Battalion defenceman Dylan Blujus and goalie Jake Smith sport the Centennial jerseys on January 23rd. Friday they will wear Centennials white jerseys to close out the Christmas break. PHOTO COURTESY DENIS DUBOIS.
The North Bay Battalion will go back in the OHL time machine Friday night to once again honour North Bay’s original OHL team, the Centennials.
The Battalion will wear vintage white Centennial jerseys, just like the ones the OHL championship team sported back in 1993-94.
The Troops did the same thing, wearing Centennials black jerseys last January when they beat the Saginaw Spirit 5-1 on January 23rd.
Former Centennial great Dennis Bonvie will be on hand for the ceremonial puck drop.
Meantime, despite the fanfare over another Centennial night, Battalion head coach Stan Butler has been reminding the players this is a very key game to close out the Christmas season.
The OHL’s top team, the Oshawa Generals, make a visit on Friday night.
The Gens come in sporting an impressive 25-4-1 record which is first overall in the Ontario Hockey League.
“When you are playing the number one team in Canada, there is no place to hide, if you don’t play very well, irrespective of what both teams are missing in players, you are going to embarrass yourself,” said Butler during Wednesday’s weekly media conference.
“The one thing, and DJ Smith has done a good job, they don’t take any nights off, they play hard every night so our guys have to come in with the mindset that it’s going to be a really tough game and if they don’t then we are going to be in for a long night.”
Both teams have been hit by the World Junior Bug. Battalion forward Nick Paul will miss his third straight game. The Gens however will be missing sniper Michael Dal Colle who is also at Team Canada’s Selection Camp along with Cole Cassels. The son of former NHer Andrew Cassels is at Team USA’s World Junior camp.
The Battalion (16-8-6) come in riding a modest 2 game winning streak. Butler says with Paul away and Bratina still on the mend, others will have to continue to step up. He credits players like Miles Liberati and Zach Poirier for doing just that.
"I don’t know what he has been eating lately but we want to make sure he's staying on that diet,” Butler says talking about Canucks prospect Liberati.
“He has been a big part of our game lately and he’s tried to make up for some of the guys that are going away, I think he’s been really good. I think in his own way Shoemaker has been pretty steady back there, I mean Poirier got a goal the other game which is nice because there’s no doubt we definitely need secondary scoring as we go forward here.”
Teddy Bear Toss
In addition, the annual teddy bear toss is scheduled for the second intermission. Fans are asked to bring new or almost new bears or other stuffed toys, wrapped in clear, sealed plastic bags, for distribution to needy children. Bears will be available for purchase at the arena for $10.
