Halifax, NS -
It's a new year and there is a buzz in Halifax as the Chaos kick off the season tonight at home against the Saint-Lambert Maulers.
The Chaos had a busy off-season and will welcome a few new faces to the lineup this year.
New to the team are: C Ashton Thomson, RW Mikhail Chevkin and D Layton Neveu.
"We are pretty happy with a couple of our upgrades. Chevkin is going to find himself locked into the top-6 and had really good chemistry with Nikitenko so I am really looking forward to seeing how that line progresses when the real games start and see how the mesh with Yegor on the LW." said GM Oliver.
Ashton Thomson brings multi-faceted talented to the Chaos this year and will likely move around the lineup and see plenty of time on the PP and the PK.
"Thomson is a guy I had my eye on since last year. He plays strong on the puck and is a good defender who knows his way around the face-off dot which is something we definitely felt we needed to upgrade this year. He has fantastic hockey sense and a flair for play-making so Chaos fans will be excited to see what he can bring to our squad!"
Layton Neveu is not new to the team but will be new to Chaos fans. He spent last year with the Grand Prarie Yeti where he scored 54 pts in 76 games.
"Layton is a key upgrade on the backend for us this year. We were happy overall with our D but felt that we could use a little more offense from the blueline and after watching Neveu tear things up with the Yeti, made it easy for us to promote him rather than trying to solve this need through trade. Layton is going to get plenty of time in the top 4 and on the PP so we are excited to see how his skillset will improve our transition game."
There are alot of familiar faces back this year and many will find themselves in familiar spots in the lineup. D Rasmus Koso will once again be leaned on to lead the D corps and provide leadership as an assistant captain to the team captain, Leonard Ananin. Ananin will be a main piece of the Halifax offense once again but will definitely have more support this year behind him which should provide him with a little more room on the ice. Guys like Kevari, Mylnikov, Ghantous, Roos and Trinh are all a year older and more mature which should definitely benefit this team for the long haul.
Put on your seat belts Halifax fans. The ride is just beginning!!
J.P Morgan, Halifax Press