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BALDY’S PUCK DROP Weekly E-Newsletter (September – August) |
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Baldy’s Puck Drop” Weekly E-Newsletter with Matt Leaf
Volume 102: April 2, 2026
PDF Printable Download: Weekly E-Newsletter with Matt Leaf
Dear Great Falls Americans Enthusiast: Congratulations to the Granite City Lumberjacks who defeated the Louisiana Drillers in the Fraser Cup Finals last Sunday. This is the 5th Fraser Cup title for Granite City who have established themselves as the top club at our level of play. It doesn’t hurt to have the number of premier high school players that play within 90 miles of their footprint but have to give them kudos for being there year after year. Helena lost a tough first game in OT to Rochester and then simply did not have anything left in the tank, falling 6-0 to Louisiana. Not ashamed to announce that the Fraser Cup Finals is on the Americans’ list of goals for the 2026-27 season.
The spring Sled hockey session got started last night as we continue to work with Eagle Mount Therapeutic Recreation Center to provide opportunities
for special athletes, both young and old, to participate in our great game. I am especially pleased to have one of our very own billet family members, Steve Quick (photo the right), join the group for the first time last night. It will be a great chance for Steve to back up his friendly hockey banter with the coaches after each home game next season. We will be running the Sled program on Wednesdays from 6:30-7:45 until mid-May and welcome volunteers to come check us out and lend a hand.
The six-week Play It Again Sports Pond Hockey sessions start next Tuesday while Baldy’s Shooting Club gets going in mid-April and runs throughout the summer. Registration for our Prospects Camp in mid-June and is open to all players from the 2006-2010 birth years. The camp includes three ice sessions and many of our current players have gotten their first exposure to our program during this annual event. Those interested in participating in any of the above programs can register at www.greatfallsamericans.com.
It is not too late to get your tickets for the Great Falls Sports Foundation Mixer on April 8th at the Exhibition Hall at Montana ExpoPark. This event is an annual event that raises funds to support athletic competitions that take place in Great Falls and supports a specific cause in Great Falls. This year, they have committed to donate half of the funds raised to the Ice Plex for continuing improvements. The event runs from 5:30 PM-8:00 PM and includes food, a No-Host Bar, silent auction, door prizes and games and features guest speaker, Bill Himmelberg, Head Girls Basketball Coach for University of Providence. It is a great night of fun and networking with fellow sports fans. Individual tickets are available for $25 or you can buy a table and a book of ten for $200. Contact Matt (MattL.GFAmericans@gmail.com) if interested in attending to purchase your tickets.
I’d like to finish off this edition with a brief summary of the success the Americans have had this past season in our community involvement. I won’t go into details about each entity, but we do take a tremendous amount of pride in supporting the community in charitable ways and it is an expectation of our players and staff. The community has been awesome in embracing myself and our team over the past three years and it is important to us to also give back to the community in various ways. We have supported the following entities over the course of the last 12 months in one way or another, which includes monetary donations, raffle/auction items, promotions, in person appearances or donation of time. In each instance, we very much appreciate the opportunity to be involved and look forward to expanding our outreach in the future. I am sure I missed a few, but am proud to say the Americans have donated roughly $20,000 in value and another 350 hours of community service to the following:
| Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Central Montana | CM Russell High School |
| Great Falls Central Catholic High School | GF Scottish Rite Childhood Language Disorders Clinic |
| Great Falls Sports Foundation | Haute Hive Foundation |
| Lewis and Clark Foundation | Maclean-Cameron Animal Adoption Center |
| Malmstrom Spouses Club | Power Harvest Festival |
| Rick Heck Memorial Gold Tournament | Sunrise Lions Club |
| Uptown Optimist Club | Voices of Hope |
| Walleyes Unlimited of Montana | Great Falls Community Ice Plex |
| Great Falls Amateur (Youth) Hockey Association | Havre Youth Hockey |
| Think Pink for the Girls | Malmstrom Air Force Base |
| Annie’s Taphouse Singo Bingo | Great Falls Oktoberfest |
| Josh Huestis Foundation | Special Olympics of Montana |
| Eagle Mount Therapeutic Recreation Center | Top 3 Fly Home Program-Malmstrom AFB |
| Cool Schools Polar Plunge Challenge at Sacajawea and Lincoln Elementary Schools | |
Baldy’s Puck Drop will take a brief hiatus and will be back in early May. In the meantime, enjoy a wonderful Spring – hopefully the weather will cooperate.
Here are the upcoming dates to add to your calendar:
- April 8th – Great falls Sports Foundation 5:30-8:00 PM at Expo Park Event Center. Proceeds from this year’s Mixer will benefit the Ice Plex and tickets can be purchased from any user group or contact Matt directly.
- April 28th – NA3HL Entry Draft.
- June 19th-21st – Great Falls Americans Annual Prospects Camp.
- August 15th – 4th Annual Cornhole Extravaganza
- August 17-21st – Great Falls Americans Main Camp
- August 22nd – 4th Annual GFA Blue-White Game.
Thank you to our corporate partners for their continued support.
Eagle’s Nest Level
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Diamond Level
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Platinum Level
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Tammy Quintrell-Stubbs
Gold, Silver and Bronze Level Partners (* new this season)
| All-State Signs | Beacon Ice House | Eagle Mount Therapeutic Recreation* |
| Floors & More Abbey Carpets | Central Avenue Meats | MNoel Photography |
| Havre Youth Hockey | Central MT Lock & Safe | Century Gaming |
| Life in Bloom Floral @ Gift Boutique | Hotel Arvon/Celtic Cowboy | Stifel l Finnicum Financial Group |
| Coca-Cola* | Craftmaster Cabinets | Culligan Water |
| Comparion Insurance | Play It Again Sports | Open Door Wellness |
| Big Sky Laboratory | Cascade Electric | Hampton Inn & Suites |
| Ferrin’s Furniture | Great Falls Hospital | She Bare Wax & Sugar Boutique |
| Jersey Mike’s | Karma Coffee | Murphy Law |
| Scheels | Stockman Bank | Traynor Capital |
| Voices of Hope* | Johnson Distributing | Mountain Title Company |
| Fire Pizza* | Montana Rib & Chop House* | Visit Great Falls |
| Croxford Funeral Home and Crematory | Bish’s RV of Great Falls* | StaRadio |
| Benski Towing & Recovery | Westgate Repair, Inc. | Annie’s Taphouse |
| Sip-N-Dip Lounge* | Special Olympics of Montana* | TDS Fiber |
| Hoglund’s Work and Western Wear | High Plains Wealth Management |
Thank you for being a part of our hockey family!
Matt Leaf
Great Falls Americans HC Inc
MattL.GFAmericans@gmail.com