The Flin Flon Bombers announced their pre season schedule on social media yesterday.

The Bombers will play 5 pre season games kicking things off with an all rookie affair in Laronge on Monday September the 2nd.

Flin Flon will then host Laronge in the remtach at the Whitney Forum on Friday September the 6th. Then it is off to Melfort on Monday September the 9th.

They will conclude the pre season with a home and home in a battle of Northern Manitoba with the MJHL'S Northern Manitoba  Blizzard. First game is at the Roy H Johnston Arena on Wednesday September the 11th, back at the Whitney Forum for the rematch on Friday September the 13th at 7:30.

The Norman Northstars look to build off the momentum that they had last season which was one of  their most successful years since the mid 2000's.

New Head Coach Justin Valentino put together one of the most exciting teams in the league and only missed the playoffs by a single point.

They  look to get over the hump this season as they will be hosting two weeks of conditioning camp August the 12th to the 16th and August the 19th to the 22nd.

Try-outs will take place for U-18 AAA players born between 2007 and 2009 August the 23rd to the 25th at the CA Nesbitt Arena in Thompson. Try-outs are expected to be very competitive and high intensity.

If you are looking for a registration form you can find a link on the Norman Northstars facebook page and you can also get more information by contacting normannorthstarscoach@gmail.com.

Good Luck to Creighton Saskatchewan’s Lauren Fox who is teeing off at 3:10  MB time today from the 110^th annual Canadian Women’s Amateur Golf Championship in Victoria BC.

Lauren  earned her spot by finishing fifth overall at the Saskatchewan Provincial Championships a few weeks back. She also finished third for players that were competing out of Saskatchewan.

The event kicked off at the Royal Colwood Golf Club earlier today and will continue right til  Friday.

Team North battled the crazy winds and rain on day 6 with competitions in athletics, soccer female, triathlon and beach volleyball as the Saskatchewan Summer Games wrapped up in Lloydminster.

In Girls Soccer ,  the team got to sleep in and play their only game at 3:00pm against RiversWest. They fought the winds all day and came away with a 0-0 draw. The  girls team played their final game in the Consolation Final on  Saturday against South East and lost 3 to 1. A great showing by the girls and  a big thank you to the coaches Alex Etienne, Blair Etienne and Kara Kozar.

In Triathlon, the girls had to switch things up  due to the winds and competed in a swim/run event. Amila participated and had personal bests both in the swim and run while Casey had her personal best in swim, while Genevieve smashed her personal best in run. Great job girls, they wrapped up their  events Saturday with the team relays and finished 10^th overall. A big  thank you to the coaches Gabe Andrews, Kim Plante.

In Athletics Zac Merasty finished 9th in the Javelin, Aaliyah finished 18th and Martha 15th in the 800m, Trey Iron  was 12th place in long jump, while Oliver Atchinson was 10th. And in the last event of the day Martha McGonigle ran the 3000m and had a great showing finishing 6th. On Saturday Zac won a  Bronze Medal finishing third in the Discus to win Team North's final medal of the competition.

Finally at the beach volleyball courts, Team North  Boys had a great day.  Their first game was against Regina, 14-21 L & 12-21 L, 2nd game defeated Parkland 21-19 & 19-17, and the last game of the day defeated Lakeland 22-20 & 21-15. The boys played Regina on Saturday and lost both games by scores of 11-21 and 11-21 to finish 6^th overall.

The Team North second  half athletes took to competition Thursday  in the sports of athletics, girls  soccer, boys  beach volleyball  and triathlon, as the Saskatchewan Summer Games continue in Lloydminster.

In Soccer ,  the girls had a couple tough  games against Regina in the morning falling 3-0. Then in the afternoon faced off against South West with a similar score falling 3-0. The team had solid performances from goaltender Elynn Smith and by defender Ellis Pearson. The girls will look to rebound on Friday when they play their third game at 3:00pm.

In Beach Volleyball  Kale Lemaigre and Lawrence Laprise had a solid opening day losing to Regina 13-21 and 15-21. Then they faced Riverswest and fell 10-21 and 14-21. Then in their third game the boys bounced back with a 18-21 loss and a 26-24 Win. They will hit the sand on Friday morning.

