Axemen Captain takes his talents to South Florida
Liam Heelis to Attend Florida Panthers Prospect Camp
Acadia Axemen captain Liam Heelis will be taking his show on the road later this week; all the way to Florida and Tennessee! Liam, the reigning CIS Men’s Hockey MVP, will take part in the NHL’s Florida Panthers prospect camp from Sept 11-16.
The 23 year old, Heelis will join 2 goalies, eight defenseman and 14 other forwards. Included in those prospects is last year’s first overall pick in the NHL entry draft, Aaron Ekblad, who was also a junior teammate of current Axemen defenceman Chris Buonomo with the Barrie Colts of the OHL.
The prospect camp will be composed of a day of medical and physical testing, an on ice practice in Florida, followed by a round robin tournament in Nashville, Tennessee between 4 teams, Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston Bruins, Nashville Predators & the Florida Panthers.
Acadia Axemen head coach Darren Burns expressed his excitement for Heelis saying, “We are very excited for Liam that he has been invited back to Florida’s camp. We believe he continues to get better as a player and this opportunity will be another positive step in his goal of playing in the NHL. He has continued to work hard and it will be good for him to get this experience heading into our season.”
Also on the prospect roster for the Panthers is Saint Mary’s Huskies forward Stephen MacAuley, UNB defenceman Keevan Cutting, former Halifax Moosehead Mackenzie Weegar, and Glace Bay native Logan Shaw, who played last season with San Antonio of the AHL.
This is the second straight September Heelis has received an invite from the Panthers to attend their rookie camp. The former Peterbourough Petes and Owen Sound Attack center had a breakout season in 2013-14, scoring an impressive 24 regular season goals in 26 games, finishing the season tied for the AUS league lead in points with teammate and linemate Mike Cazzola with 42 points.
Liam and his Axemen will look to build on a great 2013-14 season that saw them win the AUS championship in the playoffs and earn a spot in last year’s CIS final tournament. After losing both of their games in the national tournament, Heelis and the Axemen will be hungry for another shot at the CIS championship in 2014-15, which will be held in Halifax, NS.
The Axemen regular season gets underway on October 11th as the Axemen travel to Halifax to take on the Dalhousie Tigers.