No strangers to holiday competition in Thunder Bay, the CIS No. 7 Manitoba Bisons (9-3-2) will trek into Fort William Gardens for two games, December 29-30, as the No. 10 Lakehead Thunderwolves (11-3-2) hosts the new-look TbayTel Varsity Cup Challenge. Held in partnership with the Thunder Bay AAA midget Kings, the Varsity Cup Challenge pits the 2008 Varsity Cup champion Thunderwolves against the 2007 champion Bisons. Both games faceoff at 7:30pm and will follow the Kings games against Lansing, Michigan.
The series honours the late Jim Johnson who served as Thunderwolves Hockey President and director of hockey operations from 2000-2005. Johnson was inducted, in October, to the Lakehead Athletics Wall of Fame for his role in bringing CIS hockey back to Thunder Bay.
Both games will be webcast live on the Thunderwolves channel at UStream.com. Visit thunderwolveshockey.com for more details.
Head-to-head
In 10 previous meetings between the Thunderwolves and the Bisons, Lakehead holds a 6-3-1 record over the Canada West team. The Pack won their last contest with Manitoba, 3-2, in overtime, to secure a trip to the finals of last seasons Varsity Cup where they beat the Saskatchewan Huskies.
Despite their strong record against their rivals from Winnipeg, Lakehead has only outscored Manitoba 36-35 all-time, a testament to the intensity of this non-conference rivalry.
Lakehead Thunderwolves
Head coach Joel Scherbans high octane Thunderwolves roster will get an injection of new talent as they enter the second half of the 2009-10 season. Blue chip recruits Matt Caria and Matt Dias of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and Ryan McDonald of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan will all make their Lakehead debuts against Manitoba and are regarded as elite CIS forwards.
Caria was the fourth-leading scorer in the OHL last season with 34 goals, 58 assists and 92 points for the Soo Greyhounds and Plymouth Whalers and will instantly become one the nations top playmakers and overall players. Dias, a tough sniper led the Sudbury Wolves with 31 goals, 35 assists and 66 points last season, while McDonald was his hometown Prince Albert Raiders second-leading scorer last year with 37 goals, 26 assists and 63 points.
With OUA second-leading scorer Brock McPherson on the road to recovery from a broken collarbone, several Thunderwolves have stepped up offensively for the Thunderwolves of late. Fifth-year senior Scott Dobben of Drayton, Ontario, enters the series as the Wolves second-leading scorer with 11 goals, 13 assists and 24 points. Fellow fifth-year senior Dan Speer of Thunder Bay leads the Wolves with 19 assists, adding four goals for 23 points while freshman Victor Anilane of Gothenburg, Sweden, has continued his fine play in notching 10 goals, nine assists for 19 points in CIS play. Senior Mark Soares of Burnaby, BC, has elevated his game and has eight goals, 11 assists, and 19 points entering the Manitoba series.
Sicamous, British Columbia product Kris Hogg, a junior, also has 10 goals for the Thunderwolves, adding eight assists for 18 points, while local sophomore Adam Sergerie has six goals, 10 assists and 16 points, providing Lakehead with a significant increase in his offensive production from previous years.
With junior Pierre-Marc Guilbault out, the Thunderwolves have relied on balance on the blueline to replace their high-scoring defenseman. Thunder Bay native, junior Ryan Baird and Winnipegs Andy Zulyniak, a senior, have proven themselves as sound puck-movers. Baird has five goals, 10 assists and 15 points in CIS play with Zulyniak adding one goal and 10 assists for 11 points.
Junior Mitch Maunu (two goal, seven assists), also of Thunder Bay, and captain Jordan Smith (three goals, seven assists), a senior from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario have both contributed offensively while adding their usual dose of physical play to the Thunderwolves cause.
In net, junior Kyle Moir has posted an 11-4-1 record with 2 SO, a 2.62 GAA, and a 0.906 SV%. The Calgary native is backed up by Thunder Bay freshman Alex Dupuis who has seen action in six games and has a 2-0-2 record to show for it.
Manitoba Bisons
Led by head coach Mike Sirant, the Bisons are a physical, defensive-minded team that will look to slow down the high-scoring Wolves and grind out some wins at the Varsity Cup. The team features three players who where members of the Canadian silver medal-winning team at last years World Universiade at Harbin, China in forwards Mike Hellyer and Rick Wood, and defenseman Stephane Lenoski.
Sophomore Hellyer, of Brandon, Manitoba, enters the series as Manitobas leading scorer with seven goals and nine assists for 16 points while Wood, a fifth-year senior from Rivers, Manitoba is a nice offensive player with six goals, seven assists and 13 points.
In his first year with his hometown Bisons freshman Blair Macauley has established himself as long-term contributor and has four goals, eight assists and 12 points. Also of Winnipeg, senior Calin Wild captains the Bisons and has three goals, three assists on the season.
On the blueline, freshman Brandon Lockerby of Douglas, Manitoba, has provided an offensive spark with one goal and eight assists to pace the Bisons D-men in scoring. Universiade national team member Lenoski, a junior from Winnipeg has six assists, while Kip Workman, a senior from Brandon has one goal and five assists.
Goaltending has been a big strength for Manitoba led by senior Steven Christie of Winnipeg. Through the first half of the season, the Bisons 2009 MVP has a 9-3-2 record with one shutout. In Canada West play, Christie has posted a 2.13 GAA and a 0.926 SV%.