The boys are back in town.
As of Sunday, the Truro Bearcats, whether draft picks, acquisitions, or returnees, have reported for service.
That group is basically the team which will start the season come October. Everything is different this year.
The Bearcat Training Camp, as we have grown to know it, is out the window for this year. There will be no 30-plus group looking to crack the roster.
Players of High School age from within the Maritime Bubble were in town for the opening of schools.
Others, awaiting post-secondary students, or completing summer work are now ready to resume their hockey dreams.
Players have been getting some ice time at the Colchester Legion Stadium. While the ice felt good, the experience, pre and post, was novel.
The routine involved arriving fifteen minutes prior to the session, get a temperature test, spread out among dressing rooms, have the on-ice session, leave the rink unshowered within 15 minutes.
That will take some getting used to. Hopefully protocols will improve.
The provincial Government, effective October 1st, plans on increasing the allowable numbers for participants in sport and organized physical activity.
For most sports, this will allow full team practices and competition to resume. That’s good news.
For sure, these are fluid times, but the one constant is the commitment of the coaching staff to ice another competitive Bearcat team.
Coach Evans is preparing diligently for his nineteenth year as Bearcat bench boss. Four MHL Championships, one Fred Page Cup Championship and seven Divisional titles suggest his path is a good one.
Returning as Assistants are Joel Isenor and Jacob Fancy. Joining them is former goalie, Shayne Campbell. They are all on the same page.
The wheels are well in motion.