole in one's over his career, both in Calgary.

The Town Of Creighton is offering free Youth Golf Lessons starting this weekend.

You will meet at the Phantom Lake Driving Range this Saturday and Sunday with a maximum of 10 kids per group.

Here are the times:

Ages 7-9 at 11 AM.

Ages 10-11 at 11:30

Ages 12-13 at noon

Ages 14-16 at 12:30.

You can register at the Phantom Lake Golf Club by calling 306-688-5555.

They will also be offering lessons on June the 18th and 25th.

story courtesy of bombers.ca

The Flin Flon Bombers are excited to announce the signing for 2004 born defenceman Dryden Jeannot.

The Regina, Saskatchewan, product suited up for the Yorkton Maulers U18 AAA program in the SMAAAHL and produced 3 goals and 14 assists in 42 games this past season.

“Dryden spent the last couple of months with us learning our systems which will help with his transition next season. He has good size, hockey IQ and great patience with the puck. All attributes that will help him become a solid junior A defenceman.” – Bombers Head Coach & General Manager, Mike Reagan

Once Dryden’s season ended with the Maulers, he suited up in 5 playoff games with the Pilot Butte Storm of the PJHL where he chipped in with an assist.

Jeannot is a former SJHL 4th round draft pick of the Weyburn Red Wings.

The Bombers would like to welcome Dryden and his family to the organization.

It has been a very exciting summer so far for Flin Flon's Wyatt Stinton.

After being selected by the Regina Pats in the 5th round in the WHL draft a few weeks back, Stinton received more good news from Hockey Manitoba.

Stinton has made the roster for the 2022-23 Male U-16 Program Of Excellence Summer Evaluation Camp in Winnipeg.

The camp will take place July the 19th to the 23rd at Seven Oaks in Winnipeg.

This camp is the third phase of the Hockey Manitoba U-16 Program Of Excellence. The fourth phase will take place in the fall of 2022.

The final roster will compete at the 2023 Canada Winter Games in Prince Edward Island February the 18th to the 26th.

The Summer Evaluation Camp will have a total of 26 players invited including 15 forwards, 8 defensemen and 3 goaltenders.

Stinton is the only player selected from Northern Manitoba and played this past season at the Rink Hockey Academy where he put up 47 points in 30 games.

story courtesy of bombers.ca

The Flin Flon Bombers are excited to announce the signing for 2004 born forward Dawson Karol.

The Regina, Saskatchewan, product suited up for the Yorkton Maulers U18 AAA program in the SMAAAHL and produced 11 goals and 9 assists in 44 games this past season.

“Dawson has been on our 50 man protected list for over a year now and has continued to get better every time our staff has seen him play. He’s had a great showing at the last 3 camps he’s attended and we feel he’ll be a great addition to our forward group. Dawson is a strong kid with a heavy shot and plays a physical game.” – Bombers Assistant Coach & Assistant General Manager, Cole McCaig

Karol made his Bombers debut on February 18th, 2022 against the Melville Millionaires and also suited up for the Regina Capitals in the PJHL and had 2 goals and an assist in 2 regular season games with the Capitals.

The Bombers would like to welcome Dawson and his family to the organization.

After a long cold winter, the Phantom Lake Golf Club is ready for a great summer of 2022.

The course opened May long weekend and are now looking forward to their first big event of the year,  the Opening Day Tournament on Sunday June the 19th.

It will begin with an 11AM shotgun  start, and it will be $40.00 for members and $50.00 for non-members.

You get 18 holes of golf plus dinner and prizes.

Call the Pro-Shop to sign up at 306-688-5555.

Congratulations to the Hapnot Collegiate Track and Field team who won the Zone 11 banner in the Pas this past weekend.

41 athletes have qualified for Provincials in Winnipeg June the 9th to the 11th.

Here are the complete results:

Addie neill - first in jv 1500 m,  Kaitlyn fieber - first in jv discus and first in jv javelin.  Livi playford - first in varsity girls 400m.

Shanti church - first in varsity girls 100m hurdles, they also had Alyssa Leslie and Sydney wesner finish 2 + 3 Shanti church- first in varsity girls pentathlon.

Hunter Hynes- first in jv boys 100m and  first in jv boys 400m.  Bobby smith first in jv boys3000m,  Shea McCallum first in jv boys 100m hurdles

Kenny McDonald first in jv boys high jump,  Braeden Tetlock first in jv boys triple jump,  Paxton Moore first in jv boys discus,  Bobby smith first in jv boys javelin.

Kenny McDonald first in jv boys pentathlon,  Ryan lies first in varsity boys 400m,  Chris francoeur first in varsity boys 800m,  Magnus Pearson first in varsity boys 1500m and  first in varsity boys 3000m. 

Ethan Patterson first in varsity boys 100m hurdles,   first in long jump and  first  in triple jump.  Varsity boys 4x100 placed first Varsity boys medley placed first

Edmonton hosted the Canadian Wrestling Trials, featuring the top athletes from across the country this past weekend.

Both the Lee brothers from Flin Flon, Carson and Hunter were among the competitors who took part.

Carson competed in the 74 kg and got injured out in his first match. Carson was pitted against the eventual national winner Pat Leder out of Mississauga.

Hunter competed in the 86 kg event and took home a silver medal and was also awarded the U-23 Male Athlete Of The Year.