The Eagle Sky Estevan Bruins have announced 12 rookie signings ahead of the 2025-26 season.
Read all about the new faces, listed below in alphabetical order by position, as Voice of the Bruins and Marketing Director Marty Martinson caught up with Bruins’ Director of Player Personnel Dustin Wlaz to get the latest scoop on the newest Bruins’ talent.
Forwards:
Reid Bechard (2007)
The Regina product is coming off a fairytale season with the Regina Pat Canadians U18 AAA team, helping the club to a National Championship at the Telus Cup in late-April, after taking the provincial crown as well, as Saskatchewan AAA Hockey League (SMAAAHL) champions.
Bechard registered 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) in 42 games with the Pat C’s during the regular season, along with 106 penalty minutes. His willingness to go to the dirty areas and play an in-your-face style is something Bruins Director of Player Personnel, Dustin Wlaz said makes him a prototypical Bruins’ player.
“He’s a pesky forward that can get under guys’ skin, but he also brings some offensive upside as well,” Wlaz said. “He’s not afraid to play along the walls and get to the net to score goals that way and he’s got some skill too, so he’s almost a Darcy Tucker type player in my mind.”
Wlaz said having seen his growth over the course of the Pat C’s run to the championship showed his ability to rise to the occasion in big situations as well.
“He’s a guy who definitely worked his way up that lineup and they were obviously a very talented team, so I think that speaks loads to his development to earn the trust of his coaches on a National Championship team.
Lynden Gould (2007)
Gould is coming off a standout season in the Manitoba U18 AAA League (MU18HL), which saw the native of Oakland, MB register 65 points (25 goals, 40 assists) in 47 games with the Southwest Cougars, to finish second overall in team scoring, and Top-10 league-wide.
Gould then followed it up with a superb playoffs as well, posting five goals and nine points in six playoff games, while also providing a spark physically to his team. It’s a combination Wlaz said should make him a great fit in the Bruins’ system.
“[Lynden is] another real pesky forward who likes to hit, but he also has a lot of puck skills,” he said. “He’s strong on his stick and he can absolutely rip it, so he’s a guy who’s going to mix it up in the corners and along the walls, but can also finish and really handle the puck too, so we’re really excited about his offensive game.”
Griffin Horne (2008)
One of two players on this list to make his debut with the team in a late-season call-up last year, Horne will now look to make the full-time jump to the Junior level this season as a 17-year-old player.
Coming off a strong first season of U18 play last year with Prairie Hockey Academy, Horne posted 23 points (15 goals, eight assists) in 28 games.
Already well built at 6-foot-2, 192 pounds, Wlaz said Horne embodies all the physical tools to be an impact player at the Junior level.
“He’s a 200-foot player who’s Junior-ready despite being an ’08,” Wlaz said. “Again, we’ve kind of hounded that style of bringing in gritty two-way forwards because we think that’s what you win with in the playoffs and this guy’s definitely that. He’s a good skater, he’s up and down the ice, and he gets to the net hard, so he’s going to be a tough guy to handle down the middle for a long time to come.”
Horne was a 3rd Round selection by the Bruins (#30 overall) in the 2024 SJHL U16 Draft.
Brock Kolibab (2008)
The other of the Bruins’ signings to get a cup of coffee with the team late last year, Kolibab is another big-body 17-year-old who brings a power game to the fold. The Saskatoon product registered 35 points (14 goals, 21 assists) in 42 games with the Prince Albert Mintos U18 AAA team last year, in his first full season of Triple-A.
Wlaz said similar to Horne, Kolibab’s “got a lot of fire in him and we’re excited about that.”
“He’s got a lot of belief in his game and I think it goes to show just with his touch around the net,” the B’s scout continued. “He’s very good at timing plays around the net and he just seems to be one of those guys who’s going to work his way into the right spot at the right time and finish plays off. For being a rookie in Triple-A this year he put up really good numbers, so we’re excited about seeing what he can do this year and moving forward.”
