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HomeNewsGrande Prairie Storm brass ready for long-awaited return to ice

Grande Prairie Storm brass ready for long-awaited return to ice

For the first time since rejoining the Grande Prairie Storm as Head Coach and General Manager, Mike Vandekamp says he can finally look forward to something this weekend that has eluded him for 18 months: fans in the stands.

Vandekamp says the last year has been challenging to say the least, but with an ongoing training camp and the annual Brian Nash Memorial Cup taking place on Friday; there is a bright light at the end of the tunnel.

“We got through it, we played a few games, and now we just want to get back to normal, and hopefully see the stands full again, and hopefully be able to entertain our home crowd,” he says.

“I think everybody has been excited to be back in the rink with a sense of normal to it.”

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One thing that is not normal, however, is how management was able to recruit players. Vandekamp says in a normal winter, they’d be able to view players on-ice and in-person extensively, but with a lack of minor hockey league play, he says they very much had to take a different approach.

“We’ve had to commit to players and sign players, and the sample size that we’ve had for scouting is really limited,” “Last winter,

“That has made this year’s training camp really unique because there’s a lot of people here we really don’t know much about… that’s kind of exciting and unique in its own way.”

The Grande Prairie Storm regular-season home opener is set for September 25th against the Sherwood Park Crusaders.

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