St. Louis Jr. Blues (2019-20: 29-17-1, 59 pts, 2nd in NA3HL Central) vs Rochester Grizzlies (2019-20: 37-8-2, 76 pts, 1st in NA3HL Central)
VENUE: St. Peters Rec-Plex, St. Peters, Mo.
TIMES: October 1 at 2:45 pm, October 2 at 8 pm (all times Central)
WHERE TO FOLLOW: All Jr. Blues games are streamed live on www.hockeytv.com (subscription required). Follow our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts for live updates.
ROAD WARRIORS: The Jr. Blues will start the 2020-21 season away from home, as the Affton Ice Rink undergoes substantial renovations that require it to be out of commission until November at the earliest. In addition, local regulations have forced the Jr. Blues to play home games in St. Charles County until further notice: this weekend’s series will be held at the St. Peters Rec-Plex in conjunction with the NAPHL Showcase tournament. Future home games are provisionally scheduled to be held at Wentzville Ice Arena, but this is subject to change.
SUPPORT FROM THE HOME FRONT: Due to rink policies mandating only one spectator per player, only immediate families of Jr. Blues players will be permitted to attend this week’s games. The Jr. Blues are working on allowing paid spectators at future home games, but for now invite you to take advantage of an exclusive HockeyTV deal: enter coupon code “NA3HLBLUES20” when signing up and you can get $80 off a year’s subscription.
O CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN: The Jr. Blues are proud to announce that defenseman Joey Boccardi will serve as the 32ndteam captain in club history. He will be joined by assistants Mike Deeba, Mike Ivory, and Joey Solimando, all forwards. Read more about them here.
SCOUTING THE GRIZZLIES: Rochester impressed many across the league last season by winning the Central Division by 17 points and posting their second straight 30-win season. The Grizzlies returned leading scorer Joey Fodstad (28 G, 26 A in 43 GP last year) but several other key contributors, including NA3HL Goalie of the Year Mathias Backstrom (Nichols College) and All-NA3HL defensemen Noel Parker (Wisconsin-Stout) and Michael Heitkamp (Gustavus Adolphus), have all headed off to NCAA Division III. Rochester was able to play two pre-season exhibition games, both against the North Iowa Bulls: they split the two contests.
WELCOME BACK: Following the cancellation of the 2020 Fraser Cup Playoffs in March, and the resulting extended off-season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Jr. Blues are extremely proud to welcome our fans, volunteers, and sponsors back to another season of great junior hockey. Once again, we thank you for your continued support.