The Triathlon girls hit the swim, bike, run event with a solid showing on day 1. Genevieve Plante finished 43.59, Amila Andrews finished with a time of 44.24 and Casey Bernardin finished 47.55, fantastic results by the  young triathlon team who are  participating in their first triathlon competition.

Finally in Athletics Zac Merasty put up fantastic results finishing 4th in shot put. He was inches from winning another medal for team north and showed how talented he is.

Trey Iron with a time of 14.66 in the 100m finishing 7th

Trey Ion finished with time 59:13 in 400m finishing 9th

Aaliyah Belanger with a time of 1:12:68 in the 400m finished 9th

Aaliyah Belanger with a time 6:49:13 in 1500m finishing 18th

Martha McGonigle with a time 5:17:53 in 1500m finishing 8th

Oliver Atchinson in triple jump with a length of 10.77m finishing 11th.

Team North had their final day for the first half athletes and finished up their medal chances with some exciting final competitions.

In Golf- Dade Bernatchez made the North super proud by finishing with a silver medal in the boys competition. He has been a great leader for many of the  younger youth participating in the other sports .

In Special Olympics Bocce Brett Either was able to  win a silver medal for team North. A shout out to Mike and Lindsay for being great coaches and to Katie, Brett, Devotion, and Matthew .

Soccer boys finished up their final consolation game against Rivers West District with a 2-0 loss. The boys played very hard all week, got one tie, and a couple goals. This group hasn't played much together at all but came together nicely as the tournament went on and had lots of fun. Thank you to the coaches, Erica, Ethan and Phillip.

The  Canoe/Kayak team continued their wicked dominance on the lake taking a total of 18 medals for the 3 days, 4-Gold, 10-Silver and 4-Bronze. Proud of all the kids from Pelican Narrows, Southend, Weyakwin and Air Ronge. Big thank you to coaches Norman, Chaley and Charlene.

That is a wrap for the first half athletes , The second half athletes have arrived  including Female Soccer, Beach Volleyball, Triathlon, and Athletics. All the sports will start their competitions on today.

For all the schedules of the sports and results please go to www.saskgames.ca

The next club golf  tournament is going to be the Seniors Open which will take place on Wednesday August the 14th at the Phantom Lake Golf Club.

This is open to anyone over 50 and will begin with a shotgun start at 10. It is $40.00 for members and $50.00 for non members.

Entry fee includes 18 holes of golf, supper and prizes.

To register you can call 306-688-5555.

A big opportunity for former Flin Flon Bombers Assistant Coach  Gary Childerhose who has been selected the new Head Coach and GM of his hometown Battleford North Stars.

Childerhose will replace Brayden Klimosko who took the Head Coaching job for his hometown team the Humboldt Broncos just a few weeks ago.

Gary joined the Stars in 2021-22 as an Assistant under Klimosko,  and the franchise had an unbelievable season that ended with an SJHL championship and second place finish in the country.

Childerhose has been involved with the SJHL for many years as both a player and a coach. He suited up for the Melfort Mustangs between 2007 and 2010 before heading off to college.

He made his way to Northern Manitoba as an Assistant with the Bombers in 2014 and remained with the club til 2019 that included two trips to the finals.

Gary is beloved by the players he coach's and has been very involved in breaking down  video for the different teams he has been involved with  and has helped numerous players make their way to the college ranks.

Congratulations Gary and good luck in the Battlefords this season.

Team North had a fabulous day competing and showcasing their talents around the sport venues yesterday  at the Saskatchewan Summer Games in Lloydminster.

In golf  Dade Bernatchez had an unbelievable round recording 54 points to put him currently in 1st, going for Gold today  in the championship round at 10:10am. 

The Boy's Soccer Team  made up of 14 players from Flin Flon  had a fabulous day tying Lakeland District 1-1. A late goal by Ethan Pawlachuk tied it late for the North. A big shout out to Cohen Brough for many big time saves to keep the game tied and earning the team a consolation game at 10:00am today great job boys.

