Staff
The Fort Frances Lakers continue to build their roster for the 2012-13 SIJHL season, inking a pair of players over the weekend.
One of these signings will see goalie Tanner Hamilton returning to the team for the second-straight year.
The 20-year-old from Saskatoon was the back-up for departing starter Tyler Ampe last season, compiling a 14-3-2-0 record with a 2.73 GAA.
“Tanner came a long way last year, and played well for us down the stretch and in his brief playoff outing,” noted Lakers’ coach and general manager Wayne Strachan.
“We are excited to have Tanner back this season, and we are looking forward to him leading us between the pipes,” he added.
The Lakers’ other signee was forward Mathew Chasse, who played for the Temiscaming Titans of the GMHL last season.
Chasse, a 17-year-old from Brossard, Que., was the first-round draft choice by the Titans in the 2011 GMHL draft.
He notched six goals and 10 assists in 41 games during the team’s eventual run to the league final, where they lost to the Sturgeon Falls Lumberjacks in six games.
“This is a player that we have watched for the last two
seasons, and we are very excited to finally get him into a Lakers’ uniform,” Strachan enthused.
“Last year he was on an older team so he didn’t see a lot of special teams ice time,” noted Strachan.
“But his offensive upside is huge, as in 2010-11 he had 32 goals in 30 games and was an all-star for Harrington College in the Quebec Elite ‘AAA’ Midget League.”
In other news, graduating defenceman Steve Terry has accepted an offer to play for the Williston State College Tetons in Williston, N.D. this fall.
Terry, who was acquired from the Wisconsin Wilderness in a trade in December, had six goals and 11 assists in 28 games for the Lakers this past season.
