Posted on Posted in Alumni News

Axemen Alumnus & Former Captain hired in Florida

Acadia alumnus Paul McFarland, who suited up for the Axemen from 2006-2010, has been named assistant coach with the NHL’s Florida Panthers.

Axemen coach Darren Burns reflected on the Panthers hiring and his time coaching McFarland saying, “We are absolutely ecstatic about his new position with the Florida Panthers. It couldn’t have happened to a better person. We all knew at Acadia that Paul was destined to coach in the NHL, but to see it happen at such a young age shows what he has already accomplished in his short coaching career. He is arguably the best leader I have encountered in sports.

In spending 1 hour with him as a 20 year old when he played for the Windsor Spitfires, I knew he was a guy we needed to lead our program. His work ethic, passion, and integrity, make everyone around him better everyday. “

Paul was the captain of Acadia for three years and shared his thoughts on his time at Acadia back in 2010 in this clip:

After an impressive 3 years as head coach of the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs, McFarland joins the Panthers coaching staff with head coach Bob Boughner.

Congratulations to Paul on behalf of Acadia hockey!

Below is the media release from the Florida Panthers website.
Read more »

Posted on Posted in Alumni News

Capitals sign prolific forward Mike Cazzola

A big #AcadiaU congratulations to alumnus Mike Cazzola who has signed a 2 year deal to play overseas with the EIHL’s Edinburgh Capitals!

Even more impressive, Mike has enrolled at the Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh in the highly regarded MSc Physiotherapy program for the next 2 years. Back to being a student athlete Mike!

Axemen Coach Darren Burns had the following to say about Cazzola, “Mike is an extremely dynamic and cerebral player. His hockey IQ is very high which enables him to be an excellent play maker. Mike’s creativity will instantly make players around him better. He also possesses a strong competitive nature which will contribute to the team’s overall success.”

23 June 2017 – Story below courtesy of edcapitals.com

Prolific Canadian point scorer Mike Cazzola has signed up for the Edinburgh Capitals On a 2 year deal.

From Guelph, Ontario Mike Cazzola joins the Capitals straight from a hugely successful rookie season in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL). The forward was the top point scorer for his club the Fort Wayne Komets, and was also the top point scoring rookie in the ECHL with 76 points (30 goals and 46 assists) in just 67 games. Voted on to the ECHL All Rookie All Star team, Cazzola ranked joint 11th overall in the league for point scoring in his first season in the highly competitive league.

Cazzola’s junior career saw him score 225 points in 219 games, the majority with the Erie Otters from 2008-2012.

He then attended Acadia University from 2012 to 2016 and continued to post impressive numbers scoring 133 points in just 107 games for his University. He was voted Rookie of the Year in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS AUS) league in 2012-2013, and followed this up the following year by being voted onto the First All Star team. He then followed this up with two Second All-Star team awards in his final two seasons with Acadia. Over his four seasons attending the University he was never out of the top two in scoring and was top scorer twice.
Read more »

Posted on Posted in Alumni News

Acadia Hockey ecstatic with selection

The QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads announced today their new head coach, Jim Midgley. Valley hockey fans will remember Midgley from his days as an assistant coach with the Acadia Axemen from 2003-2007, along with the countless Valley hockey school programs he has taken part in for the area.

Axemen head coach Darren Burns reflected on Midgley’s new opportunity saying, “There was never any doubt that Midge was born to be a coach. He was a natural leader and had a tremendous hockey IQ as a player and he had a tremendous impact on our program here at Acadia as a coach.

He was a natural on the bench at the university level, but he can also carry the same abilities to help impact youth. To me that’s what will make him an excellent major junior head coach. A great hockey mind, but even more so, someone who cares about the kids development on and off the ice. That’s what Midge does.”

Burns concluded with a heartfelt thought shared by many in the hockey community saying, “To me it’s exceptional to see someone who has worked hard to achieve his goal and he has done it with hard work and integrity. There’s not a person in the game of hockey who isn’t ecstatic about Jim’s appointment today. The skies the limit for him.”

