Lucas Punkari
Having resigned three players from last season’s squad, the Fort Frances Lakers have added a fresh face to their roster for the upcoming SIJHL season.
The team announced yesterday that they had signed forward Payton Ruter for the 2011/12 campaign. as the native of Spicer, Minn. joins returning players Blake Boaz, Byron Katapaytuk and Ryan Wildman as those who are currently committed to playing with the team come next fall.
“I got the chance to see Payton at a exposure camp in Minneapolis this past May,” Lakers head coach and general manager Wayne Strachan said.
“Payton will bring size, strength and be a player that will fit in nicely to our fore-check and offensive style,” Strachan added.
Ruter, who stands at 6’3” and weighs in at 220 pounds, played for the MNJHL champion Granite City Lumberjacks for the past two seasons, and had four goals and two assists in 23 games for the team last season.
“He comes from a solid program with good coaching and knows his responsibilities in both ends of the rink,” Strachan noted.
“As an organization, we are very pleased to have Payton aboard and we feel that he will come in and be a big part of our team right from the get go,” Strachan stressed.
