Manitoba Bisons Men’s Hockey Team Add Recruits

The Manitoba Bisons men’s hockey team wants to build off a Canada West semi-final result in the 2013-14 season and announce three new recruits for the following year. Bison men’s hockey head coach Mike Sirant, entering his 19th season at the helm of Manitoba, is pleased to announce the commitment of defenceman Rene Hunter and forwards Chad Robinson and Joel Schreyer to the Bison program for the upcoming 2014-15 season.

From Bisons Coach Mike Sirant:

We are thrilled to have Rene, Chad and Joel commit to the University of Manitoba and we expect each of them to play a prominent role in the Bison’s success next season.  They are quality people who are team oriented, passionate about the game and committed to winning.  Their intelligence, skating and puck skills and grit will make them outstanding players at the CIS level plus their style of play fits the Bison identity of a hardworking, physical team that combines solid defensive play with an up tempo, direct offensive attack.

New Bisons recruit Rene Hunter

Hunter, 20 (turning 21 on Aug. 2014), played all four years in the WHL (Western Hockey League) with the Brandon Wheat Kings and finished in 2013-14.  The 6’1″, 208 lbs. defenceman completed his best statistical season with 34 points (four goals, 30 assists) with 70 penalty minutes in 63 regular season games while adding two assists in nine playoff matches in 2013-14.  Overall, the Ebb and Flow, MB native registered 68 points (10g, 58a) with 165 PIM in 247 WHL games plus two points in 19 playoff games.  He played with the Portage Terriers of the MJHL (Manitoba Junior Hockey League) in the 2009-10 season and notched 15 points (2g, 13a) in 54 games.  Hunter also played for Team Manitoba at the National Aboriginal Hockey Championship. Earlier in his career, he was part of Team West at the 2009 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.

Robinson, 21, completed his four year WHL career with the Brandon Wheat Kings in 2013-14 after also playing two seasons with the Red Deer Rebels.  The 5’11”, 182 lbs. forward had 32 points (7g, 25a) with 31 PIM in 72 regular season games with two goals in nine playoff games in 2013-14.  In his WHL career, Robinson accumulated 109 points (29g, 70a) with 98 PIM in 260 WHL regular season games (Red Deer: 129gp, 11g, 33a, 44pts, 49 PIM; Brandon: 131gp, 18g, 37a, 55pts, 49 PIM).  The Minnedosa, MB native was also named Brandon’s 2012-13 Most Sportsmanlike Player.

Schreyer, 18 (turning 19 on Dec. 2014), played the last three seasons with the MJHL’s 2013-14 champion – the Winnipeg Blues.  The 5’11”, 195 lbs. forward was the team’s third leading scorer with 42 points (20g, 22a) with 75 PIM in 60 regular season games plus added six points (2g, 4a) in 16 playoff games in 2013-14.  In three seasons with the Blues, the Lorette, MB native has contributed 81 points (42g, 39a) with 146 PIM in 137 MJHL regular season games.  Schreyer was also named the MJHL Recycle Everywhere Player of the Week for the week ending March 9/14.

The Manitoba Bisons men’s hockey team continues to look ahead to the new season and announce four more new recruits.  Bison men’s hockey head coach Mike Sirant, entering his 19th season at the helm of Manitoba, is pleased to announce the commitment of forward Justin Augert, defenceman Josh Elmes, goaltender Brendan Jensen and forward Colin Mospanchuk to the Bison program for the upcoming 2014-15 season.

From Bisons Coach Mike Sirant:

We are very pleased to announce the signing of four more top recruits for the Bison men’s hockey program.  Colin Mospanchuk and Justin Augert are big, skillful power forwards who go hard to the net and can score.  They like to play in the tough areas and compete with an edge.  Josh Elmes is a big, strong physical defenseman with good mobility and the skill to get the puck up ice.  The signing of Colin, Justin and Josh adds size, grit and depth to the Bison roster and they fit our identity of a team that is ‘hard to play against’.  Brendan Jensen is a Californian who has valuable experience from the USA Hockey national development program, the WHL, and the USHL plus he is a talented, athletic goaltender with tremendous character and potential.

Augert, 21, played four years in the MJHL (Manitoba Junior Hockey League) with the Steinbach Pistons and finished in 2013-14.  The 6’3″, 206 lbs. forward averaged a point per game over the last two seasons as he notched 63 points (31 goals, 32 assists) with 194 penalty minutes in 62 regular season games in 2013-14  while his best statistical season was in 2012-13 when he scored 64 points (34g, 30a) with 167 PIMs in 60 games. Overall in his four seasons, the Winnipeg, MB native accumulated 167 points (83g, 84a) with 547 PIMs in 225 regular seasons games.  Augert was part of the 2012-13 MJHL championship team and was named a MJHL Second Team All-Star while being team captain in 2013-14.

New Bisons recruit Justin Augert

Elmes, 20 (turning 21 in Aug. 2014), split 2013-14 with Dubuque Fighting Saints and Fargo Force in the USHL (United States Hockey League) and prior played three and half seasons with OCN Blizzard in MJHL.  The 6’2″, 218 lbs. defenceman had five points (1g, 4a) with 46 PIMs in 28 games while alternate captain at Fargo and another ten points (2g, 8a) with 28 PIMs in 30 regular season games with Dubuque.  In his MJHL career, the Brandon, MB native was an alternate captain and MJHL Second Team All-Star in 2012-13 while adding 53 points (11g, 42a) and 142 PIMs in 179 regular seasons games while also posting eight points (1g, 7a) in 31 MJHL playoff contests.

Jensen, 21, played the last two seasons with the Fargo Force in the USHL and before played parts of three seasons with the Vancouver Giants of the WHL (Western Hockey League).  The 6’1″, 195 lbs. netminder best statistical season with Fargo was in 2012-13 when he helped the team to a championship final appearance after a 24-11-1 record with a 2.92 Goals Against Average and .911 Save Percentage in 38 regular season games.  He was 6-16-3 with 4.09 GAA and .900 Save Pct. in 2013-14.  The El Granada, CA native started with the Giants in 2009-10 (3-2-1; 2.97 GAA) and played 30 games with Vancouver in 2010-11 with 8-13-1 mark and 3.76 GAA.  In 2011-12, Jensen was on four teams starting with Vancouver and then Portland and Edmonton of WHL before finishing with Spruce Grove Saints of the AJHL (Alberta Junior hockey League) and a 16-1-4 record and 2.16 GAA plus .917 Save Pct.  He also was part of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks rookie camp in 2011.

Mospanchuk, 20 (turning 21 in July 2014), played the last three seasons with the Melville Millionaires in the SJHL (Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League) and prior played with MJHL’s Winnipeg Blues and Portage Terriers.  The 6’2″, 215 lbs. forward had his best stats season in 2013-14 when he was team captain and registered 48 points (20g, 28a) with 112 PIMs in 53 regular season games with six points (2g, 4a) in ten playoff games.  In three seasons at Melville, the Winnipeg, MB native had 84 points (35g, 49a) with 247 PIMs and 141 regular seasons games and 19 points (8g, 11a) in 35 SJHL playoff contests.  He started his career with WHL’s Medicine Hat in 2009-10 and finished that season with the Blues plus split 2010-11 with Winnipeg and Portage.  Mospanchuk also played with Team West at the world under-17 hockey championship in 2009-10.

courtesy of  gobisons.ca

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