Staff
The start of the SIJHL exhibition and regular seasons will see a healthy dose of home cooking for local hockey fans.
The league released its schedule for the 2013-14 campaign yesterday, with the Fort Frances Lakers getting to begin the season in the friendly confines of the Ice For Kids Arena.
The Lakers kick off their pre-season Sept. 6 against the Minnesota Iron Rangers at 7:30 p.m. before facing the Iron Rangers in a rematch Sept. 11 down in Hoyt Lakes.
Fort Frances then will meet the Thunder Bay North Stars the following night (Sept. 12) in Marathon.
That game will be played in memory of four residents of nearby Pic River First Nation, three of whom were well-known hockey players, who were killed in a two-vehicle accident last October.
The exhibition slate concludes with the Lakers hosting the Wisconsin Wilderness on Sept. 14 at 7:30 p.m.
The North Stars then will provide the opposition for the Lakers’ regular-season opener Sept. 20 at 7:30 p.m.—one of two games on the SIJHL schedule that night.
The other game pits the expansion English River Miners (Ear Falls) in Dryden to take on the Ice Dogs.
The Lakers will hold its main training camp starting Thursday (Aug. 29), with registration at 11 a.m. and off-ice training at 11:30 p.m.
The first on-ice session is set for 7 p.m. at the new Couchiching First Nation Arena.
The camp then moves to the Ice For Kids Arena for two sessions Friday and Saturday.
