2013-14 Bisons/CIS Thread

MANITOBA BISONS 2013-14

The Bisons got an early start to the recruiting announcements. Three forwards have been announced, two of whom were redshirts in 2012-13 (Aaron Lewadniuk, a centre, and Taylor Dickin, a left winger) and one was a late-season recruit (Jordan DePape, a right winger). That could be a complete forward line.

Lewadniuk's recruitment was announced in last year's pre-season. He is a former Winkler Flyer who finished his junior career with the Brandon Wheat Kings in 2009-10. In his final year of junior he racked up 37 goals and 49 assists for 86 points in 65 games. He then turned pro and had two seasons in the ECHL. After 17 goals in his rookie season his numbers tailed off as he played only 48 games with two different teams. As a redshirt he played senior hockey for the Carman Beavers of the SEMHL where he scored 15 goals and 30 assists in 20 games.

Dickin was also a redshirt in 2012-13. He graduated from junior hockey as a Selkirk Steeler following the 2009-10 season, with 40 goals and 52 assists in 62 games. He then went to the University of North Dakota for two seasons where he seldom played. So he came home, redshirted last year, and is now ready to go.

DePape had his junior career cut short with a shoulder injury. He seemed to be well on his way up the WHL pecking order. In 2009-10 he divided his season between the Brandon Wheat Kings and Kamloops Blazers. He had 17 goals and 20 assists in 57 games. In 2010-11 he improved, with 21 goals and 27 assists in 54 games. However, he then played only 31 games spread over the next two injury-plagued seasons.

Also, former Bison captain Mike Hellyer was voted the rookie of the year in the Central Hockey League. He played for the Quad City Mallards.

Links:
|> [DePape announcement] : [Elite Prospects Page]
|> [Lewadniuk announcement] : [Elite Prospects Page]
|> [Dickin announcement] : [Elite Prospects Page]
|> [Hellyer announcement] : [Elite Prospects Page]

OTHER NEWS


The UBC Thunderbirds men's signed forward Greg Fraser and defenceman Wes Vannieuwenhuizen. Fraser is currently playing for the Nanaimo Clippers in the Western Canada Cup. Vannieuwenhuizen played for the Vancouver Giants.


Dinos goaltender Dustin Butler dressed as backup for the Vancouver Canucks in a game against the Calgary Flames. He has used up his CIS eligibility.

Links:
|> [UBC announcement]
|> [Calgary's Butler Story]

C.W. EXPANSION


The CW has announced that the UBCO Heat now have full member status and that the MacEwan University Griffons (formerly MacEwan College) now have probationary status.

Once a school has probationary status it can be taken as "just a matter of time" before they get full status. So the CW now has 17 schools. Debate rages as to whether this is too many. I suspect that in basketball at least there may be a need for two levels. But football has just 6, hockey 8, and most of those with volleyball teams are legitimate national contenders.

From the press release:

The UBC Okanagan Heat were originally granted probationary status at a vote held in May 2010 and began participation with Canada West in the sports of men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball in September 2011 and will be adding soccer in time for the 2014-15 season. For the MacEwan University Griffins, league play will begin in September 2014 in the sports of men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball, soccer and cross country.

UBCO do not have a hockey team, even in the BCIHL. FWIW, I would sooner see places like this get into the BCIHL and develop that as a second tier college/university league, alongside the ACAC. That way hockey's u-brand gets a boost, and the CW level of play is not diluted.

Will MacEwan one day aspire to leave the ACAC for the CW in hockey? On the one hand, it would give the Evil Monkeys a cross-town rival. But MacEwan has never been one of the ACAC's powerhouse teams. When Mount Royal College morphed into Mount Royal University and moved from the ACAC to the CW they at least had a hockey team with a track record of success at the ACAC level. They are coming off consecutive 6th place finishes, and those were an improvement over the 8th place finishes which preceded. The Alberta hockey market is crowded with 4 CW teams and (with Red Deer coming back) 9 ACAC teams (albeit Briercrest is located in Saskatchewan).

On balance, I would much prefer that MacEwan stay put (in hockey, that is). If they could consistently challenge NAIT and SAIT and be a good pre-season opponent that would be good enough for me.

Links:
|> [CW announcement re UBCO and MacEwan]
|> [Edmonton Journal]
|> [ACAC LeagueStat Standings]

CIS/SPORTSNET TV DEAL



First, Rogers' acquisition of The Score was just confirmed a couple weeks ago. Therefore, Sportsnet and The Score will gradually become more of a combo deal.

Here's the gist of the deal:

Canadian Interuniversity Sport and Sportsnet announced Wednesday a six-year agreement for the multiplatform rights to an all-encompassing portfolio of university sports across television, online and mobile.

The agreement, which begins this season and runs through the 2018-19 academic year, features expanded coverage of men’s and women’s CIS sport, headlined by the Vanier Cup and also including the following marquee events: Football national semifinals (Mitchell Bowl and Uteck Bowl), women’s and men’s hockey championships, women’s and men’s basketball championships, and much more.

Sportsnet’s The Score will be one of the main hubs of CIS coverage, continuing its strong tradition of broadcasting university sports and amateur athletics, which began in 2002. Coverage for the 2013-14 season features 13 events, beginning with football this fall. Broadcast details will be announced in the coming weeks.

What will this mean to men's hockey? My hope is that there will be increased coverage of the regional championships, and maybe even regular season play. Could a Saturday afternoon game of the week on The Score happen?

If this were to happen, there would be demand for format changes. It is hard to sell rights to game 3 of a series which may well end with game 2. The Score showed the OUA basketball final four. IMO, if u-hockey wants to make a dent they need to be able to sell similar events from all regions. The CW already has a "final four" format tournament in basketball and volleyball. IMO, hockey will have to follow suit if it wants enhanced TV coverage.

And what about the on-line and mobile options mentioned in the press release? Could those somehow be dovetailed with the CW and AUS on-line video services? And could it pull together the various services used in Ontario and Quebec?

Links:
|> [CIS announcement] : reposted at [CW Site] and [U of M Site]
|> [Yahoo Story]

CIS BOOKMARKS

Bookmark this post for the links you will need to follow CIS hockey. I will update this post throughout the season.

League Sites:
CIS Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
... sub-links : Standings : Schedule/Results : Playoffs : U-Cup
Canada West Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
OUA Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
AUS Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
ACAC Men's Hockey Site
BCIHL Site

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 - Tw - FB
UBC Thunderbirds - Tw - FB

Media Sites/Blogs:
CISblog.ca
South Campus Sports - dormant since January 26, 2012
Boxscore News
Canadian University Press
Hockey Scene - AUS
UNBHockeyFans.com
Ravens Hockey Live - dormant since February 2012
STUTommies.com
AcadiaAxemenHockey.com
RedmenHockey.com (McGill)

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

Canada West stats and data:
CW LeagueStats - Standings
CW LeagueStats - Daily Schedule
CW LeagueStats - Rosters
CW LeagueStats - Skaters' Stats
CW LeagueStats - Goalies' Stats
CW LeagueStats - Team Schedules

Stats:
Elite Prospects : CIS Page - individual player stats on everybody
Internet Hockey Data Base (IHDB) : CWUAA Page - like Elite Prospects
Old Bison Site - Schedule/Results - with links to stories and summaries from 2004-05 to 2007-08
CIS Stats and Rosters - 2004-05 to 2008-09
CIS Stats - 2009-10 to 2012-13
CIS Schedule/Results - 2004-05 to 2008-09
CIS Schedule/Results - 2009-10 to 2012-13
CIS Playoff Schedule/Results - 2004-05 to 2008-09
CIS Playoff Schedule/Results - 2009-10 to 2011-12
AUS Schedule/Results - now has only 2012-13 season
AUS Archive
OUA LeagueStat
ACAC LeagueStat
Bob Adams' Archives - CIS hockey from 1995-96 to 2008-09
Wikia - University Cup - 1963-2012
Wikia - Canada West - 1973-2012
Wikia - GPAC - 1973-1985
Wikia - WIAA - 1963-1972
Wikia - WCIAU - 1919-1962
Wikia - OUA/QOAA - 1903-2012
Wikia - QUAA - 1972-1987
Wikia - OSLC - 1951-1971
Wikia - AUS - 1920-2012

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
St. Thomas Tommies

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

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

BCIHL Team Sites:
Eastern Washington Eagles
Selkirk Saints
Simon Fraser Clan - Tw
Thompson Rivers Wolfpack
Trinity Western Spartans
Victoria Vikings

Threads:
OHT34 2009-10
OHT34 2010-11
OHT34 2011-12
OHT35 2012-13
CIS Playoff Formats
Manitoba Bisons 2007-08
Manitoba Bisons 2008-09
Manitoba Bisons 2009-10
Manitoba Bisons 2010-11
Manitoba Bisons 2011-12
Manitoba Bisons 2012-13

Woot! good post

Hollywood wrote:

MANITOBA BISONS 2013-14

The Bisons got an early start to the recruiting announcements. Three forwards have been announced, two of whom were redshirts in 2012-13 (Aaron Lewadniuk, a centre, and Taylor Dickin, a left winger) and one was a late-season recruit (Jordan DePape, a right winger). That could be a complete forward line.