Team North female volleyball  played two games today falling short in both, but the highlight was the late game with a fantastic finish by the  girls who continued to get better as the tournament went on.

Canoe/Kayak tore it up at the lake. Led by coaches Norman McKenzie, Chaley Morin, Charlene Ballantyne, and mission staff Jody Laliberte, the  paddlers all WON Medals today. Unfortunately all the results are not in so I can't give you a complete total, but they  hit double digits in medals and they  even received a medal for Kayak. 

Wednesday will see the last of the 1st half athletes, and the arrival of  new sports and 2nd half athletes.

Well known as the OCN Blizzard since their inception in 1996, the organization has updated their name and logo effective immediately, and will now operate as the Northern Manitoba Blizzard.

“We wanted to show the inclusion and unity that we have in the Northern region of our province,” shared Blizzard co-owner, Rob White. “I’m originally from Churchill, and have close ties with many communities throughout Nor-Man. The Blizzard crest means so much to all of Northern Manitoba; and it’s so fitting, because if you’ve ever been in a true Northern Manitoba Blizzard, you’ll know just how menacing it is.”

Ownership felt the change was necessary to reflect the shift and new direction of the franchise.

“The last few seasons the team felt like it was ‘in limbo. After Opaskwayak sold the team, and especially once it moved to be based from the Roy H Johnston in The Pas; it was more evident we needed to show the new direction of the club. However, the Blizzard name is so strong, and invokes such passion and emotion for Northern hockey. It felt like this was honouring the essence of the Club’s founding,” White concluded.

Since 1996, the Blizzard have made eight trips to the Turnbull Cup Final, winning five straight MJHL Championships from 1998-2003. During the 2001-02 season, the Blizzard defeated the Kindersley Klippers (SJHL) to win the ANAVET Cup before they would go on to lose in the national final.

Last season, the Blizzard skated to one of their best records in franchise history. Head coach, Eric Labrosse was named MJHL Coach of the Year, Goaltender Tomas Anderson was named MJHL Goaltender of the Year and the team fought their way to game seven in the second round of the post season.

It didn't take Flin Flon's Dean Evason long to get another chance to coach in the NHL after being relieved of his duties with Minnesota just over a year ago.

Evason was named the new Head Coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets by President and General Manager Don Waddell yesterday.

Dean has been a coach pretty much after his playing career ended in 1997,  when he became  an assistant with the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL in 1998-99.

Within a year he had his first head coaching stint with the Kamloops Blazers.

He made his way to the NHL in 2005 and was able to become an assistant with the Washington Capitals,before getting a chance to be a head coach in the AHL with the Milwaukee Admirals.

In 2019, Dean would land his first head coaching job in the NHL with the Minnesota Wild and led his team to a very impressive 147-77-27 record over 5 seasons that culminated with a finalist for the Jack Adams Award for Coach Of The Year in 2021-22.

The Blue Jackets are looking for some consistency behind their bench as Evason will be their third head coach in as many seasons and will formally be introduced at a press conference today.

With the August long weekend now just a few weeks away, hockey is set to make it's return at the Whitney Forum.

Lots of hockey schools will be taking place, but first Flin Flonners, and lots of former Flonners will be taking part in the Roller Goodwin Hockey tournament.

This tournament has been held in many locations throughout the years including Banff, Calgary, Winnipeg and Warman, but it is always extra special when it returns to Flin Flon.

The Flin Flon Bombers will be hosting the event and will welcome 11 teams including the Doughboys, the Firemen, Team Crone, Kro's Pros, Team Chuddy, Team Donaghy, Team Rideout, Team Beauchamp, Bomber Alumni and the Dump Bears.

Games will start Friday August the 2nd at 4pm and go right throughout the weekend wrapping up on Sunday afternoon.

The weekend will also include a dinner and supper at the Flin Flon Community Hall Sunday night  featuring the band Cheap Wine. Cocktails at 6:30. dinner at 7:30  and the social at 9pm.

You can pick up tickets at the Bomber office and the complete game schedule can be seen on the Bombers facebook page.

Lauren Fox competed in Golf Saskatchewan's 2024 Amateur Women's Provincial Championship July 9th to the 11th  at Royal Regina Golf Club in Regina.

