The Ontario Hockey League released its 2015-16 schedule earlier this month and all three of the American entries will be among the six league teams with the earliest opening night. The two Midwest entries, the Flint Firebirds and Saginaw Spirit will go head to head as the Flint squad makes its OHL debut at the

The Flint Firebirds, announced a pair of additions to its staff this week. Yesterday, General Manager Terry Christensen announced the hiring of Petr Jonak, a second assistant coach who will join Head Coach John Gruden and his assistant Dave Karpa, both former NHL veterans, behind the Firebirds’ bench this season. A native of Czech Republic, Jonak

By Jim den Hollander Midwest Hockey Editor   Technically, it’s over the border from our official Midwest boundaries, but we have to make an exception for this announcement on the Ontario Hockey League website that Sault Ste. Marie, ON will host the 2016 edition of the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge. The announcement came in the

The strong get stronger. The NA3HL website announced today Todd Sanden, Head Coach has added Casey Kirley to his staff as an assistant coach. Formerly an assistant coach and director of player personnel at Great Falls of the Frontier Division, Kirley also drafted as a player by the Kenai River Brown Bears in 2009. A native of

The North American Hockey League (NAHL) website announced today Billy Exell, a member of the Robertson Cup championship Minnesota Wilderness will move on to play and study at the University of Minnesota Duluth this fall. Exell, a 19-year-old native of Thunder Bay, ON is thrilled to be moving to play hockey at nearby Minnesota Duluth.

By Jim den Hollander Midwest Hockey Editor Major changes were expected for the ECHL in terms of alignment with the departure of virtually all of its California based squads to the American Hockey League for the upcoming season. The league also got a chance to spread the CHL members out a little better geographically and