Lewadniuk's recruitment was announced in last year's pre-season. He is a former Winkler Flyer who finished his junior career with the Brandon Wheat Kings in 2009-10. In his final year of junior he racked up 37 goals and 49 assists for 86 points in 65 games. He then turned pro and had two seasons in the ECHL. After 17 goals in his rookie season his numbers tailed off as he played only 48 games with two different teams. As a redshirt he played senior hockey for the Carman Beavers of the SEMHL where he scored 15 goals and 30 assists in 20 games.

Dickin was also a redshirt in 2012-13. He graduated from junior hockey as a Selkirk Steeler following the 2009-10 season, with 40 goals and 52 assists in 62 games. He then went to the University of North Dakota for two seasons where he seldom played. So he came home, redshirted last year, and is now ready to go.

DePape had his junior career cut short with a shoulder injury. He seemed to be well on his way up the WHL pecking order. In 2009-10 he divided his season between the Brandon Wheat Kings and Kamloops Blazers. He had 17 goals and 20 assists in 57 games. In 2010-11 he improved, with 21 goals and 27 assists in 54 games. However, he then played only 31 games spread over the next two injury-plagued seasons.

Also, former Bison captain Mike Hellyer was voted the rookie of the year in the Central Hockey League. He played for the Quad City Mallards.

Links:
|> [DePape announcement] : [Elite Prospects Page]
|> [Lewadniuk announcement] : [Elite Prospects Page]
|> [Dickin announcement] : [Elite Prospects Page]
|> [Hellyer announcement] : [Elite Prospects Page]

OTHER NEWS


The UBC Thunderbirds men's signed forward Greg Fraser and defenceman Wes Vannieuwenhuizen. Fraser is currently playing for the Nanaimo Clippers in the Western Canada Cup. Vannieuwenhuizen played for the Vancouver Giants.


Dinos goaltender Dustin Butler dressed as backup for the Vancouver Canucks in a game against the Calgary Flames. He has used up his CIS eligibility.

Links:
|> [UBC announcement]
|> [Calgary's Butler Story]

C.W. EXPANSION


The CW has announced that the UBCO Heat now have full member status and that the MacEwan University Griffons (formerly MacEwan College) now have probationary status.

Once a school has probationary status it can be taken as "just a matter of time" before they get full status. So the CW now has 17 schools. Debate rages as to whether this is too many. I suspect that in basketball at least there may be a need for two levels. But football has just 6, hockey 8, and most of those with volleyball teams are legitimate national contenders.

From the press release:

The UBC Okanagan Heat were originally granted probationary status at a vote held in May 2010 and began participation with Canada West in the sports of men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball in September 2011 and will be adding soccer in time for the 2014-15 season. For the MacEwan University Griffins, league play will begin in September 2014 in the sports of men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball, soccer and cross country.

UBCO do not have a hockey team, even in the BCIHL. FWIW, I would sooner see places like this get into the BCIHL and develop that as a second tier college/university league, alongside the ACAC. That way hockey's u-brand gets a boost, and the CW level of play is not diluted.

Will MacEwan one day aspire to leave the ACAC for the CW in hockey? On the one hand, it would give the Evil Monkeys a cross-town rival. But MacEwan has never been one of the ACAC's powerhouse teams. When Mount Royal College morphed into Mount Royal University and moved from the ACAC to the CW they at least had a hockey team with a track record of success at the ACAC level. They are coming off consecutive 6th place finishes, and those were an improvement over the 8th place finishes which preceded. The Alberta hockey market is crowded with 4 CW teams and (with Red Deer coming back) 9 ACAC teams (albeit Briercrest is located in Saskatchewan).

On balance, I would much prefer that MacEwan stay put (in hockey, that is). If they could consistently challenge NAIT and SAIT and be a good pre-season opponent that would be good enough for me.

Links:
|> [CW announcement re UBCO and MacEwan]
|> [Edmonton Journal]
|> [ACAC LeagueStat Standings]

CIS/SPORTSNET TV DEAL



First, Rogers' acquisition of The Score was just confirmed a couple weeks ago. Therefore, Sportsnet and The Score will gradually become more of a combo deal.

Here's the gist of the deal:

Canadian Interuniversity Sport and Sportsnet announced Wednesday a six-year agreement for the multiplatform rights to an all-encompassing portfolio of university sports across television, online and mobile.

The agreement, which begins this season and runs through the 2018-19 academic year, features expanded coverage of men’s and women’s CIS sport, headlined by the Vanier Cup and also including the following marquee events: Football national semifinals (Mitchell Bowl and Uteck Bowl), women’s and men’s hockey championships, women’s and men’s basketball championships, and much more.

Sportsnet’s The Score will be one of the main hubs of CIS coverage, continuing its strong tradition of broadcasting university sports and amateur athletics, which began in 2002. Coverage for the 2013-14 season features 13 events, beginning with football this fall. Broadcast details will be announced in the coming weeks.

What will this mean to men's hockey? My hope is that there will be increased coverage of the regional championships, and maybe even regular season play. Could a Saturday afternoon game of the week on The Score happen?

If this were to happen, there would be demand for format changes. It is hard to sell rights to game 3 of a series which may well end with game 2. The Score showed the OUA basketball final four. IMO, if u-hockey wants to make a dent they need to be able to sell similar events from all regions. The CW already has a "final four" format tournament in basketball and volleyball. IMO, hockey will have to follow suit if it wants enhanced TV coverage.

And what about the on-line and mobile options mentioned in the press release? Could those somehow be dovetailed with the CW and AUS on-line video services? And could it pull together the various services used in Ontario and Quebec?

Links:
|> [CIS announcement] : reposted at [CW Site] and [U of M Site]
|> [Yahoo Story]

CIS BOOKMARKS

Bookmark this post for the links you will need to follow CIS hockey. I will update this post throughout the season.

League Sites:
CIS Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
... sub-links : Standings : Schedule/Results : Playoffs : U-Cup
Canada West Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
OUA Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
AUS Men's Hockey Site - Tw - FB
ACAC Men's Hockey Site
BCIHL Site

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 - Tw - FB
UBC Thunderbirds - Tw - FB

Media Sites/Blogs:
CISblog.ca
South Campus Sports - dormant since January 26, 2012
Boxscore News
Canadian University Press
Hockey Scene - AUS
UNBHockeyFans.com
Ravens Hockey Live - dormant since February 2012
STUTommies.com
AcadiaAxemenHockey.com
RedmenHockey.com (McGill)

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

Canada West stats and data:
CW LeagueStats - Standings
CW LeagueStats - Daily Schedule
CW LeagueStats - Rosters
CW LeagueStats - Skaters' Stats
CW LeagueStats - Goalies' Stats
CW LeagueStats - Team Schedules

