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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 66: May 8, 2025
PDF Printable Download: Weekly E-Newsletter with Matt Leaf
Dear Great Falls Americans Enthusiast: I hope your Spring and soon to be summer has gotten off to a great start. Coaches Greg and Alex have been busy building next season’s team while I have been fulfilling my obligations with the International Ice Hockey Federation at various events in Italy and Mexico. There is no end to the work that needs to be done.
I am happy to announce all our tenders and draft picks for next season. A tender is an informal commitment between the player and the team for the next season and it allows the team to protect the player during the draft and throughout the following season. Each season, we have roughly 12-15 tenders and it is a critical part of putting together the team for next season. The players who have signed tenders, so far, are (those highlighted were previously announced):
Player Position Year Hometown 2024-25 Team
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Reid Lezubski |
Forward |
2008 |
Chestermere, ALB |
Calgary Rockies U17 |
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Logan Mese |
Forward |
2007 |
Kenai, AK |
KPHA Ice Hawks U18 |
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Riley Hattan |
Forward |
2008 |
Kalamazoo, MI |
Biggby Coffee AAA 16U |
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Easton Kennedy |
Forward |
2007 |
Detroit Lakes, MN |
GFA / Detroit Lakes HS |
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Duke Pingrey |
Goalkeeper |
2006 |
Colorado Springs, CO |
Rampart HS |
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Kiefer Lundmark |
Forward |
2006 |
Detroit Lakes, MN |
Detroit Lakes HS |
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Jarod Lemieux |
Forward |
2005 |
Geraldtown, ONT |
Okanagan Lakers |
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Tallen Caron |
Forward |
2006 |
Kenora, ONT |
Sioux Lookout Bombers |
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Jaxen Savage |
Forward |
2006 |
Kenora, ONT |
Kenora Islanders |
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Cooper Anderson |
Defenseman |
2006 |
Thief River Falls, MN |
Mercer Chiefs |
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Colton Bacon |
Forward |
2008 |
Billings, MT |
Billings HS |
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Kale Witt |
Goalkeeper |
2006 |
Detroit Lakes, MN |
Great Falls Americans |
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Kaden Lynch |
Forward |
2006 |
Anchorage, AK |
Valley Thunder 18U AA |
In addition, we did draft the following three players during the NA3HL entry draft on April 30th. Although both tenders and draft picks are not fully obligated to report to our team, it does provide us with exclusive rights to the player if they intend to play at the USA Hockey Tier III level of play. Of course, they are always encouraged to try out and play for teams at the Tier II level.
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Cole Bies |
Defenseman |
2006 |
East Grand Forks, MN |
East Grand Forks HS |
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Jaden Valentine |
Defenseman |
2007 |
Fairbanks, AK |
Pittsburgh Pens Elite 18 AAA |
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Zidane Dietz |
Defenseman |
2006 |
Palmer, AK |
Team Alaska 18U AAA |
Greg and Alex have some more scouting events upcoming, and we are taking registrations for our Open Prospects Camp on June 21-22. They are excited for the team we are building and look forward to seeing what the prospects camp will unveil. They’ll be scouting in Fargo, Minneapolis, Calgary and Las Vegas all before our camp. We will also have some scouts checking out the Air Force Academy Showcase the same weekend as our camp.
I am delighted to announce some other exciting events coming up, as well. Our 3rd Annual Cornhole Extravaganza has been scheduled for the Beacon Ice House for Saturday, August 16th and will be part of an Alumni weekend where several of our past players will be attending to catch up and meet the 2025-26 version of the Great Falls Americans. As usual, the Cornhole event will include a live band at 7:00 PM. Registration for Cornhole is now open at www.greatfallsamericans.com or by scanning the QR code. The alumni weekend will culminate with an alumni game (open to the public) on Sunday the 17th. Monday the 18th will be the start of our training camp and will include media day.
