Lots of local talent at Battalion Orientation Camp (PHOTOS)

The North Bay Battalion orientation camp came to a close on Sunday with the second of two intrasquad games finishing up on Sunday morning.  

More than 30 players converged on North Bay for the weekend event which included the two scrimmages, fitness testing and a Battalion family boat cruise on the Chief Commanda II Saturday night. 

“I think the biggest thing we want to see is we just want the boys to get on the ice and kind of show us what they’ve got,” said Butler to Battalionhockey.com. 

“It allows us to get familiarized with the players before main camp and allows us to see what they can do and what they’ll need to do to have a chance to make the hockey team in September.” 

It was a competitive two-day camp including a lot of local talent. Along with the nine Battalion draft picks with local ties, the Troops also invited another four local free agent invites in forwards Bailey Chenier, Sam Garagan, Dryden Rivet and Brett Shawana.  

After the camp, the Troops announced they had signed forward Cam Peters and goaltender Joe Vrbetic - their two second-round picks from the 2018 OHL Priority Selection. 

Peters, who played with the Toronto Marlboros and was an affiliate player with the OJHL’s St. Michaels Buzzers said it felt good to put on a Battalion sweater. 

“The physicality of the game was a big difference, for sure,” said the Toronto product.  

“This weekend I got hit a couple of times, but you’ve got to get right back up and play the game the way you really want to.  It was really fast-paced hockey and I cannot wait to get started in the fall.”  

Vrbetic, the biggest player on the ice at 6’4”, likes to model his game after Carey Price but looks more like Pekka Rinne in stature.   

“I think using my size is a key part of my game,” noted Vrbetic.  

“I also think me playing calm is a big part and helps me stop the puck all the time.”

The Don Mills Flyers minor midget goaltender felt good adjusting to the level of play this weekend.   

“It was much faster, and I really enjoyed it,” he said.  

“It showed me what kind of pace I can play at, and it was a great experience overall.” 

It was also the first weekend Battalion fans could see first-round pick and local product Pacey Schlueting in Battalion green. The former North Bay Minor Midget Trappers defender was knocked out of the opening scrimmage due to injury, but returned for Sunday’s scrimmage. 

“It’s exciting. It’s really the start of the season, right,” stated Schlueting to battalionhockey.com. 

“It’s the first process going along from there, so it’s exciting from that perspective. You always want to see the players and see how they do.”

Jackson Hay, Dryden Rivet, and David Campbell scored a goal apiece to give Team White a 3-2 victory Sunday and a sweep of the intrasquad games. 

Maxim Mulder and Mat Hardwick scored for Team Green. Assistant coaches Scott Wray and Adam Dennis ran the White and Green benches respectively.

On Saturday, free agent invite Nate Boomhower scored two goals and Campbell added an empty-netter to lead White to a 3-1 win. 

Free agent invite Carson McMillan opened the scoring for Green.