Stats:
Elite Prospects : CIS Page - individual player stats on everybody
Internet Hockey Data Base (IHDB) : CWUAA Page - like Elite Prospects
Old Bison Site - Schedule/Results - with links to stories and summaries from 2004-05 to 2007-08
CIS Stats and Rosters - 2004-05 to 2008-09
CIS Stats - 2009-10 to 2012-13
CIS Schedule/Results - 2004-05 to 2008-09
CIS Schedule/Results - 2009-10 to 2012-13
CIS Playoff Schedule/Results - 2004-05 to 2008-09
CIS Playoff Schedule/Results - 2009-10 to 2011-12
AUS Schedule/Results - now has only 2012-13 season
AUS Archive
OUA LeagueStat
ACAC LeagueStat
Bob Adams' Archives - CIS hockey from 1995-96 to 2008-09
Wikia - University Cup - 1963-2012
Wikia - Canada West - 1973-2012
Wikia - GPAC - 1973-1985
Wikia - WIAA - 1963-1972
Wikia - WCIAU - 1919-1962
Wikia - OUA/QOAA - 1903-2012
Wikia - QUAA - 1972-1987
Wikia - OSLC - 1951-1971
Wikia - AUS - 1920-2012

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
St. Thomas Tommies

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

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

BCIHL Team Sites:
Eastern Washington Eagles
Selkirk Saints
Simon Fraser Clan - Tw
Thompson Rivers Wolfpack
Trinity Western Spartans
Victoria Vikings

Threads:
OHT34 2009-10
OHT34 2010-11
OHT34 2011-12
OHT35 2012-13
CIS Playoff Formats
Manitoba Bisons 2007-08
Manitoba Bisons 2008-09
Manitoba Bisons 2009-10
Manitoba Bisons 2010-11
Manitoba Bisons 2011-12
Manitoba Bisons 2012-13

So far there are trickles of news floating around about possible pre-season games and recruits for other teams. However, all is quiet in Bison-land. I don't suspect that the Bisons will land a lot of new players. From last year's roster they lose 5th year forwards Tyler Dittmer and Tyler Feakes and graduating forwards Matt Lowry and Del Cowan. They have already announced three new recruits up front. The team has no anticipated departures on defence. 5th year goaltender Jesse Deckert will be gone. A possible replacement would be Mark Friesen, WHL grad and 3rd string goaltender from 2011-12. I am sure they would never turn away a possible upgrade at any position, though.


In a feel-good story, former Jet Brett McLean is going to be an assistant coach at Waterloo. He was forced to retire due to a brush with death arising from a heart ailment.

Links:
|> [CIS story] with [CTV News Video]


The Banjocats have announced their first two recruits, forward Cody Fowlie from the Kelowna Rockets of the WHL and defenceman Brody Luhning from the Battlefords North Stars of the SJHL. They need several more defencemen. Last year's team had to use forwards back there all the time.

Links:
|> [U of R release]
|> [Kelowna story]


The New Kittens on the Block have a "Meet Your Cougars" segment this off-season. I was hoping it would feature mid-40s women. Instead they talked to Eric Galbraith.

Link:
|> [Meet Your Cougars]


Across the Town of Bedrock there were stories about Bracken Kearns cracking the NHL.

By age 30, most Canada West hockey graduates are in Europe, have moved on to coaching or are making good use of their university degree if they haven't met that ultimate goal of getting to the National Hockey League.

Not so for Bracken Kearns, a former captain with the University of Calgary Dinos (2001-05), who made his NHL with the Florida Panthers a few months after hitting the big 3-0 and now, 18 months later, has managed to crack the playoff lineup as a centre with the San Jose Sharks.

Links:
|> [U of C Story] also at [CW Story]


The Tweety-Birds took the lead in announced new recruits with the confirmation of defenceman Brandon Underwood from Red Deer (WHL). I believe he is the first native of American California to go to British California.

Link:
|> [UBC story]


While there is no news on the CIS front, there is a 10 page pdf stats sheet which is worth a download. And there is more discussion on the SportsNet TV deal. This coming season will see 13 CIS games on the network, including 3 men's hockey games. The linked stories describe those as "semi-finals" and the final. Not sure if that implies a format change to the tournament to actually introduce semi-finals. We'll have to wait and see.

Links:
|> [CIS pdf stats page]
|> TV stories: [Maclean's] : [The Gauntlet] : [CIS Blog]

The best way to ensure that a recruiting announcement will be made is to post that there is no news, I guess. Shortly after my May 31st post in this thread came news that former goaltender Steve Christie is back as a coach, whilst Luke Paulsen is joining as a defenceman.

Regarding Paulsen:

“I am excited to receive a commitment from Luke Paulsen to join the Bison Men’s Hockey program. Luke brings an excellent hockey resume to the Bisons having played for the WHL’s Kootenay Ice and the MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues,” commented Sirant. “Luke is a very talented defenceman with excellent mobility and puck skills, plus great vision to adapt at moving the puck up ice to his forwards. He is also solid in his defensive responsibilities and an excellent teammate.”

Paulsen, 20 (turning 21 on Sept. 28/13), played the 2012-13 season with the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) Winnipeg Blues. The 6’0”, 172 lbs. forward accumulated 15 points (four goals, 11 assists) in 19 regular season games with the Blues. Prior to Winnipeg, the Winnipeg native played three seasons in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Kootenay Ice and part of the team that won the WHL Championship in 2010-11 season. In three WHL seasons, he scored in 36 points (5g, 31a) with 52 penalty minutes in 147 regular season games plus added one assist in 19 WHL playoff games. He was also part of the Winnipeg Wild’s AAA Provincial Midget Championship team in the 2008-09 season

I checked out the Blues' site and Paulsen was not on the team at the end of the year. It looks like he is one of those players coming back from injury, of which the Bisons have had seevral in the last few years. In any event, he had three solid seasons in the WHL in Kootenay.

Christie's past accomplishments are extolled in the threads from prior years. The release summarizes them thusly:

Christie, 28, comes back to Manitoba as a coach after a very successful CIS career by completing five seasons (2006-07 to 2010-11) with the Bisons and earned a major accolade being named as the inaugural CIS Men’s Hockey Goaltender of the Year honours in the 2009-10 season.

Christie served as the Bisons starting goaltender for his final three seasons and compiled an overall conference regular season record during the five seasons of 46-37-0 with eight shutouts at Manitoba. His best season came in 2009-10 when in addition to the CIS major award and was selected as CIS First Team All-Canadian and Canada West First Team All-Star at the goaltender position while helping to lead the Bisons to the 2010 CIS National Championship Tournament berth for the first time since 2004-05.

“I am excited to be back with the Bison Hockey program. It did so much for me as a player and I am looking forward to being apart of it from a coaching aspect now, “ stated Christie. “To see what this program has accomplished over the past recent years is a real reflection of the quality of players and coaches U of Manitoba produces every year. The program is respected nationally and players want to be apart of that. It was an easy decision when Coach Sirant asked me to join the coaching staff.”

Christie had played in the SPHL with the Pensacola Ice Flyers the last two years, and in 2011-12 was loaned for a period to the Tulsa Oilers of the CHL for their playoff run. It seems two years of minor pro is usually the end-point for CIS grads. After that it is Europe or time to utilize that degree.

Links:
|> [U of M story]
|> [ChrisD Blog]
|> [Luke Paulsen Elite Prospects Page]
|> [Steve Christie Elite Prospects Page]
|> [Winnipeg Blues Roster Page]

The new schedule is here! The new schedule is here!

The Bisons open with home series against the Evil Monkeys, followed by the Mangy Banjo-Mutts. A four game winning streak streak to start the season would sure serve them in good stead. There are many quirks to the schedule, including two bye weeks (WTF?) and no home games between November 16th and January 10th.

And when would the games against NCAA teams happen? Manitoba at North Dakota on Oct. 6 is on the UND schedule. That would be stupid. I would much rather those occur during bye weeks, but I doubt it.

Now we should be getting the non-conference/exhibition schedules.

Here's the Bisons' schedule:
Oct. 4-5 Alberta at Manitoba
Oct. 11-12 Saskatchewan at Manitoba
Oct. 18-19 Manitoba at Mount Royal
Oct. 25-26 Calgary at Manitoba
Nov. 1-2 bye
Nov. 8-9 Manitoba at Regina
Nov. 15-16 Lethbridge at Manitoba
Nov. 22-23 Manitoba at UBC
Nov. 29-30 Manitoba at Alberta
Jan. 3-4 Manitoba at Saskatchewan
Jan. 10-11 Mount Royal at Manitoba
Jan. 17-18 Manitoba at Calgary
Jan. 24-25 bye
Jan. 31-Feb. 1 Regina at Manitoba
Feb. 7-8 Manitoba at Lethbridge
Feb. 14-15 UBC at Manitoba

Links:
|> [CW Story]
|> [pdf schedule]
|> [UND Schedule]


The Bisons have no new recruitment announcemements. But the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix fueled the speculation with a story about Saskatoon Blades' captain Brenden Walker. He is attending the Phoenix Coyotes' camp without a contract, and would like an AHL deal. It seems the prevailing wisdom is that the wise move is to use your WHL scholarship unless you get at least an AHL deal signed, and Walker seems to be on board with that concept.

