MJHL regular season schedule released; Natives to begin season at home against OCN
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- Published on Wednesday, June 25, 2014
By: Lanny Stewart
myWestman.ca
The Manitoba Junior Hockey League 2014-2015 regular season schedule was released on Wednesday.
The Neepawa Natives will host the OCN Blizzard on the opening night of the season, which is Friday, Sept. 19.
The Natives will then take on OCN the following night once again at the Yellowhead Centre before travelling to Portage to take on the Terriers on Wednesday, Sept. 24.
The Natives will then travel north to take on the Blizzard for two games on Friday, Sept 26 and Saturday, Sept. 27.
One highlight of the schedule for the Natives this upcoming season will see the club take on the Virden Oil Capitals in Brandon at Westman Communications Group Place on Friday, Oct. 10. Natives general manager Myles Cathcart says it’s a promotional game to sell the brand of the MJHL to other areas of the province.
“We always have Brandon players on our roster and our opponent is Virden, so it should be good,” said Cathcart, who says the Natives have played in Brandon four times in the past.
The Virden Oil Capitals will begin their regular season with a home-and-home series against Portage, while the Waywayseecappo Wolverines will begin their year at home against the Dauphin Kings.
Meanwhile, the league's annual showcase weekend will take place Oct. 3 - 5 at the MTS IcePlex in Winnipeg.
For the entire MJHL schedule, click here.
Natives announce signings
In other Natives news, the club recently announced the addition of several players that have been signed for the upcoming season.
The club signed Dayne Finnson, a graduate of the Manitoba AAA Midget Hockey League’s Interlake Lightning.
Finnson, who was selected by the Natives in the second round of the MJHL Bantam Draft in 2012, had 10 goals and 38 points in 38 games a year ago with the Lightning.
"Dayne has outstanding offensive instincts and great mobility – he's very athletic,” said Lightning assistant coach Matt Figur in a release. “[He] also owns the natural ability to quarterback a power play. [He’s] not big but strong, he has a powerful point shot.”
Meanwhile, Neepawa’s own Garett Rempel has been added to the club for next season. Rempel was the captain of the Neepawa Tigers high school hockey team that won the Westman High School Hockey League title and its third consecutive provincial A/AA crown in March.
The club wasn't finished, signing big winger Brayden Atkinson, who spent time with the LaRonge Ice Wolves of the SJHL and Delisle Chiefs of the PJHL (Prairie Junior Hockey League).
Neepawa also announced they have signed goaltender Alex Henry and Vincent Currao. Henry was acquired by the Natives from the OCN Blizzard, while Currao was picked up in the trade that sent former Natives netminder Davy Fisher to the English River Miners of the SIJHL.