From everyone at Acadia Hockey, congratulations Midge!

Below is the press release from the QMJHL’s Halifax Mooseheads:

Halifax Mooseheads General Manager Cam Russell announced today that Jim Midgley has been named the 10th Head Coach of the franchise.

“I’m very excited to be able to name Jim as the Head Coach today. He has been with the team for a long time and has put together an impressive resume. I think he is the perfect fit to take over behind the bench for the Mooseheads,” Russell stated.

Midgley is entering his seventh season on the Mooseheads bench after serving as an Assistant Coach under Dominique Ducharme from 2011-2016 and Andre Tourigny last season. He has also worked as an Assistant Coach with the Saint John Sea Dogs and Acadia Axemen and has held multiple roles with Hockey Canada and Hockey Nova Scotia.Read more »

Posted on Posted in Team Stories

We are very happy to announce that Charles Grant will be a guest coach at our Acadia Hockey Showcase this summer at the Andrew H. McCain Arena in Wolfville, NS from July 27th-29th.

“We are very excited to add Charles to our Coaching Team for the 2017 Acadia Hockey Showcase. He is an excellent goaltending instructor and has recently worked with FinnGoalie Training which is Atlantic Canada’s number one goaltending company. ‎ He is just freshly removed from his playing career and will be able to help prepare the goalies at camp with the essential components of the game. He has had an excellent Junior and University Career and we would like to take this opportunity to welcome him.”


Charles has many years of professional goaltending and coaching experience. Most recently, he played for the Rapid City Rush in the ECHL- an affiliate team of the Arizona Coyotes of the NHL. Growing up in Berwick Nova Scotia, Charles was drafted by the Lewiston Maineiacs of the QMJHL and played his junior hockey with the Yarmouth Mariners, where he was a two time MHL All-Star and shut out leader. From the MHL, Charles advanced to playing four seasons of NCAA Division 1 hockey for Dartmouth College, where he received numerous goaltending awards and was named to the Second Team All-Ivy in his second year and was named Academic All-American all four years. Charles has held goalie coaching positions with FinnGoalie Training, Andrew’s Hockey (PEI) and the Valley Wildcats Jr. A, and knows what it takes to play and coach at a highly competitive level.

To register please click the following link:

https://central2.acadiau.ca/my/camps?step=1

For any questions please contact:
Kris MacDonald – Asst. Coach
E-mail: kris.macdonald@acadiau.ca
Cell #: (306)-216-1079

Posted on Posted in Team Stories

Acadia Hockey Development adds Junior A & NS U14 head coach to Camp

“We are very excited to have Travis with us this summer. He was a big part of our Team at Acadia as a player and a coach. It is great to see him having so much success in the profession. He will be a huge asset for the Junior A program in the valley and it’s no surprise he has been named Head coach of Nova Scotias U 14 team. He has done an excellent job helping develop many of the youth in our Acadia Hockey Camps.”  – Acadia Head Coach Darren Burns

The Acadia Showcase camp runs from Thursday July 27th – Saturday, July 29th for age groups born 2002-2004.

To register please click the following link:

https://central2.acadiau.ca/my/camps?step=1

For any questions please contact:

Kris MacDonald – Asst. Coach

E-mail: kris.macdonald@acadiau.ca

Cell #: (306)-216-1079

Travis Young: Travis is a former player and assistant coach with the Acadia Axemen, & was selected as the new head coach of the Jr. A Valley Wildcats hockey club in April.

“While at Acadia he was named second team AUS all-star and CIS all-rookie team member after leading all AUS defencemen in scoring during his freshmen year. He also attended an Ottawa Senators training camp, but was forced to retire due to concussion issues,” a statement on the Valley Wildcats website reads.

Young is no stranger to the Wildcats, spending the last two seasons leading the bantam team and functioning as an assistant coach at the Jr. A level.

Posted on Posted in Team Stories

Register Now! Space is Limited!