If Walker fails to latch on to a pro team, he does have a backup plan.

"If nothing works out, I might just go to school," Walker said. "Right now, my goal is to play in the AHL. If that doesn't work out, then we'll figure it out after.

"Right now, I'm just going to work hard at making it to the next level."

He said the University of Manitoba and University of Saskatchewan would top his list of possible schools, should it come to that.

"Those two are both great decisions - good hunting and good people there in Saskatchewan, so the U of S would be a great place to go, and Manitoba is my hometown, so that would be a lot of fun, too. That would be a hard decision," he said.

Links:
|> [Saskatoon Star-Phoenix Story]


The STU Pids have been rocked by the resignation of coach Troy Ryan. They have been amongst the CIS's most consistent losers in recent years, aided and abetted by their tough AUS schedule. Even their blogger has thrown in the towel!

Links:
|> [STU Story]
|> [STUTommies.com Story]
|> [CIS Blog Story]


Normally, basketball news would not get into this thread. But the CW has announced that in 2014-15 they will have 11 teams in one division and 6 in the other. The division of 6 will include CW newcomers the TRU WolfPack, UBC-Okanagan Heat, UNBC Timberwolves, Fraser Valley Cascades, Mount Royal Cougars and Grant MacEwan Griffins. All of the big traditional schools will play in the 11 team division. The divisions will not play an interlocking schedule.

Why do I point this out? This is tiering by any other name.

Could this have applicability to the OUA? Let the speculation begin.

Links:
|> [CW Story] reposted at [U of M Site]
|> [Kamloops News - Announcement Story] : [Kamloops News - Follow-up Analysis]


The Calgary Dinos have not announced anything, but the West Kelowna Warriors claim that forward Daniel Gayle has been recruited. Now, he has a scholarship to go there but that does not mean he will play there. This happened when an MJHL player won a scholarship to the U of M and Elite Prospects took this as confirmation that the player had been recruited. Not always so. We'll find out, I guess.

Links:
|> [Warriors' Story]

There are loads of stories about team schedules from around the CW. I have supplied the links but really there is nothing really thought-provoking in them. They basically just say when the home side starts the season.

Now we need to look for the exhibition schedule which will come out in dribs and drabs. Regina is the CW leader in schedule announcements and from them we get these:
Sept 13 2:00 Saskatchewan at Regina
Sept 14 12:00 Lethbridge at Regina
Sept 15 1:30 Alberta at Regina
Sept 20 2:30 Regina at Manitoba
Sept 21 2:30 Regina at Manitoba

And the Lakehead schedule page gives us these:
Oct 4 7:30 UPEI at Lakehead
Oct 5 7:30 UPEI at Lakehead
Oct 7 7:05 Lakehead at Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs
Nov 1 7:30 Alberta at Lakehead
Nov 2 7:30 Alberta at Lakehead
Dec 27 7:30 Laurentian at Lakehead
Dec 28 7:30 Laurentian at Lakehead

Stay tuned!

Links:
|> [Regina Leader-Post] : [U of R Story]
|> [U of C Story] : [U of L Story]
|> [UBC Story] : [U of A Story]
|> [U of S Story] : [ChrisD Story]
|> [Regina Schedule] : [Lakehead Schedule]


While there has been no news on the Bison recruiting front, a couple of former Bisons hit the papers. Calin Wild is on the national ball hockey team. (I wonder if handsome & intelligent gom Burrows still plays that.) And Matt Lowry is considering his pro options, and in fact has a farm on the go as well.

Links:
|> [WFP: Lowry Story]
|> [WFP: Calin Wild Story]


Remember last season's investigation at Dal-lousy? Well, it may well be coming to a merciful end. From the CBC:

Neither Dalhousie nor CIS director Tom Huisman would talk about what the investigation found.

“Most of our infractions or compliance issues are related primarily to eligibility issues. This one being an athletic scholarship and awards and benefits issue in itself makes it a bit more complicated,” Huisman said.

Dalhousie University has promised to make that report public.

So far the university has refused to confirm whether the Tiger's team manager and former head coach, Peter Belliveau, was let go last fall because of the alleged infractions.

Links:
|> [Halifax Chronicle-Herald Story]
|> [CBC Story]


In the town of Bedrock, they release a story on grad Brock Nixon, who like Lowry is weighing pro options. But instead of farming his calling is in he teaching field. Hopefully, he will help bail out flooded basements first. Good luck with the flood, people of Calgary. I await word on any damage to Dino sport facilities.

The logo has also been altered at the U of C site. I don't know what they will have on their jerseys.

Links:
|> [U of C Story]


So, what in the heck is going on down in T-Bay? So, it has now been a few years since they had the Bisons visit for Christmas, fair enough. But this year they are bringing in the reborn Laurentian Voyageurs, a team already on their conference schedule. Is this a sign that they might need a softer touch for some Christmas spirit? I would think that hosting PEI and Alberta in the fall would appeal to their fans. We'll see if Laurentian will draw.

On the ice they have lost more quality players. Here's the latest from from TB Newswatch:

It appears the Matt Caria and handsome & intelligent gom Dupuis era is over at Lakehead University.

The names of both players have disappeared from the team's roster on the Thunderwolves hockey website.

Inside sources have confirmed Dupuis, the Wolves No. 1 goalie, has decided to go pro after four seasons.

Caria, the oft-suspended star forward, also has one more year of CIS eligibility remaining.

Thunderwolves coach Bill McDonald is out of town and not available for comment. Earlier this week Lakehead hockey officials announced the departure of forward Luke Judson after one season.

Judson is leaving to play for the San Francisco Bulls of the ECHL. If Caria is indeed gone, it would mean the Wolves will start the 2013-14 campaign with just one of their top six point-getters from a year ago, forward Mike Hammond.

Links:
|> [TB Newswatch Story]

July 4, 2013


It has been a long time with no news on the Bison front. But at least there is some alumni news. Former captain Mike Hellyer has signed an ECHL-AHL deal. His deal is with the Bakersfield Condors, who are affiliated with the Iowa Wild. He was CHL rookie-of-the-year with Quad Cities last season.

Links:
|> [Brandon Sun]



Clare Drake, the former head organ grinder at the University of Saudi Alberta, has been appointed to the Order of Canada. I'm sure he'd rather have a large bunch of bananas but this is still a pretty good honour.

Also, defencemen Ben Lindemulder and Barron Von Smith, will attend the training camp of the Edmontown Greasers. Apparently The Barron has been working on his claw hold.

Links:
|> Drake story: [at CW] : [at U of A]
|> Greaser story: [at U of A]


Is the "GB" hat logo better than the monkey?


YAWN! No news, but two links to the same story with a different title for each.

Links:
|> [Halifax Chronicle-Herald Story] : [Other Halifax Chronicle-Herald Story]


The Thunderbirds recruited a Thunderbird. Luke Lockhart will shift from Seattle of the WHL to UBC of the CW this year. Check the link for his bio. He is a former captain and seems like a "2 way", i.e. low scoring, centre.

Links:
|> [UBC Story]


I had seen that York is making a new year's trip to Arizona. I found a story about the ASU Sun Devils. They are in the ACHA but have played NCAA and CIS teams before. The ACHA really sucks. Iowa State came to play the Bisons and they were in way over their heads. I was afraid they'd get hurt! It seems ASU have some desire to make a decent hockey program there. But how can they operate in the shadow of the Arizona Coyotes?!?!?!

Links:
|> [House of Sparky Story]

There is no news in Bisonland. However, out in British California the Tweety-Birds have updated their schedule. Their only exhibitions are the Alaska double-header (previously announced through the NCAA) and now they will also play the Simon Fraser Clown on September 27 (at UBC) and September 28 (at Burnaby).

