The Dawn of a New Season

 I went down to Centerfire Place and was greeted by a welcomed sight. The ice is officially in with training camp just around the corner. With the arrival of the ice, brings an arrival of several feelings.

The first feeling is the sense every team gets right before a brand new season. Optimism. It is a fresh slate with everyone starting at the same place with the goal to claim an AJHL title. For Fort McMurray, it's a fresh sense of wonder after a tumultuous start to the off-season. This season, there will be a brand new board of directors, Sam Klassen adds the role of General Manager to his coaching duties, there's a new assistant coach and assistant general manager, a new goalie coach, and a vision to build a top notch program. Not saying that vision wasn't in place prior, but this season it feels like some red tape that held back coaches in the past has been removed. 

Now can this Oil Barons team contend for the franchise's fourth league title? Well, let's look at the team. There is a good core of players returning to Fort McMurray. Five returning defencemen, a solid group of forwards led by Ryan Arnold, Dustin Good, Leo Adams and Cade Petersen, plus the team got their goalie via trade acquiring Logan Cunningham from the Devon Xtreme. Throw in some impact rookies like Cash Brebant, Jaggar John and Evan Benoit, and the pieces appear to be in place. 

Around the league, Drumheller looks to be the class of the South Division. No team appears to be deeper offensively than them, with game breakers like Bradley Gallo and Ellis Mieyette. The additions of Jaxan Smyth and Phoenix Flett adds grit, balancing the forward group. The Dragons also have one of the best goalies in the league in Sean Cootes, backed up by proven netminder Matthew Kondro. The only question mark may be their defence, but they are stacked. Meanwhile, in the North, the MOB could be legitimate contenders. Grande Prairie announced their intentions to defend their division title with the return of Colin Doherty. He and Will Harris will combine for one of the most lethal one two punches in the league. Under Shawn Martin, Whitecourt will always be a threat. Captain Jalen Bianchet will lead the charge, alongside what looks to be a veteran defence core. Devon could be a sleeper with the potential of several returning players, the question is how do they come together under new head coach Taylor Harnett.

Personally, the disappointment of the off-season has been shed for motivation and excitement. I'll admit to putting my name in the ring for the Swift Current job, only to fall just short. Being a finalist for a WHL job in my first attempt says a lot, but it also shows that growth needs to continue. That said, it wasn't all bad this off-season. My little brother got married in late June (huge congrats John and Katherine!) and my fiance and I got to recharge with about a three week break. I got to become the primary play by play voice of the Fort McMurray Giants in the Western Canadian Baseball League. And the resume got padded by being able to call the gold and bronze medals games at the Baseball Canada U18 Nationals, which witnessed a little bit of history.

    

This season will see the return of our weekly show, Oil Barons This Week. Already I have been connecting with alumni to join the show and share their time in Fort McMurray. I will also be adding a second podcast that will air every other week with a look at junior hockey as a whole. An interesting topic considering the ever changing landscape that we are seeing in North America. Throw in creating more content for the Oil Barons and potentially doing some work with the AJHL, the 2025/26 season should be a blast.