Kolibab was a 2nd Round selection by the Bruins (#19 overall) in the 2023 SJHL U15 Draft.
Oliver Kramp (2007)
An 18-year-old forward from Comox Valley, BC., Kramp finished the 2024-25 season with 26 points (nine goals, 17 assists) in 36 games in his first full season with the Calgary International Hockey Academy (CIHA) U18 team.
The year prior, Kramp also won a Canadian Sport School Hockey League Championship with the U17 team, as an alternate captain on the CIHA’s first-ever high school championship team.
Wlaz said the 5-foot-9 forward brings a unique and valuable skillset to the Bruins.
“He’s a little bit different than maybe some of the other forwards we brought in, but he is a very fluid skater. We think he’s going to be a dangerous penalty killer with his speed [and ability to] create chances off quick transitions and turnovers. He can absolutely wheel and then he shoots the puck and competes well as well, so there’s lots of good pieces to his game.”
Cash Olson (2007)
The recently-turned 18-year-old forward from Medicine Hat, AB., scored 27 points (10 goals, 17 assists) in 36 games with the South Alberta hockey Academy (SAHA) U18 team last season, to finish Top-5 in team scoring.
Wlaz said Olson’s competitive nature and mix of skill and determination makes him a player to watch.
“He’s one of the most improved players probably in U18 hockey over the past couple of years,” Wlaz said. “He keeps jumping a level every year it seems. We had him out at Medicine Hat Tigers’ camp so I kind of took note of him there, and as the year went on at SAHA he showed his 200-foot game.
“He’s an absolute puck hound and when he came to try out at our Spring Camp he was relentless. I think there’s more scoring touch to be had yet too – he’s definitely developing that – but he’s a guy that, with his work ethic and speed, his feet are just always moving.”
Defensemen:
Owen Brees (2007)
Brees joins the Bruins as an 18-year-old blue liner with an already well-filled out frame, standing tall and strong at 6-foot-1, 194 pounds. The Lethbridge, AB., product is coming off a strong last two years spent with the South Alberta Hockey Academy U18 team, where he posted 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in 31 games last season while serving as an alternate captain with the team.
Brees’ play also earned him a three-game call-up to the Devon Xtreme of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) last season, giving him a taste of Junior hockey.
“When I spoke with his coach, [Brees] was supposed to be in Junior A last year but he ended up back in U18 and they were thrilled to get him back at SAHA; they don’t go as far as they did without him,” Wlaz said. “He was a huge leadership piece for them and the coach couldn’t have said enough good things about him.
“In terms of the way he plays the game, he is rugged. He loves to hit and he’s not afraid to go mouth-first into anything, so this is a guy who’s going to be really, really hard to play against, and when you get into those rivalry games or playoff series, this is a guy we’re going to be thrilled we’re not going up against because he’s a miserable shutdown defenceman.”
Adding to his pre-Junior accolades, Brees also won a CSSHL U17 Championship with the Northern Alberta Xtreme U17 Prep team in 2023, following a regular season showing of 29 points (six goals, 23 assists) in 33 games.
Aiden Laing (2007)
One of the top young defenders to watch in the SJHL this season, Laing is coming off a standout season with his hometown Brandon Wheat Kings U18 AAA team, which saw him register 33 points (five goals, 28 assists) in 48 games, on his way to earning Top Defenceman honours in the Manitoba U18 AAA League.
Wlaz said Laing brings a smooth-skating, two-way game to the Bruins’ backend this year.
“He won Top Defenceman out in Manitoba this year as a third-year on that Brandon team that finished first in the regular season and he was a huge piece of that,” Wlaz said. “He’s a really slick defenceman. I think a lot of our dmen we brought in this year are going to be a little bit heavier, where I see him as a power play puck-mover. He makes great outlet passes and is a very, very fluid skater. He’s a late birthday too, so you’re excited about getting upside with that too.”
Josh Larson (2007)
An 18-year-old blue liner from Calgary, AB., Larson is coming off a strong first full-season of U18 play with his hometown Calgary Northstars U18 AAA team, posting 11 points (two goals, nine assists) in 30 games.