Lauren placed 5th overall and 3rd out of players from Saskatchewan. This earned her a spot on Team Saskatchewan for nationals.

She will be competing in the Canadian Women's Amateur Championship in Victoria, BC. This will be held at the Royal Colwood Golf Club on July 30th to August 2nd.

It is a dream come true for Brayden Klimosko who has just  been hired to coach his hometown Humboldt Broncos.

Klimosko suited up as a player  for his hometown team between 2005 and 2008 which included a national championship his final season, so he is no stranger to the organization.

Brayden will leave quite a legacy in North Battleford where he got his first head coaching job 6 years ago. To say that Klimosko hasn't been successful would be a huge under statement.

Klimosko leaves the Battleford Stars  with 199 regular season  victories, 2 SJHL Championships, a National Silver Medal, three SJHL Coach Of The Year Awards and a CJHL Coach Of The Year.

“It’s something I always dreamed of. It’s really exciting to now coach the team I grew up watching and played for. It’s a special moment for me and my family. To get to be around my friends and family again and coaching the Broncos is a dream come true,” said Klimosko on SJHL.CA.

Klimosko will be replacing Scott Barney who took a job in the OHL earlier this summer. 

The rosters have been selected for Team North Soccer which will send both a boy's and girl's team down to Lloydminster  for the Sask Summer Games starting this weekend.

The Boy's team will be coached by Flin Flon's Erica Christensen, Phipip Jobes and Ethan Patterson.

The roster also includes 14 players from Flin Flon including Bentley Jackson, Deakon Anaka, Cohen Brough, Damien Roberts, Drew Patterson, Ethan Pawlachuk, Gus Hill, Jack Dubinak, Logan Jobes, Max Menzies, Michael Pawlachuk, Westyn Hlady, Merrik Dominey and Jaxson Gorrell.

There are two players from the Pas  Johann Elliot and Marek Madrigga.

The Girls team is coached by Blair Etienne, Kara Kozar and Alex Etienne.

The roster is all from Flin Flon which includes  Anna Christensen, Ava Etienne, Elizabeth Muldoon, Ellis Brynn Pearson, Elynn Smith, Gracelynn McIntosh, Jocelyn Kozar, Joslyn Tetlock, Samatha Dallas, Tiarra Avya Marie Kluba, Violet Eggert, Zoey Frisch, Nicole Dimapiles, Hailey Etienne and Abigail Dicks.

The Boy's will leave on Sunday and get to Lloydminster for opening ceremonies on Sunday night.  They play their first game against Saskatoon on Monday at 8:30 am.

They will take on South East at 1pm later that afternoon. The playoff round starts on Tuesday.

The girls will head out next Wednesday and play their first game against Regina on Thursday at 8:30am. They will then play South West at 1pm.

Playoffs will be on Friday.

This an excellent opportunity for the kids in this area to compete in a prestgious event and gain valuable experience moving forward.

Cranberry will be the place to be this August long weekend for the 33rd annual Cranberry Trout Challenge.

This is the biggest fishing tournament in the North and $65,00.00 will be awarded for first place.

Cash will be awarded for the top ten finishers and there is also prizes for the top female anglers and youth competition.

It is catch and release and will take place on beautiful  Lake Athapap August the 3rd and 4th.

Entry fee is $200.00 per boat and you can register on fish donkey. More information is available on the Cranberry Trout Challenge facebook page.

The Flin Flon Bombers continue to make valuable additions to their lineup as they prepare for another SJHL season this fall.

The recruiting continue to go well as the Bombers have signed 6'2 forward Rhett Ewen out of Saskatoon.

Ewen has spent the past two seasons with the Saskatoon Contacts of the Saskatchewan Midget Triple A League. Ewen led his team in scoring this past season putting up 10 goals and 23 assists for 33 points in 38 games, and was a 6th round draft pick of the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL.

The Bombers are excited to see Ewen in the lineup this upcoming season and feel that Rhett will bring a strong physical presence and strong work ethic to their team.

The Flin Flon Bombers are very excited about their latest signing in John Delverne from the Victory Honda Triple A program in Michigan.