Another exciting activity taking place is we have introduced “Baldy’s Shooting Club” that will run over the summer and includes local youth players who would like to hone their shooting skills. Membership in the club includes access to our Skill Development/Shooting Center throughout the summer, some instruction from our coaching staff, an exclusive Baldy’s Shooting Club T-Shirt and prizes/awards for meeting various milestones. Thus far, eight local youth players have signed up and have started taking shots to reach their goal of becoming the next GR8 (For those not familiar, the “Great 8” (GR8) is in reference to the NHL’s new all-time scoring leader Alex Ovechkin who is known for his shooting ability). Studies suggest it takes 10,000 repetitions to master specific skills and the shooting club gives local kids a way to get those 10,000 reps during the off season and at minimal cost. Incentives have been created where each member will be awarded prizes when they achieve 1000, 5000 and 10,000 shots.
It is time to start gearing up for next season on the business side of things, as well. I will start contacting our various partners in the coming weeks to renew their support and introduce additional avenues to maximize the value received by our partners. Our corporate partners play such a critical role in our programming and keep the cost down for our players, so we truly appreciate their support. I look forward to meeting with everyone in the coming weeks and creating flexible and practical partnerships that benefit all involved.
Finally, the Ice Plex is currently closed through May 25th to conduct some ice and building maintenance prior to opening back up for the summer. As part of this maintenance, they have scheduled “Volunteer” Work parties on each Tuesday and Thursday night from 5:30 -8:00 PM. Projects will include painting the temporary dressing rooms, general cleaning of the dressing rooms and bleachers and other projects that will allow the Ice Plex facility to continue to improve. All volunteers are welcome and it would be much appreciated if you can find your way to the rink for one of these sessions.
Here are the upcoming events for you to mark your calendars:
- June 21-22 – Great Falls Americans Prospects
- August 15-17 – Great Falls Americans Alumni All former players are welcome to attend various activities culminating with an alumni game on Sunday the 17th.
- August 16th – 3rd Annual Cornhole Beacon Ice House with live band at 7:00 PM.
- August 18th – Start of Great Falls Americans Pre-Season Main Camp!
- August 23rd – 3rd Annual Red/White Game 7:05 Ice
- September 5th – Likely Home opener for start of 2025-26
- September 6th – Likely annual GFA Tailgate party prior to the
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 (* new this season)
| 3D International Restaurant and Lounge | All-State Signs | Annie’s Taphouse |
| Comparion Insurance-Todd Neighbor | Automotive Machine | Beacon Ice House |
| Eagle Mount Therapeutic Recreation | Benski Towing & Recovery | Big Sky Harley Davidson* |
| Floors & More Abbey Carpets | Big Sky Laboratory | Bravera Bank |
| Hoglund’s Work & Western Wear | Cascade Electric | Central Avenue Meats |
| Havre Youth Hockey* | Havre Ford* | Independence Bank-Havre* |
| Hotel Arvon-Celtic Cowboy | Central MT Lock & Safe | Century Gaming |
| High Plains Wealth Management* | Patrick Construction* | Shanty Bar-Havre* |
| Life in Bloom Floral & Gift Boutique | Coca-Cola* | Craftmaster Cabinets |
| Montana Air National Guard* | Culligan Water | Ferrin’s Furniture |
| She Bare Wax & Sugar Boutique | Great Falls Hospital | Hampton Inn & Suites |
| Stifel |Finnicum Financial Group | Highwood Creek Outfitters | Jersey Mike’s |
| Tilleraas Landscape & Nursery | Johnson Distributing | Karma Coffee* |
| Red;s Powersports* | Tilleman Motor Co.* | Valley Furniture* |
| Murphy Law | Open Door Wellness* | Play It Again Sports |
| Purvis Chiropractic* | Scheels | STARadio |
| Stockman Bank | TDS Fiber* | Teriyaki Madness |
| Traynor Capital | Visit Great Falls* | Westgate Repair Inc* |
| Mountain Title Company* | Croxford Funeral Home and Crematory* | |
| Morse Construction* | Creative Coffee/Yogurt* |
Thank you for being a part of our hockey family!
Matt Leaf
Great Falls Americans HC Inc
MattL.GFAmericans@gmail.com