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Ex-NHLer Rick Heinz purchases Jr. A Raiders The long-awaited sale of the Georgetown Raiders' Jr. A hockey team was completed early this week, with Campbellville resident and longtime hockey-school operator Rick Heinz taking over operations of the club. Former Raider owner Peter Friedmann had been rumoured to be entertaining some offers for the past few months and Heinz said he'd been looking to acquire a team within the OHA Provincial Jr. A Hockey League. The 50-year-old Heinz, a goalie who spent parts of nine seasons with the NHL's St. Louis Blues and Vancouver Canucks, has operated goalie and hockey schools across North America for more than 20 years and would like to try his hand at running a junior hockey organization. "I see it as a challenge, but a fun challenge. It's just something you think about doing and you wake up one day and say, `Why not give it a try,'" Heinz said Tuesday morning from his Milton offices. "I love Georgetown because it's a hock- coach Jay Anderson and Heinz were slated ey town. I've done goalie clinics there for to meet last night (Tuesday) to discuss many years and I know a lot of options for next season. Georgetown kids have come to It's expected that Heinz and my schools. I played in the banfriend Keith Pandoviski will now tam tournament there as a kid oversee the hockey operations for and I remember that as being the Raiders and that there will such a great experience. Based on likely be a change in philosophy the team's reputation and the about the makeup of the team. great fan support it receives, I just "We're not going to bring in a couldn't pass this up and the great bunch of players from the part is that it's basically in my (OHL)," said Heinz, a former backyard." player agent and native of Essex, RICK He inherits a Raiders' squad Ont. "This team is going to be run HEINZ that made it to the semi-finals of in a fiscally responsible manner, the national championship tourwhere we go out and identify kids nament last spring in Saskatchewan, but who we can bring in and develop into had a somewhat disappointing 2005-06 established players. Keith and I have concampaign, losing to Hamilton in the sec- tacts throughout North America, but realond round of playoffs. ly, the more local content this team has, Heinz confirmed that Raiders' director the better, so we'll be looking at kids in of player personnel Peter Mavroudis will Halton Hills to come in and help us." not be back with the club, although head Another of Heinz's objectives in purchasing the team is to re-establish relationships and sponsorships within Georgetown that had apparently been severed over the past couple of years. He also wants to start up a Georgetown Raider hockey school during the summer months, with players from the team working at the camps. As for the prospects for next season's Raiders, Heinz said he followed the team over the final couple of months but hasn't yet begun to address the loss of star goalie Ryan Gibb and virtually the entire defence corps. Heinz's Campbellville neighbour, four-year Raiders' centre Rob Sgarbossa, is one of 14 players eligible to return in the fall. "I plan on meeting with everybody-- from Jack Moon the general manager, to the training staff and the players-- to get their perspective and background on what this team is all about," said Heinz. (Eamonn Maher can be reached at emaher@independentfreepress.com) Bulldogs enter season with new bench boss With the majority of last year's as well. players back for another season of Jr. "My favourite sport is lacrosse, B lacrosse with the Halton Hills but growing up in Georgetown, there Bulldogs, the most noticeable new wasn't any lacrosse here, so you had arrival on the 2006 team will be to go to Brampton to play," behind the bench. McCauley said. The Bulldogs opened "When I got to a point their training camp Tuesday where I had to choose my night at Memorial Arena in sport, I chose hockey. The Georgetown and figured up nice part now about coachuntil about a month ago ing the Bulldogs is that peothat Mike Falkiner would ple like (ex-minor lacrosse be returning as head coach president) Gordie Lyons for a second season. jave put so much hard work But Falkiner couldn't into building Halton Hills as pass up an offer to guide his an elite lacrosse centre in BLAINE hometown Orangeville Jr. B Ontario over the years, Northmen, so the Bulldogs we're able to reap the beneMcCAULEY quickly turned to a familiar fits of that today." face as his replacement. McCauley played in a Minto Cup Georgetown's Blaine McCauley, national Jr. A lacrosse championship the current assistant coach with the in 1993 with the Brampton Georgetown Jr. A Raiders' hockey Excelsiors, who lost in a seventhclub, accepted the Halton Hills head and-deciding game to New coaching position and will retain last Westminster, B.C. After a stellar year's assistants J.J. Dickie, Ryan junior hockey career that culminated Marshall and Mike Bland. Most locals with a Royal Bank Cup champiknow about the McCauley family's onship with the Vernon, B.C. Vipers, long-time involvement with hockey, McCauley earned a scholarship to but 30-year-old Blaine and his late See McCAULEY, pg. 20 father John have strong lacrosse ties Fancy footwork Erica Kosmack and Katie Schupp perform Rainbows & Wishes during the Acton Skating Club's 2006 carnival-- A Few Of My Favourite Things-- Saturday at Acton Arena. Photo by Sabrina Byrnes