TIGNISH – The Kensington Monaghan Farms Wild will play a game at the Tignish Credit Union Arena.
The Wild will face the Fredericton Caps in a New Brunswick/P.E.I. Major Midget Hockey League make-up contest on Friday at 8 p.m.
“We have been very fortunate to have had a number of players from the west playing with us over the years, and this year is no different,” said Wild owner Mike Gallant. “With six players from West Prince, and Evan Gallant and Chad Arsenault from the Evangeline area, we are excited to take this game to Tignish and showcase our product.”
It will be a homecoming for Wild players Carter Cahill of Tignish, Chase Gaudette of Tignish and brothers Isaac and Austin Callaghan of Seacow Pond, near Tignish.
“I’m going to love it,” said Gaudette. “I haven’t played a game there (Tignish) in a couple of years, so it’s going to be nice to get on that rink, see a few familiar faces and have a good time.”
Cahill admitted, “it’s been a few years” since he played in his home community.
“The last time I would have played there would have been back in bantam,” said Cahill, who is in his second year of midget eligibility and played with the O’Leary-based Prince County Warriors’ major bantam team prior to that. “All the community is big into hockey, and everybody follows it. . .
“It will be a good game, and I know we will get a lot of fans out to support us . . . It’s a great rink in Tignish, and I’m excited to play there.”
A few years
It’s also been a “few years” since Isaac and Austin Callaghan have played at the Credit Union Arena.
“We are hoping to have a big crowd and a high-tempo game,” offered Isaac, a left-winger.
Austin, who plays defence, added: “It will be good to be back. There will be a lot of pressure, and it should be exciting.”
Right-winger Thomas Rennie of Alberton is looking forward to playing in front of some familiar faces.
“It will be fun to play in front of family and friends,” said Rennie. “It’s going to be a fast hockey game with a lot of skill.”
Right-winger Chandler Wood, who is from Coleman just outside O’Leary, played atom AAA in Tignish.
“I played with all the same boys who are now on the (Wild from West Prince),” said Wood. “I pretty well started with them, and it’s going to be cool going back to Tignish. It’s a big thing for the boys from up west for sure.”
What can fans expect?
Here’s what some of the players had to say when asked what fans who may not be familiar with major midget hockey can expect?
Isaac Callaghan: “A lot of speed and some hitting.”
Austin Callaghan: “It’s going to be a fast hockey game, with a lot of skill.”
Gaudette: “It’s pretty good hockey, and it’s good entertainment. I would come out if I wasn’t playing.”
Cahill: “It will be a great eye-opener for everybody.”
---------
Wild hosts back-to-back games
Northern visits Kensington on Saturday
KENSINGTON – It’s a two-game weekend for the Kensington Monaghan Farms Wild.
The New Brunswick/P.E.I. Major Midget Hockey League team will host the Fredericton Caps in a make-up game at the Tignish Credit Union Arena on Friday at 8 p.m., and will entertain the Bathurst, N.B.-based Northern Moose at Community Gardens in Kensington on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
“It’s like Dunner (head coach Kyle Dunn) said, “This weekend, we are expecting four points, no less,” said Wild right-winger Chandler Wood in describing the importance of the two games. “We really need these four points. We are looking to get on a little bit of a roll here.”
The Wild, coming off a 5-2 win over Fredericton in Kensington on Saturday, goes into weekend action in third place at 10-5-1 (won-lost-overtime losses), one point back of the second-place Saint John Vitos (11-7-0).
The Caps are 6-10-0 while the Moose sits 5-8-3.
Wild defenceman Carter Cahill feels the Wild can benefit from playing in Tignish.
“The wide ice surface will help us,” said Cahill. “It’s a great rink in Tignish, and I’m excited to play there.”
Defenceman Austin Callaghan, who is from Seacow Pond, said discipline will be key for the Wild against Fredericton.
“They (Caps) have a good power play, but we want to keep it 5-on-5 and play good defence with quick passes out of the zone,” said Callaghan.
Kensington and Northern have split their first two regular-season meetings. The Wild won 4-2 on Sept. 23, and the Moose pulled out a 5-4 overtime win on Oct. 22.