A member of Team Alberta Green at the 2022 Alberta Cup, Larson was a standout at Bruins Spring Camp, back in May.
“He’s another really heads-up defenceman,” Wlaz said first-and-foremost. “He was a bit of a surprise at camp, we knew he was a good player but when he came to camp he really, really competed and proved his worth there and that’s really what pushed us over the top. He’s got a great attitude, he’s a team guy, and really skilled. To me he’s in a really similar state to what Dayton Deics was when he first got to Estevan. I think the offense is still coming and he’s a very smart player.”
Parker Seymour (2007)
Seymour’s play style is perhaps best described as tough and rugged. The product of Fort McMurray, AB., finished the 2024-25 season with 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) and 112 penalty minutes in 36 games, in his third season with the Fort Saskatchewan Rangers U18 AAA team.
Already an extremely solid 6-foot-1, 196 pounds, Wlaz said Seymour’s bread and butter boils down to his competitive approach to the game.
“He was the captain of his team out in Fort Saskatchewan, so we’re getting another leader, and another guy who wants to hit everything that moves,” Wlaz said. “He moves the puck really hard and does everything hard. He can skate with the puck and he’s a bit of a choo-choo train when he gets going, so we’re excited about him.
“He’s another guy who was a Western Hockey League draft pick that hung around in Spokane and made it through their Main Camp last year and the fact that he could make it through that camp is a good sign. He’s rugged, but he’s a leader too and he’s just got to fine-tune some of his game. When we asked some of our other Alberta guys about him, there was always a smile on their face and they’d say ‘what a guy to play against’.”
Carver Shingoose (2007)
An 18-year-old right-shot defenceman from Stettler, AB., Shingoose also joins the Bruins already listed at a sturdy 6-foot-1, 181 pounds. In his third season of U18 AAA last year, Shingoose posted career-highs across the board with 26 points (seven goals, 19 assists) in 35 games with the Red Deer Chiefs’ program.
Wlaz said Shingoose is a player who brings a lot of offensive potential, only helped by his positional versatility through his early playing career.
“He was actually was a forward at one point that was converted to a defenceman,” Wlaz said. “He made [the] Alberta Cup in his draft year, and I believe he played forward there so it’s been a really good transition for him to be able to compete at that level and switch positions that quickly.
“He’s another great puck mover and he sees the ice really well, especially on the power play. He’s able to funnel pucks towards the net and stretch the ice, and he’s a guy who had a big, big year out in the Alberta U18 AAA League last year.”
Daniel Tverdovsky (2007)
An 18-year-old defenceman from Los Angeles, CA., USA., Tverdovsky is the longest-traveled signing by the Bruins this off-season. The 6-foot, 181 pound left-shot defender finished the 2024-25 season with 22 points (one goal, 21 assists) in 33 games with the Okanagan Hockey Academy U18 Prep team, while showing good discipline with just six penalty minutes over the course of the season.
Wlaz said Tverdovsky is another player the team has had their eye on for a while coming up through the ranks.
“He’s another guy that we’ve watched for a long time through Academy hockey,” he said. “His dad’s an ex-NHLer, Oleg Tverdovsky, so there’s pedigree in the family and he’s a very calm, poised defenceman with the puck. He likes to move pucks, walk the blue line and open up lanes, so I consider him more of an offensive defenceman. He’s a smooth skater, and he’s another guy that’s going to fill out our d-core really well.”
Bruins’ fans will get their first look at the team’s new signings in action at Affinity Place with the first home preseason game, Sept. 10 versus Weyburn. Puck drop will be at 7 p.m.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL PRESEASON SCHEDULE
The Bruins’ regular season home-opener will be Saturday, Sept. 20 versus the Melville Millionaires. Puck drop will be at 7 p.m.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE
CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR SEASON TICKETS
—
Marty Martinson/Bruins PxP & Marketing Director
On X: @MartyMartyPxP1