So, will the Clown's goaltender make the 40-50 saves necessary to make one of these games close?

Links:
|> [UBC Schedule]


The H0rny Ones have yet to make an announcement. But the Dauphin Kings have said that Guillaume Naud, a Franco-Ukrainian!, is off to Lethbridge. He had 88 points in 60 regular season games and 24 points in 18 playoff games. While absolutely nobody can translate gaudy Junior A numbers into CW numbers, he should be a welcome addition to the offensively-challenged `Horns.

Links:
|> [Dauphin Press Release]
|> [MJHL Press Release]

The Bisons have not thus far made an announcement regarding their European tour. However the first details have trickled out of Europe. Beware that my links use "Google Translate" so when read it often sounds a little funny. (Still, getting a free on-line translation is still pretty nice.)

The Hockey Time site at the links has a "translate" button and I used that to find that the Bisons start with a tournament in Collabo, Northern Italy. The first round goes on August 31st and the Bisons play Bremerhaven in the 1st game, with SV Renon Ritten Sport facing HC Neumarkt Egna Wild Goose in the 2nd game. On September 1st the losers play for 3rd place in the opener and the winners play for the title in the nightcap.

HC Neumarkt Egna are from Northern Italy, where they speak predominantly German. Hence the cities there often have two names. They play in the Inter-National League (INL), which is based in Austria and has teams from surrounding countries.

SV Renon Ritten Sport are also from Northern Italy and hosted a tournament won by the Bisons in 2011. They play in the Italian Serie A, which is now down to 5 teams. Other teams (like frequent champion HC Bolzano) have been allowed to leave for other leagues, whilst others have either folded or moved someplace where I cannot locate them.

Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven are not specifically listed in the Hockey Time link. They only refer to the opponent as "Bremerhaven" and as a "Ger4", i.e. 4th tier German team. However, the only listing I have for a Bremerhaven team is the Fischtown Pinguins, who play in the German DEL 2nd division. The Bisons defeated them (and Ritten) back in 2011. So this team is not confirmed as yet.

I hope to get much more on this trip as the week unfolds.

Links:
|> [Hockey Time - Exhibition Schedule for several Italian and other teams]
|> [Hockey Time - Ritten Story]
|> [HC Neumarkt Egna Wild Goose Team Website (translated)]
|> [Eurhockey.com on INL] : [and on HC Neumarkt Egna]
|> [SV Renon Ritten Sport Team Website (translated)]
|> [Eurhockey.com on Italian Serie A] : [and on SV Renon Ritten Sport]
|> [Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven Team Website (translated)]
|> [Eurohockey.com on DEL2] : [and on Fischtown Pinguins Bremerhaven]


The Tweety-Birds have announced that Wheat King grad Nick Buonassisi has committed to them. He is a small forward coming off a 14 goal season last year.

Links:
|> [UBC Story]


The Mangy Ones announced that Mike Bossy and Brian Trottier are coming to speak at their luncheon. So long as they use words they'll go over great. Heck, Sask would be happy if they (like the locals) stood up and howled then drank from the toilet.

Links:
|> [U of S Story]

Although there is still nothing on the U of M Site, I have found a few pertinent stories on the team and their tour opponents.

First up, rookie of the year James Henry is not returning to school and instead will play for the Stockton Thunder of the ECHL. So no Euro tour for him.

Meanwhile, Italy's top league has undergone a name change and is now to be known as "Elite A". As "Series A" last year it had 10 teams, Bolzano jumped to an Austrian league. And a few days ago only five teams were listed at Eurohockey.com. Well the deadline to come up with cash was July 30th at noon, and 8 teams answered the bell.

There was also off-ice drama in Germany. The second tier league was suing the governing body over various issues. In the end that has been settled and it will continue under the name "DEL2". There was no doubt that the 12 teams would be participating. What was at issue is whether they would still use the name. It appears all is well now.

So we should now be getting more news about team exhibition schedules. Most (3 of 5) Bison opponents in 2011 were from DEL2.

The Ritten team has signed some Canadian talent. Levi Nelson once played for Swift Current in the WHL and then played in the AHL (mostly for Providence), ECHL, and Germany. Matt Siddall was a 2004 Atlanta Thrashers draft pick and has since made stops throughout the minors and Europe, including the Fife Flyers when they returned to Britain's top league in 2011. Since 2006, they have also employed Dalhousie grad Dan Tudin. He played for Ottawa in the OHL before he went on to Dal, then bounced around the minors. He is now also eligible for Italy's national team.

Ritten is also re-acquiring another Italian national team veteran, Luca Ansoldi. This will be his 3rd stint with Ritten. The team has yet to confirm the signing in their website.

Links:
:. [ECHL Story on Henry]
:. [SportNews.bz Story on Elite A] :. [(translated)]
:. [EisHockey-24.de Story on DEL2] :. [(translated)]
:. [Ritten Sport Story on Nelson] :. [(translated)] :. [Elite Prospects Stats]
:. [Ritten Sport Story on Siddall] :. [(translated)] :. [Elite Prospects Stats]
:. [Ritten Sport Story on Tudin] :. [(translated)] :. [Elite Prospects Stats]
:. [SportNews.bz Story on Ansoldi (translated)] :. [Elite Prospects Stats]


Trinity Western (BCIHL) had two players on an AIA team which toured Latvia. The players were Brad Bakken and Josh Stephenson. They were joined by coaches Barret Kropf and Chris Wiens. I recall Athletes-in-Action having some good basketball teams many years ago.

Links:
|> [BCIHL Story]

I have looked high and low through the websites of the DEL2 teams. Most, but not all, have exhibition schedules posted. One such team is the Rosenheim Star Bulls, and the Bisons will open against them on Tuesday, August 27th.

The Bisons also started their 2011 tour with a game against Rosenheim before going into a tournament in Ritten. The Bisons won 5-4 in a shoot-out, after making a comeback from a 1-4 deficit.

There are not any players of note on the Bulls' roster. They have four imports, one each from Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, and Canada. The Canadian is Tyler McNeely. He is a BC boy who graduated from Northeastern (NCAA) before embarking on an AHL/ECHL career. Last season he played mostly for the South Carolina Stingrays (ECHL) where he scored 13 goals and 31 assists in 41 games. Hr also had 8 points in 27 games with Lake Erie (AHL).

Meanwhile, only Manitoba, Alberta, Regina, and UBC have their pre-season schedules up. And nobody has a new roster page.

Links:
:. [Rosenheim Team Website] :. [(translated)]
:. [Elite Prospects on McNeely]
:. [Post on 2011 game]

Hockey news is always down to a trickle on the August long weekend, and this year is no exception. But a few stories have popped up, mostly about off-ice matters.

The Bison all-sport pass stays at $60 for adults and $30 for students. However, the pass does NOT include football this year. Those tickets are $15/$8 per game due to the new campus stadium.

There are no new stories on the CW or CIS sites. However, the CIS site has replaced the 2012-13 schedule and standings links with 2013-14 links. Neither site has a composite schedule with exhibition games.

As for following the Bisons whilst on tour, I have links for Eurohockey.com's exhibition game schedule and a pre-season standings page. Thus far they list the Aug. 31st game, but not the Aug. 27th game nor any others. The link may be a source for future updates.

Links:
:. [Bison Tickets]
:. [CIS schedule] :. [CIS standings]
:. [Eurockey.com schedule page] :. [Standings page]


Hockey-News.info has a story on the Neumarkt Egna Wild Geese. I have a link for the translation as well. They start training in mid-August and their first game will be against Ritten in the semi-final opposite the Bisons. The story also has their pre-season schedule and ticket information. If you can afford the airfare. You could watch the Gooses for only €150!

Another Bison opponent, the Rosenheim Star Bulls, are featured at EisHockeyNews.de. They have signed Shawn Weller, an AHL/ECHL vet. He scored 12 goals in 67 games for the Manitoba Moose in 2010-11. The Jets also signed him to AHL deals with the St. John's Ice Caps for 41 games in 2011-12 and for 3 games in 2012-13.

After the settlement of law suits affecting German pro hockey, there were rumours that some DEL2 teams were being denied licences. This appears to be BS. All sides are accounted for.

