By Kathy Gallant

M.L. Sr. Broncos switching to SaskAlta. league

May 25, 2018 | 3:00 PM

The Meadow Lake Sr. Broncos will have a new league to call their own come fall. 

After being part of the Beaver Lakes Hockey League (BLHL) for nearly eight years, the team officially made the switch earlier this month. The SaskAlta. Senior hockey league will be 14 teams strong next season and team manager Glenn Dennis said the entire organization is looking forward to the change. He said the players enjoyed their time with the BLHL, but the new league will offer a bit more of a competitive edge.

“We’ve been pursuing this quite a few years,” Dennis said. “These leagues have all been watching us, we’ve been playing some pretty good hockey. Meadow Lake fans stuck around for us, and we’re looking forward to getting them more hockey to watch.”

When it comes to travel, it won’t be too much of a change for the Broncos with the furthest team away being in Wainwright, Alta. Dennis credits fellow team manager Brent Brooks for a lot of the work, thanks to his contacts in the agriculture world, as Brooks runs Northern Livestock Sales.

“He’s met a lot of people, and of course hockey reflects back to the farm boys,” Dennis said. “That gave us a lot of pull, we knew a lot of the executive, so it did help us.”

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The idea of the switch has been in the works for the last number of years, and Dennis said the president of the BLHL knew the change would be forthcoming.

Head Coach Winston Morin said he anticipates a few positive changes, especially the ability to play more games.

“It’s going to mean more commitment from every team, and it’s really good hockey,” Morin said. “I’m most looking forward to the competition, every team coming with enough players. The competition will make us quite a bit more ready for provincials, too.”

He said he’s looking forward to see who will try out, as Meadow Lake is a strong hockey town. He expects practices will start in late September.

kathy.gallant@jpbg.ca

On Twitter @ReporterKath