Delverne who is from Sylvania Ohio,  suited up for 81 games for the Honda last year and put up very impressive numbers including 24 goals and 47 assists for 71 points.

Delverne has had success everywhere he has played including helping  his team to a State Championship, along with getting them to #1 ranked in the country with a record of 53-20-1.

He should help replace some of the scoring this year to help fill the void with the graduation of Justin Lies, Alexi Sylvestre and Jocob Vockler.

Delverne has a lot of tools including great skating, high iq and a great shot.

A local group of friends will be hosting a beach volleyball tournament this Saturday at the sand court located on Creekside Drive.

Games will start Saturday at 10am and the tournament will consist of 8 teams with 4 players per team. There will be two pools and teams will play a round robin then move into a playoff bracket.

This is a co-ed tournament so each team must have at least one female.

There is no entry fee, so feel free to sign up by either e-mailing or texting jaydenlaliberty2@gmail.com or 204-901-3620.

Congratulations to former Flin Flon Bomber defenseman Byron Pool who has been hired by the Dartmouth Big Green of the NCAA as an Assistant Coach.

After brief stints with the Battleford Stars and Minot Top Guns, Pool made his way to Northern Manitoba in 1994 and suited up for 74 games for the Bombers.

The defenseman put up 26 career points including 6 goals and was able to earn an NCAA scholarship to Colgate University.

Pool played 4 years in Colgate and dressed for 76 games over that span before embarking on a professional career that took him to the Western Professional League, Southwest Hockey League and CHL.

After he was done playing,  Pool got into coaching and he was an associate coach at Northern Michigan for 7 years  and he helped them to back to back 20 win seasons in his first two years at the helm.

Pool also coached the Bismarck Bobcats (NAHL) for two seasons, leading them to the Roberston Cup in 2010.

He was also on the coaching staff for the Faro Force of the USHL serving as an assistant coach , before he became associate coach in the 2014-15 season.

Pool is one of the most respected coach's in College Hockey and has over 16 years experience with four different programs.

Flin Flon Minor Hockey has announced their rep coach's for the 2024-25 hockey season.

Congratulations to Tanner Brough who will coach the U-11 Peds Threads Bombers, Jonathan Cooper the U-13 Kinsmen Bombers and Greg Kritzer the U-15 Werbicki Trucking Bombers.

The U-18 Bombers remains vacant.

If you are interested you can send an e-mail to flinflonminorhockey.com.

The Phantom Lake Golf Club is preparing for a busy July with some big events planned including the Ladies Open and a Mixed 2-ball.

The Ladies Open will take place on Sunday July the 21st at 11 am with a shotgun start. It is $50.00 to enter and that will include 18 holes of golf, dinner and prizes.

The Mixed 2 ball will take place on Saturday July the 27th with tee times starting at 4. It is $40.00 per person and that includes golf, supper and prizes.

You can sign up for both events at 306-688-5555.

The  Trout Festival Golf Tournament took place at the Phantom Lake Golf Club this past Saturday.

32 golfers teed off for the historic event.

You don't get much more of a tighter championship flight with Jake Champaign winning the tournament with a 70.

That was enough to hold off Ray Shirran with a 71 and Jeff Woods with a 72.

Scott Smith took the First Flight with a 92. Brian  " Lanny " Bortis shot a sizzling 79 to take the Seniors.

Sue Murray won the Ladies with an 88 and also won the Ladies closest to the pin and long drive.

Allan Meyers had the long drive for the Men.

The SJHL has released it's regular season schedule  for 2024-25 on their website at sjhl.ca.

The season will open up on the weekend of September the 20th and each team will play 56 games and two in season showcases with the MJHL.

There will be no SJHL Showcase in Warman this year to accomodate the extra showcase with the MJHL.

The Flin Flon Bombers will kick off their  season at home against the Nipawin Hawks on Friday September the 20th then head to Melfort on Saturday September the 21st in a rematch of this past spring's Canterra Seeds Cup Final.

Flin Flon will play out of the Sherwood Division with the Melfort Mustangs, Nipawin Hawks and Laronge Ice Wolves and will face each team in their division eight  times.