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Thunderbirds prepare for new season

It’s been a busy off-season for the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Soo Thunderbirds.

It’s been a busy off-season for the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Soo Thunderbirds.

Coming off a season in which they won a league title and advanced to the RBC Cup in Portage La Prairie, Manitoba, the team is re-tooling with new General Manager Jamie Henderson leading the way.

Henderson takes over the position from Kevin Cain, who stepped down from the position earlier this summer.

Henderson has made a number of roster moves as the 2015-16 season approaches.

Along with announcing the returns of nine players from last season’s NOJHL champs, Henderson has done some tinkering with the roster.

The team signed high-scoring forward Brad Thrower from the Thunderbirds Great North Midget League team earlier this summer. Thrower finished the 2014-15 season with 15 goals and 45 points in 36 games with the Thunderbirds midgets.

More recently, the team acquired defenceman Joe Newhouse from the Superior League’s Thunder Bay North Stars. The 18-year-old scored five goals and 25 points in 56 games with the North Stars last season.

The Thunderbirds also moved 19-year-old forward Devin Shell, who was acquired by the team midway through the 2014-15 season. The Thunderbirds dealt Shell to Yarmouth of the Maritime League for cash.

Shell finished the 2014-15 season with three goals and 12 points in 19 games with the Thunderbirds after being acquired from Cambridge of the Greater Ontario League.

Confirmed to return for next season include a trio of defencemen along with six forwards.

The defencemen include Matt Busby (18), Caleb Boman (17) and 18-year-old Brandon Grandinetti.

Busby is coming off a season that saw him post three goals and 21 points in 52 games while Boman had nine goals and 32 points in 49 games. Grandientti finished 2014-15 with one goal and 12 points in 51 games.

Some solid offensive pieces are among the returning forwards.

Among them are 19-year-old Jaren Bellini, who scored 32 goals last season, and Matt Caruso, who had 13 goals and 34 points in the regular season before scoring 14 more goals in the Thunderbirds playoff run.

Also returning up front are Brett Jeffries (20 goals, 43 points), Matt Mitchell (seven goals, 22 points), Joey Miller (16 goals, 44 points) and Nathan Hebert (12 goals, 31 points).

The Thunderbirds open the 2015-16 NOJHL season on Sept. 11 at the Essar Centre when they face the Soo Eagles in the first game of a home-and-home weekend set that continues the following night at Pullar Stadium in Sault, MI.


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Brad Coccimiglio

About the Author: Brad Coccimiglio

A graduate of Loyalist College’s Sports Journalism program, Brad Coccimiglio’s work has appeared in The Hockey News as well as online at FoxSports.com in addition to regular freelance work with SooToday before joining the team full time.
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