By Lee Griffi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The Tavistock Braves have awarded three players with captaincy spots as the 2024-25 Provincial Junior Hockey League season inches closer.
Local products Marc Dionne and Will Schlotzhauer have been named captain and assistant captain respectively while Carter Arsenault will also wear an A this season. Braves General Manager Brent Lange said each player has shown great qualities on and off the ice for the last three to four years.
“Marc has persevered through a couple of Injury-plagued seasons and continues to come back stronger and gets better each year and each game. He is a great kid and always there to help at any team function. His on-ice 200-foot game is one of the best there is on the team and in the league.”
Lange added he would have been named captain last season but injuries meant missing a significant amount of game time. As for Will, Lange explained he was another easy choice.
“He is just a workhorse and brings it every night. The amount of stuff he battled through last season in the playoffs to play each game was incredible. He is a great leader, not always the most talkative, but leads by example out there. He gives it 110% each shift.”
Lange added Will is always willing to help on and off the ice and is well-respected by his teammates. As for Carter, the GM said he is a proven leader.
“He has just gotten better and better each year with us. He is going into his third season as a Brave and is another kid who is always there to help and support the team in any way possible and has the respect of his teammates. He was our most improved player last year and it will only get better for him from here on out.”
Arsenault may be a Kitchener native but he did play a year of U18 minor hockey with the Tavistock Titans before joining the Braves.
The decisions were made by committee including Lange, assistant GM Cris Micelli and the coaching staff with further input from former GM Jordan Zehr and the previous coaches.
“I have been with the team the last seven or eight years so it was not hard to pick them, even though we still have a bunch of other proven leaders in that room that are all equally deserving. Just because some have letters and some don't doesn't mean others can't speak up if things aren't going right,” Lange explained.
One of the assistant captain roles is still up for grabs going into the August 7 training camp and the team may do a shared role as they did last season where one player has an A at home and another on the road.
Lange said the team is coming together nicely and a few new pieces of the puzzle have been added and some trades have also been made.
“We have included some size and grit upfront, which will help us come playoff time. Our backend is coming along nicely as well although we would like to add a veteran presence if the opportunity comes along. Our goaltending coming into camp is in much better shape than it has been in the last couple of years.
The new coaching staff is made up of Zac Berg, Brody Oliver, Jake Wiffen and Jensen Van Boekel.
“The new staff has been great. We're all basically on the same page when it comes to making decisions on players or potential players coming in or in a possible trade. They're eager to get started as they already have held meetings to get new systems in place and establish the type of game we want to play.”
The Braves have experienced lower than normal attendance over the last few years but say they have some exciting plans this season to have more community involvement with the players and kids in the community.
“We also have some big news coming in the next couple of weeks that we and minor hockey will share. Our sponsorship drive has started so we are out looking for local support to help keep our team going. Every little bit helps to keep things going in the right direction,” Lange said.
“Things are getting close to firing up and we're very excited to get it rolling and have the support from the community.”