Sept. 24, 2003
Notre Dame, Ind. – eptember 24, 2002 //FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE//
Notre Dame, Ind. — The 2003-04 Notre Dame hockey team will hold its annual Blue-Gold intrasquad scrimmage on Sunday, Sept. 28 at 4:00 p.m., at the Joyce Center. Admission to the game is free, but donations will be taken to benefit the Hockey Coaches Foundation. The foundation provides assistance to athletes and coaches who as a result of being afflicted with cancer or other life-threatening illness/injury demonstrates the need for medical or financial assistance. The Foundation was started in memory of former University of Maine hockey coach Shawn Walsh who died in September of 2001 after a long bout with cancer.
This is the fourth year that the game has been played with donations going to the Hockey Coaches Foundation. Each Notre Dame player and coaching staff member will play the game in memory of a friend or family member who has been impacted by cancer.
Fans attending the game will receive a free Notre Dame hockey schedule poster. The first 300 fans in attendance will be treated to free food from Famous Dave’s restaurant and Irish players will be available after the game on the ice for autographs.
This season’s Blue-Gold game will be played in two 20-minute periods and will give the coaches and fans a chance to see the Irish in action this season.
“The Blue-Gold game is important for two reasons. It gives the coaches their first chance to see the team under game conditions. It’s only our third day on the ice as a team, so we can get a good look at the various combinations of players,” says head coach Dave Poulin.
“Secondly, the game gives us a chance to play for a great cause – the Hockey Coaches Foundation. We’ve all been affected by cancer in some way and it gives the players and staff a chance to honor someone they know who has battled this disease,” added the Irish hockey coach.
Poulin will be anxious to take a look at his eight-man freshman class as they make their first appearances for the Irish in the 2003 Blue-Gold game. The group includes goaltender David Brown (Stoney Creek, Ont.), defensemen Noah Babin (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) and Wes O’Neill (Essex, Ont.) and five forwards – Michael Bartlett (Morton Grove, Ill.), T.J. Jindra (Faribault, Minn.), Jason Paige (Saginaw, Mich.), Rob Sciba (Westland, Mich.) and Matthew Williams-Kovacs (Calgary, Alb.).
The Irish roster features six seniors, five juniors, six sophomores along with the freshman class and will be led offensively by all-CCHA and all-American candidate Rob Globke (Sr., West Bloomfield, Mich.) and center Aaron Gill (Sr., Rochester, Minn.). The veteran defense is led by seniors Tom Galvin (Miller Place, N.Y.), Neil Komadoski (Chesterfield, Mo.) and Brett Lebda (Buffalo Grove, Ill.). In all, the Irish return 15 letterwinners from 2002-03, including five of their top 10 scorers and top goaltender Morgan Cey (Jr., Wilkie, Sask.).
Following Sunday’s intrasquad game, the Irish will play host to the University of Western Ontario on Friday, Oct. 3, in a preseason game that will begin at 7:35 p.m. at the Joyce Center. Notre Dame opens the regular and CCHA schedule on Oct. 10-11 at Ohio State.