Links:
:. [Hockey-News.info story on Neumarkt] :. [(translated)]
:. [Eishockeynews.de story on Rosenheim] :. [(translated)]
:. [Shawn Weller at Elte Prospects]
:. [Eishockeynews.de story on licencing] :. [(translated)]

Goaltender Chris Mason, from the 2011-12 Winnipeg Jets, has signed with Ritten Sport. The Bisons and Ritten will play one another if they win the semi-finals of the tournament in Collalbo, Italy on August 31st. Ritten is quite excited about the signing, especially since Mason once played for Canada in the worlds. Mason played for Nashville in the NHL last season.

Links:
:. [Team Press Release] :. [translated]
:. [reposted at SportNews.bz] :. [translated]

Still nothing new from the Herd. But, there have been some announcements from the western wing of the CW.


The Evil Mpnkeys will once again face the Edmontown Greasers (rookie squad). It is good to see them bring back this fixture. I would like to see the Bisons face the Jets' rookies.

The history of the Golden Bears vs. the Edmonton Oilers’ rookies game goes back to 1988, and was a yearly tradition for over 20 years. The teams last met in 2009 when the Bears skated to a 4-3 victory, which bumped their record against the Oilers’ rookies to 12-10.

Links:
|> [U of A Story]


The Extinct Ones became the latest team to post their exhibition games on their schedule page. Here's the sked:

Sept. 6 Calgary v Alberta (at Banff)
Sept. 7 Alberta v Calgary (at Banff)
Sept. 13 Calgary v Manitoba (at Regina)
Sept. 14 Saskatchewan v Calgary (at Regina)
Sept. 15 Calgary v Lethbridge (at Regina)
Sept. 19 Mount Royal at Calgary
Sept. 21 Saskatchewan v Calgary (at Edmonton)
Sept. 27 Alberta at Calgary
Sept. 28 Calgary v Alberta (at St. Albert)

Links:
|> [U of C Schedule Page]


The Tweety-Birds announced anoher recruit, Anthony Bardaro. He had 25 goals for the Prince Albert Raiders last year.

Links:
|> [UBC Story]

Former Manitoba Moose defenceman Travis Ramsey has now been signed by Ritten Sport. The past two seasons the Jets signed him to play for the St. John's Ice Caps. Although his point totals are low, he was a +4 on a minus team last year.

Links:
:. [Team Press Release] :. [translated]
:. [SportNews.bz Story] :. [translated]
:. [Ramsey's Elite Prospects Page]

The CW site includes only the conference games. These are the non-conference/exhibition games posted thus far. However, Sask, Mount Royal, and Lethbridge have yet to post their non-conference/exhibition games.

Code:

Tue Aug 27   Manitoba at Rosenheim
Sat Aug 31   Manitoba v Bremerhaven (at Collalbo)
Sun Sept 1   Manitoba v Ritten or Neumarkt (at Collalbo)
Wed Sept 4   Alberta at Augustana (ACAC)
Fri Sept 6   Alberta at Calgary
Sat Sept 7   Alberta at Calgary
Fri Sept 13  Alberta v Lethbridge (at Regina)
Fri Sept 13  Saskatchewan at Regina
Fri Sept 13  Calgary v Manitoba (at Regina)
Sat Sept 14  Alberta v Manitoba (at Regina)
Sat Sept 14  Lethbridge at Regina
Sat Sept 14  Saskatchewan v Calgary (at Regina)
Sun Sept 15  Alberta at Regina
Sun Sept 15  Calgary v Lethbridge (at Regina)
Thu Sept 19  Mount Royal at Calgary
Fri Sept 20  Regina at Manitoba
Fri Sept 20  Saskatchewan at Alberta (Brick Invitational)
Sat Sept 21  Regina at Manitoba
Sat Sept 21  Calgary v Saskatchewan (Brick Invitational)
Sat Sept 21  Mount Royal at Alberta (Brick Invitational)
Fri Sept 27  Alberta at Calgary
Fri Sept 27  Simon Fraser (BCIHL) at UBC
Sat Sept 28  Calgary v Alberta (at St. Albert)
Sat Sept 28  UBC at Simon Fraser (BCIHL)
Sat Sept 28  Toronto at Manitoba
Sun Sept 29  Toronto at Manitoba
Fri Nov 1    Alberta at Lakehead
Sat Nov 2    Alberta at Lakehead
Fri Jan 3    Alberta at NAIT (ACAC)
Sat Jan 4    NAIT (ACAC) at Alberta

There will be one more NHL-CIS match-up this pre-season. In the Town of Bedrock the Phlegms will do battle with the Dinos. These teams also faced each other in 2011. So on September 9 it will be Phlegms @ U of C and on September 10 it will be Greasers @ U of A. Now it is time for the Jets to face the Bisons.

BTW, these two games have been added to the CW composite schedule, but no other exhibition games have been.

Links:
:. [U of C Story] :. [CW story re Calgary and Alberta]
:. [CW Composite Schedule]

On a day when the CW webmaster went nuts, one more Bison opponent on the European vacation has been disclosed. The Bisons will face EHC Klostersee on August 29th. They are in the Oberliga, the 3rd tier of German hockey. The Bisons' other German opponents (now and in 2011) have come from the DEL2 (the 2nd tier of German hockey).

The schedule also has the Bisons opening their tour on August 26th instead of 27th (as per the Rosenheim site and pretty much every European link). We'll see if this is corrected.

In other notes, the CW composite says the Bisons will face UND at Fargo. Not sure why that would be. Three games in three days, and they would have to spend a couple more hours on the highway. Are they hoping that Fargo fans will confuse them for a new NDSU Bison team?

There are a pile of other new games added, none of which have shown up on team sites as yet. Lethbridge, Saskatchewan, and Mount Royal have diddly squat on the pre-season.

Links:
:. [CW Composite Schedule]
:. [Eurohockey.com - Oberliga] :. [Eurohockey.com - Klostersee]
:. [EHC Klostersee Team Site]

2013-14 CWUAA Exhibition Games

Aug. 26   Manitoba at Rosenheim (Ger2)
Aug. 29   Manitoba at EHC Klostersee (Ger3)
Aug. 31   Manitoba v EHC Fischtown (Ger2) (at Ritten)
Sept. 1   Manitoba v Ritten or Neumarkt (at Ritten)
Sept. 4   Alberta at Augustana (ACAC)
Sept. 6   Calgary v Alberta (at Banff)
Sept. 7   Alberta v Calgary (at Banff)
Sept. 9   Calgary Flames Rookies at Calgary    
Sept. 10  Edmonton Oilers Rookies at Alberta
Sept. 10  Regina at Weyburn (SJHL)
Sept. 13  Saskatchewan at Regina
Sept. 13  Lethbridge v Alberta (at Regina)
Sept. 13  Calgary v Manitoba (at Regina)
Sept. 14  Lethbridge at Regina
Sept. 14  Manitoba v Alberta  (at Regina)
Sept. 14  Calgary v Saskatchewan (at Regina)
Sept. 15  Alberta at Regina
Sept. 15  Calgary v Lethbridge (at Regina)
Sept. 18  Mount Royal at Calgary
Sept. 20  Saskatchewan at Alberta
Sept. 21  Regina at Manitoba
Sept. 21  Calgary v Saskatchewan (at Edmonton)
Sept. 21  Mount Royal at Alberta
Sept. 27  Simon Fraser (BCIHL) at UBC
Sept. 27  Alberta at Calgary
Sept. 27  Lethbridge at Mount Royal
Sept. 28  Calgary v Alberta (at St. Albert)
Sept. 28  UBC at Simon Fraser (BCIHL)
Sept. 28  Toronto (OUA) at Manitoba
Sept. 29  Toronto (OUA) at Manitoba
Oct. 4    UBC at Alaska-Anchorage (NCAA)
Oct. 5    UBC at Alaska-Fairbanks (NCAA)
Oct. 5    Lethbridge at Minnesota (NCAA)
Oct. 6    Lethbridge at Minnesota St.-Mankato
Oct. 6    Manitoba at North Dakota (NCAA) (at Fargo)
Nov. 1    Alberta at Lakehead (OUA)
Nov. 2    Alberta at Lakehead (OUA)
Jan. 3    North Dakota (NCAA) v UBC (at Burnaby)
Jan. 3    Alberta at NAIT (ACAC)
Jan. 4    Princeton (NCAA) v UBC (at Burnaby)
Jan. 4    NAIT (ACAC) at Alberta

The teams the Bisons are facing (or may be facing in the tournament) during their European tour have started playing and have made more signings.

