Friday

Good luck to Bronco 17 year-olds Reece Scarlett and Adam Lowry who will attend Canada's National U-18 Selection Camp over the next few days in Calgary.

They are two of 38 players trying to land a roster spot. If they make the team they'll be off to Slovakia and the Czech Republic for the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament.

The stock of these two guys rose dramatically at the World U-17 Challenge in Timmins, ON last Christmas. They were both stand-out players for Team Pacific.

Hopefully they can give the decision makers at Hockey Canada something to think about.


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We had Broncos 4th round bantam pick Zack Mackay on our Eagle 94.1 FM morning show yesterday. He's a member of the bantam "AA" Indians that won provincials and are now off to Westerns in Surrey, BC in a couple week.s

I was impressed with his maturity. He did a great job with us while promoting their fundraiser. He's 15 going on 20 already. Character was a big reason in the Broncos selection of Zack. Looks like a good pick.

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There's some burning questions as we enter Broncos Training Camp in three weeks time. Here's the questions I'll be asking:

1) What's the status of F Justin Dowling?

It's safe to say a lot of the offensive prowess of this hockey club rests on his status of returning or going pro. It's safe to say Justin is looking to make the jump to pro this season. I would think he would consider a return to junior hockey as a disappointment.

He had a good Flyers Prospects camp and is set to return for their fall camp. I've also heard he's looked at pro opportunities in Europe.

Dowling and Cody Eakin would be the best one-two punch in the Eastern Conference at least. I would say Dowling's chances of being in a Bronco uniform are not favourable. We will see what plays out in the next couple months.

2) What's the goaltending situation like?

There's no room in the crease for two 20 year old goaltenders. Something has to give in the next while regarding Mark Friesen and Morgan Clark. I'm expecting something to happen sooner rather than later. Stay tuned.

3) What's the import situation look like?

The import situation for the Broncos in convoluted. With the team drafting both a 17 year-old defenseman out of Slovakia and an 18 year-old forward out of the Czecj Republic, some decisions will have to be made.

F Stepan Novotny is also eligible to return as a "two-spotter" as both an over-age and an import. Also, at some point we could see G Joni Ortio come over. He won't be at camp though. If he does come over it would be at some point in the season.

4) Who makes the cut on the blue line and who doesn't?

Not sure if you've noticed the amount of returning defenseman for next season. Travis Bobbee (20), Kyle Verdino (19), Joel Rogers (19), Jordan Evans (18), Brody Luhning (18), Reece Scarlett (17), Graeme Craig (17)

Throw in that mix import pick Richard Nedomlel (17), plus prospects Jeff Franczyk (17), Nathan Zimbaluk (17) and Ashton Mcleod (16).

You can always bank on a surprise or two at training camp as well.


Those are the biggest questions surrounding the hockey club as we get closer to training camp.

Alright, have a good long weekend, that's it for me.

Jon