Brooks Bandits name leadership group for 2026-27 season, play historic match Friday

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Last season, Holtby played 55 games with the Sioux Falls Stampede of the United States Hockey League, helping the team win the Clark Cup championship.

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He is also committed to play NCAA Division I hockey at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, commonly known as Army.

“Tommy has shown in his short time with us exactly what kind of leader he is,” Bandits head coach Dakota Mason said in a release.

“He has earned the respect of his teammates through the way he leads both on and off the ice, consistently setting the standard with his work ethic, character, and commitment to our group and organization,” he added.

“We are extremely excited for Tommy and his entire family, and we couldn’t be prouder to have him lead our team this season.”

Four members of the leadership group — Deleau, Dliveka, Hue and Kucherawy — are returning Bandits.

Combined, the four have played 235 games in a Bandits jersey.

Leroux adds extensive experience from the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League, while Holtby brings his experience from four junior leagues.

The Bandits said the six players named to the leadership group have combined for 897 games of junior hockey experience.

On Monday, the Bandits announced that recently acquired forward Joey Sinclair will join the team in time for this weekend’s games.

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READ: Brooks Bandits trade Lazarus Ebanoidze to Crusaders for rights to Joey Sinclair (Oct. 2, 2026)

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A historic matchup will take place Friday at the Centennial Regional Arena. The Bandits face the Alberni Valley Bulldogs for the first time.

It also marks the first regular season meeting between the Bandits and a team from the Coastal West Division. Last year, they played the Nanaimo Clippers in the league finals.

The majority of the Bandits’ games are against opponents from the Interior East and West Divisions.

They played the teams from the Coastal East Division in a regular-season meeting each of the last two seasons.

They will face two Coastal West Division opponents at the Silent Ice Centre in Nisku next week for the BCHL Showcase. It will be a first-ever meeting on Tuesday against the Victoria Grizzlies. Then Wednesday they face the Nanaimo Clippers in a 2025-26 British Columbia Hockey League Finals rematch.

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READ: Brooks Bandits among BCHL teams heading to Nisku for 2026 Showcase (Aug. 26, 2026)

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Following the Showcase, the Bandits host the Coastal West’s Cowichan Valley Capitals at the Centennial Regional Arena on Oct. 17, another first.

They will travel to Vancouver Island over the Halloween weekend. They will meet the Power River Kings for the first time on Oct. 30, and then will face the Grizzlies in Victoria on Oct. 31.

The Bandits played in the Alberta Junior Hockey League from 2000-2001 until midway through the 2023-24 season.

That season continued with the Bandits playing other Alberta teams set to join the BCHL the following season.

The Bandits would play the 2023-24 BCHL Champion, the Surrey Eagles, in a one-time Rocky Mountain Challenge series that the Bandits won in Game 2 of a best-of-three series.

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READ: Brooks Bandits win Rocky Mountain Challenge (June 1, 2024)

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Since the 2024-25 season, the Bandits have been a full member of the BCHL and have won back-to-back league titles.