The schedule links for most teams still do not have exhibition games posted yet. But two opponents have a list from the Sportforen.de message board, which seems to have it all for German teams.

Links:
:. [Sportforen]


Starbulls Rosenheim 3
EC Villacher SV 4
(in shoot-out)

When the Starbulls face the Bisons, it will be their 4th game of the season. Villacher is a good team from the EBEL, Austria's top league with a few teams from other countries. Their remaining games are:

Aug 18 v Villacher SV (A)
Aug 23 v HC Bozen/Bolzano (H)
Aug 27 v Manitoba Bisons (H)
Aug 30 v Sterzing Broncos (H)
Sept 01 v Sterzing Broncos (A)
Sept 06 v HC Pustertal (A)
Sept 08 v HC Pustertal (H)

Bozen/Bolzano is an Italian side that has moved to the EBEL effective this year. Sterzing and Pusteral are in the Italian Elite A.

Links:
:. Rosenheim Site: [Schedule] :. [Summary] :. [Roster]
:. [Eis Hockey News Story] :. [Translated]


Fischtown Pinguins 6
Hannover Scorpions 1

The Scorpions are in the Oberliga, which is the 3rd tier of German hockey. Their game with the Bisons will be their 4th as well. Here is the schedule:

Aug 23 v Esbjerg Elite Ishockey (A)
Aug 25 v Hannover Scorpions (A)
Aug 31 v Manitoba Bisons (tournament in Ritten)
Sept 1 3rd place match or final v HC Neumarkt/Egna or Ritten/Renon
Sept 6 v Odense Bulldogs (SWB-Cup in Bremerhaven)
Sept 7 3rd place match or final in Bremerhaven

Esbjergand Odense are Danish teams.

Links:
:. [Fischtown Game Story] :. [Translated]
:. [Eis Hockey 24 Story] :. [Translated]
:. [Eis Hockey Magazin Story] :. [Translated]


While Ritten/Renon Sport has yet to announce a full schedule and has yet to play a game, they have announced yet another big signing. Eric Johansson, born in Edmonton but with dual Swedish citizenship, has signed. He is a vet, having played in the AHL for 3 seasons ended in 2005. Since then he has played mostly in Sweden. Ritten seems determined to boost themselves to a higher level.

Links:
:. [Ritten Story] :. [Translated]
:. [SportsNews.bz Story] :. [Translated]
:. [Elite Prospects Page]


The Neumarkt/Egna Wild Geese do not have the splashy announcements of the other Bison opponents. But there was a story about them signing a young Slovak, Matej Direr, who just been out of junior for a year.

Links:
:. [SportsNews.bz Story] :. [Translated]

The only CW team to have a new official announcement about recruits is the University of British California. They have announced that goaltender Jordan White is not coming back but the replacement is former Regina Pat Matt Hewitt. White was doing very well in his 3rd and 4th years at UBC after being kind of mediocre in years 1 and 2. I am sure that they would rather have him back for a 5th year. Still, UBC needs a steady flow of WHL recruits into their program if they want to sit with the cool kids instead of being perpetually seated at the little school table.

Links:
:. [UBC Story]
:. [Hewitt at Elite Prospects]


The Evil Monkeys have made their 2nd annual announcement that open tryouts will be held. They have stated that prospective players must have played "Midget AAA or higher".

Links:
:. [U of A Story]


There were a few transactions affecting CW teams listed at Elite Prospects, none of which were accompanied by team announcements. Could be that since these guys are not from the WHL they are just getting tryouts.

Nevertheless, here's the list:

Miguel Pereira - Listed as going from Grenoble to Regina, although he played for the Weyburn Red Wings last year. Looks like he changed his mind. Why would he want to leave Grenoble for Regina?

Derek Huisman - He is a forward from the Merritt Centennials of the BCHL now headed to the New Kittens on the Block. He has been about a point per game Junior A player the last two years.

Myles Hovdebo - He is a goaltender listed as having transferred from Selkirk College (BCIHL) to the Bedrock Dinos. Selkirk also lost one other goaltender, but have recruited three new ones as well. He is not listed as having ever actually played at Selkirk. He spent the last 3 years with the Laronge Icewolves. Although Dustin Butler is gone, the Dinos still have Jacob DeSerres (arguably their #1 by the end of the year) and Kris Lazaruk (who never played last year) eligible to return.

Links:
:. [Elite Prospects CIS transfers page]
:. [Pereira at Elite Prospects]
:. [Huisman at Elite Prospects]
:. [Hovdebo at Elite Prospects]
:. [Selkirk College at Elite Prospects]

Starbulls Rosenheim 1
EC Villacher SV 3

The Starbulls lost the rematch to their Austrian foes. The shots on goal are not shown in the summary and it is hard to glean from a translated story just what the game was like. Shawn Weller had an assist.

Rosenheim will now play HC Bozen/Bolzano Foxes (Italian team new to the EBEL) on Friday before facing the Bisons on August 27th.

Links:
:. [Game Story at Rosenheim24.de] :. [Translated]
:. [Summary] :. [Translated]


I have also pieced together the changes in Italian hockey. I have linked stories from the meetings they held. Their top league is to now be called Elite.A and there is no automatic promotion/relegation system. Teams can move up if they meet arena, sponsorship, and other criteria. Most of the 2nd tier teams are either moving to the INL (such as Neumarkt/Egna) or otherwise restructuring. One (Sterzing/Vipetano) is moving back to Elite.A. Last season (as "Serie A") they had 10 teams. HC Bozen/Bolzano Foxes have moved to the Austrian EBEL. HC Alleghe Civette lost sponsorship and are moving down a league. I have no idea what has happened to Aquile Friuli Venezia Giulia. So, 10 - 3 = 7. Then you add Sterzing/Vipetano and they are back to 8. One team they thought they may lose to the KHL is Hockey Milano Rossoblu. Although they are not listed at Eurohockey.com, their own website claims they are set for the Elite.A this year. The other five returnees are Asiago Hockey, HC Valpellice, Sportivi Ghiaccio Cortina, SHC Fassa, and HC Val Pusteria/Pustertal.

Could the KHL succeed in "non-traditional" hockey markets like Milan? Well, the NHL has tried Phoenix, Atlanta, etc. so what the heck! BTW, Andrew Raycroft and Angelo Esposito play for Milan.

Links:
:. [LIHG Planning Story] :. [Translated]
:. [LIHG League Format Story] :. [Translated]
:. [Alleghe Story] :. [Translated]
:. [Milano Story] :. [Translated]


Ritten/Renon Sport have released a full roster page, and an interview with Chris Mason. Sounds like he and his wife wanted to spend some time in Italy before he retires. He had previously played in Norway.

Links:
:. [Ritten Roster Announced] :. [Translated]
:. [Ritten Mason Interview] :. [Translated]

The Bisons' site has uploaded a story on the tour. It confirms the information previously posted in this thread and has a quote from the coach. The site does not yet have a training camp roster, but camp has started.

Links:
:. [U of M Story]


Starbulls Rosenheim 2
HC Bozen/Bolzano Foxes 1

Tyler McNeely scored both goals for Rosenheim and Shawn Weller had two assists. So their imports are clearly the players to watch. The Bisons will likely counter with a choice defence combo when the two sides clash on Tuesday. Rosenheim is now 1-1-1 in pre-season, and the Bisons are their next opponent. The Foxes are an Italian team in the debut season in the Austria-based EBEL.

Links:
:. [Preview Story] :. [Translated]
:. [Summary] :. [Translated]
:. [SportNews.bz Story] :. [Translated]


Fischtown Pinguins 1
Esbjerg Elite Ishockey 0
(in shoot-out)

The Bisons could be facing a solid D next Friday when they face the Waddling Ones. Esbjerg (a Danish team) must have a strong goaltender. I like how some translations come out:

Although the Seestädter were able to record 19/6 Shots on goal in their favor, it simply was not possible to accommodate the black hard rubber disc in the case of Ervin Mustukovs well defended. After Sergei Stas and Tyler Ellington after a personal dispute in the 27th Minutes were sent out to the showers, the hosts came into the game a little better, but now Brett Jaeger could also provide proof of his class. Nachem until the second half has the game became increasingly incoherent, penguin coach Mike Stewart was happy to re-instructed to send his men on the ice again in the last scene of the game.

