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BALDY’S PUCK DROP Weekly E-Newsletter (September – March) |
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Baldy’s Puck Drop” Weekly E-Newsletter with Matt Leaf
Volume 15: December 14, 2023
PDF Printable Download: Weekly E-Newsletter with Matt Leaf
Dear Great Falls Americans Enthusiast:
Another successful weekend is in the books and the players are very much looking forward to their holiday break – after they take care of business at the NA3HL Showcase in Blaine, MN early next week. The Americans won both games last weekend and have won 7 of their last 8 while currently holding 3rd place in the Frontier Division. Congratulations to forward Cade Bendigo and defenseman Ty Brander for earning “Honorable Mention” player of the week honors from the league.
The Americans play three games at the Showcase on Sunday (4:15 MDT vs New Jersey Titans), Monday (5:15 PM MDT vs. Alexandria Blizzard) and Tuesday (11:00 AM MDT vs. Louisiana Drillers). The Showcase is the one time of the year when all 34 teams across five divisions of the NA3HL travel into one location and play games against teams from the other divisions. The league tries to match up competitive opponents based on standings from other divisions, so it is a chance to see some new faces and to try to establish bragging rights. These games do count in the league standings, so it is an important three game stretch to gain playoff position, as well. The primary purpose of the Showcase, though, is to create an easy and efficient way for scouts to be able to see all the players at the same time. There will be a couple of hundred scouts on site representing the NAHL (USA Hockey Tier II Junior Hockey), NCAA Division III and ACHA College Club teams from throughout the country. It is not uncommon for some of these coaches to ask to speak to several players after each game, so it is a great opportunity to be seen and open additional doors for these young men’s hockey careers. Some of the top 18U and HS teams from throughout the country will also be playing games on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, so it provides an opportunity for our staff to get a head start on scouting players for next season, as well.
The team leaves today after an early morning practice and will travel to Bismarck. They will practice again Friday morning at the University of Mary and take a quick tour of their facilities before heading to Fargo for the next adventure. On Friday night we will attend a USHL game in Fargo. The USHL is the premier Tier I Junior League in the U.S. where most of their players go on to play Division I college hockey and their top players will be drafted next summer. It will be a great experience for our team to see where they are at and what the highest level looks like. We will then practice again on Saturday morning in Aiden Kennedy’s home rink (Detroit Lakes, MN) before arriving in the Twin Cities and
having an Italian style team dinner on Saturday the 16th. Games take place on the 17th-19th and then all players will be off for the holidays until January 2nd. Many of the players will fly directly out of Minneapolis after our game on the 19th while a handful will hop back on the bus for the trek back to Great Falls, arriving back on the evening of the 20th.
All of the Showcase games will be broadcast on NAHL TV. Please join other passionate fans at our official watch party taking place at the Stadium Sports Bar and Casino (1121 5th St. S). We will have one more edition of the newsletter for this year as we will recap the Showcase next week, but then will take a couple of weeks off for the Holidays. In the meantime, be safe finishing up your holiday shopping and enjoy the delay to the start of winter.
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Player Profile – #7 Zach Orwig (Bettendorf, IA) 5’7” 170 lbs. FORWARD – Shoots Right
Favorite Team: Chicago Blackhawks Favorite Player: Cole Caufield
Favorite Movie: Surf’s Up Favorite Actor/Actress: Jake Gyllenhaal
Favorite Food: Steak Favorite Pre-Game Meal: Chicken Alfredo
Musical Group You Won’t Miss in Concert: $uicideboy$
Song or Artist Guaranteed to get you hyped: 21 Savage
One Item you would bring with you to a deserted Island: Boat
Hobbies other than Hockey: Lifting, Art and making playlists
Three People you would invite to Dinner: Wayne Gretzky, Kanye West, Quentin Tarantino
College/University of Choice: UW-Concordia Like Most About Great Falls: Peak Health & Wellness (Gym) and my teammates.
How would you define a successful season: Personal and team development that leads to post-season success!
Also, thank you to all our existing Eagle’s Nest, Diamond and Platinum Level partners for their continued support.
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Gold, Silver and Bronze Level Partners
| Century Gaming | Great Falls Hospital & Clinic | Anderson Glass-Door | Point S Tire & Auto Service |
| 2 J’s Complex | Borrie’s Italian Supper Club | Murphy Law Office | Stadium Sports Bar & Casino |
| Heidelberg Lounge | Treasure State Eyecare | Craftmaster Cabinets | Floors and More Abbey Carpets |
| Tuttle Tile | Teriyaki Madness | Central MT Lock & Safe | 3D International Restaurant |
| Jersey Mike’s | Noble’s West Side Liquor | Annie’s Taphouse | Hotel Avron-Celtic Cowboy |
| Scheel’s | Croxford Funeral Home | Big Sky Laboratory | Allstate- Tammy Quintrell-Stubbs |
| All State Signs | Highwood Creek Outfitters | Automotive Machine | She Bare Wax & Sugar Boutique |
| Wheat Montana | Stifel Investment Services | Bigelow Endodontics | Best Western Plus Riverfront Hotel |
| Culligan Water | Best Med Urgent Care | Buffalo Wild Wings | Tilleraas Landscape & Nursery |
| Stockman Bank | SpringHill Suites by Marriott | Central Avenue Meats | Todd Neighbor at Comparion Insurance |
| Fuddrucker’s | Play It Again Sports | The Beacon IceHouse | Nate & Renae Weisenburger |
| Life In Bloom | Camparion Insurance | United Materials | Fox Sports Radio, Q106, 109.9 The Wolf |
| Hampton Inn | Traynor Capital | Bravera Bank | Discount Meats |
| KFBB (SWX) | Cascade Electric |
Thank you for being a part of our family and we look forward to seeing you at the rink.
Matt Leaf
Great Falls Americans HC Inc
MattL.GFAmericans@gmail.com