REGINA, SK – The 23rd National Aboriginal Hockey Championships are set for Regina, SK, between May 4 and 10, and Team Saskatchewan will have a distinctly Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League feel.
Waylon Gardipy of the La Ronge Ice Wolves leads a team of Under-18 Aboriginal players from around the province.
A vast majority of the players are SJHL draft picks, and a few, such as Rory Dewar (La Ronge), Connor McClarty (Melville), and Xander Pritchard (Warman), have appeared in SJHL games as call-ups.
Games are played at Regina’s Co-Operators Centre.
The team is being coached by Regina native Regan Morris.
Estevan Bruins’ prospect Cash Arcand-Vandale led the way with a pair of goals in Team Saskatchewan’s tournament-opening 4-3 win vs. ‘Eastern Door of the North’ Monday.
FIND DETAILS OF THE EVENT HERE.
SJHL players have a long history of participation in the event, with current Flin Flon Bombers Hudson Brehaut, Battlefords North Stars Rory Dewar, and Kindersley Klippers assistant captain Jaxon Herchak co-leading Team Sask in scoring a year ago.
Other recent SJHL stars that are alums of the event include Owen Nelson (Battlefords), Konnor Watson (Nipawin), Raiden Zacharias (Battlefords), and Rylan Williams (Estevan) – among many others.
Team Saskatchewan won the bronze medal a year ago, downing Ontario in the third-place game in British Columbia.