So, there you go! The Pingies will face the Hanover Scorpions on Sunday before facing the Bisons next Saturday.

Links:
:. [Fischtown Story] :. [Translated]


No news from Ritten/Renon Sport, but they have a poster/program cover for the tournament.

Click for larger image.


Elite Prospects has a CIS recruit page which, while not complete, is worth a periodic check-in. The H0rny Ones have landed goaltender handsome & intelligent gom Sirard from Selkirk College of the BCIHL. Their source was the player's Twitter! And Lakehead picked up goaltender Justin McDonald from the OCN Blizzard.

Links:
:. [Elite Prospects CIS Confirmed Transfers]
:. Re Sirard: [Elite Prospects] :. [Twitter]
:. Re McDonald: [Elite Prospects] :. [Lakehead Story]

My son was anxious to give his brand new hockey equipment a trial run and we found out about public ice being available at the Max Bell. Only problem is that high temperatures and humidity forced closure for the afternoon. Ironic, considering what happened to EHC Klostersee ...


EHC Klostersee's home arena in Grafing has sprung a leak from a valve in the ice machine, putting the facility out of commission for about a week. So the Bison game on Thursday is shifting to another venue. The options are Bad Tolz and Erding. All of these places are east of Munich and west of Rosenheim. This is their pre-disaster pre-season schedule:

Aug. 29 in Grafing v Manitoba Bisons
Sept. 1 at EC Peiting
Sept. 6 at TEV Miesbach
Sept. 8 in Grafing v EC Peiting
Sept. 13 in Grafing v Erding Gladiators
Sept. 15 in Grafing v TEV Miesbach
Sept. 20 at Erding Gladiators
Sept. 22 (opponents to be confirmed)

Links:
:. [EHCK Announcement] :. [Translation]
:. [Eishockey News Story] :. [Translation]
:. [EHCK Pre-season Schedule] :. [Translation]


SC Riessersee 3
Ritten/Renon Sport 1

This was the season opener for Ritten. They are hosting the Bisons in their tournament next weekend. Former Jet Chris Mason was tending the goal for the first two periods during which the Germans mounted a 3-0 lead. Two of those goals came on a 5 minute major. At least that's what I picked up from the translations. Riessersee is from the DEL2.

The remainder of Ritten's pre-season looks like this:

Aug. 31 Ritten Sport v Neumarkt/Egna Wild Geese (INL)
Sept. 1 Ritten Sport v Fischtown (DEL2) or Manitoba Bisons
Sept. 3 Ritten Sport v Dartmouth (NCAA)
Sept. 7 Ritten Sport v SC Riessersee (DEL2)
Sept. 13 Ritten Sport v Bad Tölz (OBL)
Sept. 15 Bad Tölz (OBL) v Ritten Sport

Too bad the Bisons couldn't have played Dartmouth so as to add a 5th game.



Links:
:. [Ritten Story] :. [Translated]
:. [SportNews.bz Story] :. [Translated]
:. [HockeyTime.net Story] :. [Translated]
:. [Ritten Pre-Season]


Starbulls Rosenheim 8
Deggendorfer Fire 1

This game was not part of Rosenheim's previously announced schedule. Deggendorfer is from the Oberliga, Germany's 3rd tier league. By the early results it would appear that there is quite a difference between the Oberliga and the DEL2. Tyler McNeely and Shawn Weller each scored again for the Starbulls. Rosenheim is now 2-1-1 and their next game is Tuesday against the Bisons.

Links:
:. [Team Summary]
:. [Eurohockey Summary]


Fischtown Pinguins 7
Hannover Scorpions 1

Fischtown won beat Hannover, another Oberliga team, for the 2nd time this year. The Pinguins are now 3-0-0 in the pre-season. Next up for them is the Ritten tournament, and a Saturday game against the Manitoba Bisons.

Links:
:. [Fischtown Story] :. [Translated]
:. [Eishockey Magazin Story] :. [Translated]
:. [Eurohockey Summary]

MANITOBA BISONS 1
ROSENHEIM STARBULLS 7

The Bisons started their European vacation on a sour note. The first thing to jump out at me was that the Bisons had a very weak line-up dressed. From last year's starters in the playoffs, they had only one defenceman and 5 forwards dressed. I do not know if they had some injuries or if loads of guys failed to make the trip, or just droped out. IAE, the Bisons dressed only 16 skaters, when European rules allow 20. And one of those dressed was Bison assistant coach Riley Dudar!

I followed along at the Pointstreak link, which is very much like LeagueStat. There were two jersey numbers listed as "New Player". One turned out to be Dudar and the other was Pierre Landry, an unannounced newcomer on defence. He has transferred from Briercrest and previously played for the Wayway Wolverines in the MJHL. Here was the line-up  (the line combos were not given):

GOAL:
1  Joe Caligiuri - 34 Deven Dubyk - 35 Joey Rewucki

DEFENCE:
12 Brock Sutherland - 24 Travis Bobbee
5 Lee Christensen - 6 Luke Paulsen
3 Pierre Landry

FORWARDS:
20 Aaron Lewadniuk - 19 Ian DuVal - 21 Taylor Dickin
18 Dylan Kelly - 25 Paul Ciarelli - 16 Jesse Paradis
15 Craig Scott - 10 Brendan Rowinski - 17 Austin Lauder
22 Riley Dudar - 28 Reid MacLeod

MIA:
22 Darren Bestland - 2 Dane Crowley
3 Eric Mestery - 4 Jeremy Schappert
6 Brodie Melnychuk
29 Luke Cain - #? Jordan Depape - 26 Blair Macaulay

The players listed under "MIA" are eligible to return. Depape is the only new recruit in that list. What are the rest doing?

Other than Landry, other unannounced newcomers to suit up were Joey Rewucki (goaltender from the Selkirk Steelers of the MJHL) and Reid MacLeod (forward from Sacred Heart of the NCAA who red-shirted and played for the Stonewall Flyers last year).

Travis Bobbee started the scoring after 5 minutes, but that was it for the Bisons. Each goaltender played a period, Caligiuri started and was succeeded by Dubyk and Rewucki.

None of the summaries include shots on goal, so it is hard to glean just what kind of a game it was. The score was only 2-1 after 36 minutes of play. Then two quick 2nd period goals by the Starbulls gave them a stranglehold.

These teams started the 2011 tour as well. Rosenheim also had a 4-1 lead after two periods that night, only to lose in a shootout.

The Bisons' next game is Thursday against EHC Klostersee. Rosenheim will not play until Friday against the Sterzing Broncos.

A special guest at the game was Karl Friesen, goaltender and formerly of the West Kildonan North Stars and St. Boniface Mohawks. He also played 12 seasons for Rosenheim and for the German (or West German) national team in 6 world championships and 3 Olympic games (1984, 1988, and 1992). He also had a cup of coffee with the New Jersey Devils (pre-Brodeur).



Links:
:. [Team Preview Story] :. [Translation]
:. [Team Story] :. [Translation]
:. [Hockeyweb.de Story] :. [Translation]
:. [Pointstreak Summary/Stats]
:. [Eurohockey Summary]
:. [Rosenheim Summary/Stats] :. [Translation]
:. [Rosenheim Story re Deggendorf] :. [Translation]
:. Elite Prospects Links: [Karl Friesen] :. [Pierre Landry]
:. [Reid Macleod] :. [Joey Rewucki] :. [Riley Dudar]

So I popped in at the Max Bell to take my son skating and instead of public skating there was "Bison Men's Practice" on the board. Since it was so hot outside we wanted to check out the ice and, indeed, there was a Bison men's hockey practice, featuring 2 goaltenders and 9 skaters. That explains the short-staffed squad in Europe. I could not identify everybody. But Blair Macaulay and Dane Crowley had numbers on their helmets making them identifiable. I also thought I saw alumni Chris Benias out there. How many short guys with a #17 helmet are out there? There should be plenty of competition for spots when the two camps come together.