Rivermen hit refresh
The Langley Rivermen announced that they will hit the refresh button on their brand for the 2023-24 B.C. Hockey League season. The move comes after Dana Matheson and Jamie Schreder took over the Rivermen as new owners earlier this month.
The logo and lettering are getting an update and it remains to be seen what other changes are coming for the Rivermen. They are expected to unveil more of the brand refresh before the beginning of the season.
Vipers sign Percic out of Slovenia
2004-born defender Maks Percic has signed with the Vernon Vipers for the 2023-24 season. He is committed to attending Michigan Tech University starting in September 2024.
Percic, who is from Maribor, Slovenia, played 32 games with Kiekko-Espoo U20 of the U20 SM-sarja league, which is the top level of junior hockey in Finland. He earned three goals and nine assists. He also played in two games internationally for Slovenia but didn’t register any points.
Express nab Frandina from the NAHL
2004-born defender Sam Frandina has signed with the Coquitlam Express for the 2023-24 season. Frandina has committed to NCAA Div. I St. Lawrence University for the 2024-25 season. The school is located in Canton, New York.
Frandina, who is from Hanover, New Hampshire, split the 2022-23 season between the United State Hockey League’s Madison Capitols and the North American Hockey League’s Chippewa Steel. With Madison, Frandina scored one goal and seven points in 19 games. With Chippewa, he scored two goals and 17 points in 26 regular-season games. He also played in three NAHL playoff games.
St. Jacques accepts position with Canucks
Vancouver Giants equipment manager Brodie St. Jacques has accepted a position with the Vancouver Canucks. There’s no word what role St. Jacques has taken with the National Hockey League club.
St. Jacques, who is from Edmonton, Alta., was the equipment manager for the Salmon Arm Silverbacks for the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons before heading to the Western Hockey League’s Giants for a pair of seasons.
Augustana University signs two BCHL alumni
For their inaugural season in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association of NCAA Division I, Augustana University has garnered commitments from 23-year-old defender Brady Ziemer (four goals, 14 assists in 55 games with Merritt in 2018-19) and 22-year-old defender Evan McIntyre (nine goals 27 assists in 76 games with Penticton from 2018-20). The university is located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Ziemer, who hails from Carver, Minnesota, completed his third season with St. Could State University in 2022-23. He was scoreless in 22 games. The school is located in St. Cloud, Minnesota.
McIntyre, who is from Oakville, Ont., completed his third season with Ohio State University in 2022-23. Through 10 games he earned two assists. OSU is located in Columbus, Ohio.
Rinaldi parts ways with Cergy-Pontoise
27-year-old right winger Anthony Rinaldi (22 goals, 16 assists in 53 games with Nanaimo in 2014-15) has parted ways with Cergy-Pontoise of Ligue Magnus, France’s top-tier of professional hockey.
Rinaldi, who hails from Pierrefonds, Que., played 33 regular-season games, earning 10 goals and 10 assists with Cergy-Pontoise in 2022-23. He also scored three times and added four assists in eight playoff games. Cergy-Pontoise is located in the Ile-de-France region of northern France.
Buono re-signs with Pergine
22-year-old forward Christian Buono (38 goals, 64 assists in 148 games with Coquitlam, Powell River, Merritt, and Prince George from 2016-21) has signed for a second season with Pergine of the Italian Hockey League, the second tier of Italian professional hockey.
Buono, who is from Burnaby, B.C., earned one point in two regular-season games and scored a goal in his lone playoff game with Pergine in 2022-23. Pergine is a municipality of 21,000 in the northern Italian region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Sudtirol.
