Express adds Simcoe to its crease
The Coquitlam Express announced the signing of 2006-born goaltender Ethan Simcoe for the 2023-24 B.C. Hockey League season on Thursday. Simcoe was a fourth-round selection of the Swift Current Broncos in the 2021 Western Hockey League Prospects Draft.
The Lac du Bonnet, Man. product was 11-8-1 with a 2.57 goals-against average, a .930 save percentage, and three shutouts in 21 games with RINK Hockey Academy Winnipeg U18 of the Canadian Sport School Hockey League in 2022-23.
He went 1-1-0 with a 4.00 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage in a pair of CSSHL U18 playoff games.
Langdon inks a pact with Prince George
2006-born forward Jared Langdon has left the Ontario Junior Hockey League for the BCHL this coming season after signing with the Prince George Spruce Kings. Langdon spent 2022-23 with the Wellington Dukes as a 16-year-old.
In 53 games for the Dukes, the St. John’s, Nfld. product finished with nine goals and 22 points. He added five assists in 14 OJHL playoff games. Langdon, who’s drafted in both the U.S. Hockey League and Ontario Hockey League, is committed to Clarkson University and slated to attend the Potsdam, New York campus in September 2025.
Nordiques nab Dunits and Kurrle
2004-born Cowichan Valley Capitals forward Kai Dunits will play in the North American Hockey League in 2023-24 after signing a tender, which is a contract that gives a team his exclusive rights, with the Maine Nordiques.
Dunits, who hails from Kanata, Ont., wrapped up the 2022-23 season with nine goals and 24 points in 50 games with the Capitals. The Ridley College alum was chosen by Kitchener in the 2020 OHL Priority Selection and by Kemptville in the 2019 Central Canada Hockey League Bantam Protected Draft.
Middlesex, Vermont product Jack Kurrle also signed a tender with the Nordiques on Tuesday. He started the 2022-23 BCHL season with Trail, putting up three goals and one assist in 20 games, before being traded to Prince George for future considerations on Dec. 1.
The 2003-born forward got into 27 games with the Spruce Kings to wrap up the season and notched three goals and one assist for them. He was also scoreless in two Fred Page Cup playoff games with PG. Kurrle was Sherbrooke’s first pick in the 2019 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League American Draft.
Smokies and Caps each looking for an athletic therapist
The Trail Smoke Eaters announced on Thursday morning that they are looking for an athletic therapist/trainer for the 2023-24 season. Details about the position, including how to apply, are available on the Smokies website here.
The Cowichan Valley Capitals posted a similar position to Trail, although it is a bit different. The Caps noted that they are looking for a head trainer and equipment manager for the upcoming BCHL season. Details on Cowichan’s job and how to apply are available on its website here.
Clarke traded in the Maritime Junior Hockey League
2004-born forward Brandon Clarke (11 games with Cowichan Valley in 2022-23) has been traded in the Maritime Junior Hockey League from the Miramichi Timberwolves to the West Kent Steamers. Clarke, who’s from Sydney, N.S., finished the season with Hawkesbury of the CCHL.
In 32 games with the Hawks, Clarke put up five goals and 14 points. He added two goals and an assist in five CCHL playoff games. There’s no record online saying how the Timberwolves ended up with his Canadian junior A rights from Hawkesbury, but there must be another transaction that saw Clarke moved to Miramichi.
McCarthy takes his game to Slovakia
27-year-old defender Connor McCarthy (19 goals, 40 assists in 110 games with Chilliwack from 2015-17) has signed with HC Banska Bystrica of Extraliga. Banska Bystrica is a town in the region of the same name located in the central region of Slovakia.
Related: The enduring connection between the BCHL and Clarkson University
McCarthy, who is from LaSalle, Que., spent most of 2022-23 with the Worcester Railers of the ECHL, posting two goals and eight points in 54 games. He also got into a pair of games with the American Hockey League’s Bridgeport Islanders but didn’t register any points.
Welsh leaves France for the U.K.
Forward Tyler Welsh (31 goals, 62 assists in 108 games with Victoria and West Kelowna from 2015-17) has signed a contract for the 2022-23 season with the Nottingham Panthers of the Elite Ice Hockey League, which is the top pro league in the United Kingdom.
Welsh, a 26-year-old from Whistler, B.C., had a dozen goals and 36 points in 36 games with Mulhouse of France’s Ligue Magnus this past season, his first overseas. He added a goal and five assists in five playoff games. Ligue Magnus is the highest level of pro hockey in France.
Roberts departs the Raiders after half a season
Forward Alex Roberts (one assist in 10 games with Coquitlam in 2011-12) won’t return to the Raiders IHC for 2023-24. The team made the announcement on its social media channels but didn’t indicate where the Burnaby, B.C. product is headed. The Raiders play in the National Ice Hockey League, which is the second tier of hockey in the U.K.
Roberts, a 28-year-old, had 31 goals and 54 points in 37 games for the Raiders in 2022-23 after coming over mid-season from the Bristol Pitbulls. He started the season with seven goals and 17 points in 17 games for the Pitbulls.