Acadia Hockey Development is excited to be able to add a Daily Camp Development Package to the long list of this Summer’s Camp. We are happy to be able to provide a camp environment for kids who are looking to get on the ice each day. Although there is no doubt that that the full day camp is extremely important in a hockey player’s development we want to provide alternatives to fit everyone’s schedule.

These camps will be week long and provide daily sessions culminating with a game at weeks end. Each session will be instructed by  a university hockey coach or players from the Axemen Program who have extensive playing backgrounds in Junior and Pro Hockey.

Don’t miss this great opportunity to be in the best hockey environment with highly qualified instructors! ‎

ATOM SKILLS & CONDITIONING CAMP  (9:30am-1:30pm)

COST: $180

          **$120 (for anyone registered in one of our other August Camps)

Schedule

9:30am – Drop off

9:45-10:45am – ON-ICE (Skating & Skills)

11-12pm – OFF-ICE, VIDEO & CLASSROOMRead more »

Posted on Posted in Team Stories

Acadia Hockey Development adds U of Maine Coach to Showcase Camp

We are very happy to announce that the University of Maine Black Bears Associate Head Coach Ben Guite will be a guest coach at the Acadia Hockey Development Hockey Showcase this summer.

“We are very excited to be bringing Ben to Wolfville ‎as one of our lead instructors for the Acadia Hockey Development Showcase. Ben’s resume speaks for itself. He is an extremely well respected NCAA coach and it is exciting to have him at our camp. Our main goal is to educate and promote kids in Atlantic Canada and there are many different streams in the game of hockey. It will be a great experience for our kids to learn from Ben and be exposed to NCAA hockey.” – Kris MacDonald, Acadia Axemen assistant coach.

Ben Guite – Associate Head Coach

University of Maine Black Bears

Promoted to Associate Head Coach on October 14, 2015.

Ben Guite, who helped lead Maine to the 1999 NCAA National Championship, begins his fourth season as assistant coach of the Black Bears. Following his graduation from the University of Maine, Guite spent 13 years in professional hockey.

While at Maine, Guite helped lead the Black Bears to their second national championship in 1999 before being named an assistant captain and guiding the Black Bears back to the Frozen Four in 2000. Guite totaled 47 goals, including nine game-winners, and added 49 assists for 96 points in 146 games at Maine. A Montreal, Quebec native, Guite scored the first goal in Maine’s national championship victory over New Hampshire and added an assist in the Frozen Four semifinal win over Boston College. During his senior year in 1999-00, Guite totaled a team-high 22 goals with 14 assists for 36 points in 40 games.  As a junior, the former Black Bear forward had 12 goals and 16 assists in 40 games after totaling six goals and 12 assists in 32 games as a sophomore. During his rookie season, Guite ranked second among Maine first-year players with 14 points on seven goals and seven assists in 34 games.Read more »

Posted on Posted in Team Stories

Sign up today, space is limited!

We are very happy to announce that Halifax Mooseheads assistant coach Jon Greenwood will be a guest coach at the showcase this summer. Jon was also recently named Head Coach for the Nova Scotia Canada Games team for 2019.

“We are extremely excited to be adding Jon to our camp staff. He is a very well respected young coach who works for one of  the most prestigious programs in the Canadian Hockey League. His work with many of the Quebec Leagues young stars has been very impressive to follow. It is extremely evident he knows what it takes for young players to get better in order for them to develop. He is committed to helping them along this path.” – Darren Burns

For more information on our showcase and how to register: Please click here!

 

Featuring Halifax Mooseheads assistant coach Jon Greenwood

Greenwood joined the Mooseheads prior to the start of the 2014-15 season after spending two years as the Head Coach of the Cole Harbour WolfPack Midget AAA team. He has also served as Director of Hockey Development at the Maritime Hockey Academy for seven years. The Cole Harbour native was named the 2013-14 coach of the year in the Nova Scotia Major Midget Hockey League. Greenwood and wife Lisa have two children, daughter Madeline and son Nolan.

Greenwood graduated from Saint Mary’s University with a B.A Degree followed by a Bachelor of Education at the University of Maine.