North Island Silvertips players have shown good things to make it to this stage of the pre-season.
Now they get to really showcase what they can do.
Nanaimo’s B.C. Major Midget League hockey team plays its first pre-season games Saturday (Sept. 3) and tomorrow against the South Island Thunderbirds.
Silvertips coach Dan Lemmon said he’s interested to see how hard his guys will go into the corners against players they haven’t seen before.
“Instead of battling each other, they’re going to be battling some opponents,” he said. “It’s a time that they can all bond together and get behind one goal of winning a game.”
There aren’t any points at stake in pre-season, but there are roster spots on the line. Lemmon said the ’Tips have committed to half the roster so far.
Competitive hockey games against a rival team will go a long way in helping the coaching staff make further decisions, and Lemmon said these pre-season games can have implications for the regular season.
“If it’s an exhibition game, if it’s a game of rock, paper, scissors, any win against an opponent like this is always a positive,” said the coach. “This is going to gear us up towards games with them in the regular season. It’s also going to tell us where we’re at.”
GAME ON … Saturday’s game is in Victoria and the rematch Sunday (Sept. 4) starts at 1 p.m. at the Nanaimo Ice Centre.
sports@nanaimobulletin.com