All-star defender back in Elliot Lake


By
August 20, 2015

Standout defenceman Nathan Campbell will be returning to the Elliot Lake Wildcats of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League for his final season of eligibility, HockeyNewsNorth.com has confirmed.

The 6-foot, 170-pound defender put up spectacular numbers from his blueline position for Elliot Lake in 2014-2015 with 23 goals, 34 assists, 57 points in 63 games, regular season and playoffs included.

Campbell, who hails from Toronto, made the NOJHL’s second all-star team for his efforts last season.

Both Wildcats general manager Todd Stencill and head coach Nathan Hewitt have continued high expectations for Campbell in 2015-2016.

“Nathan was a workhorse for us last year and we are expecting the same again this year,” Stencill said evenly.

“There aren’t too many D that can skate and put up points as well as Nathan does. He’ll be a big part of our team moving forward,” added Hewitt.

Campbell becomes the latest impact player to commit to return to Elliot Lake for the 2015-2016 season.

As HockeyNewsNorth.com reported earlier, six of the Wildcats top nine forwards from the 2014-2015 campaign will be returning to the second-year, NOJHL team in 2015-2016.

Leading the charge of veteran forwards headed back Elliot Lake are three players who combined for more than 90 goals and 240-plus points in 2014-2015, regular season and playoffs included.

The troika of high-scoring returnees features Cole Hepler, Adam Baxter and Spencer MacLean. Hepler had 33 goals, 52 assists, 85 points in 2014-2015 while Baxter had 31-53-84 numbers and MacLean produced 31-41-72 totals.

The three other returning forwards also had good showings for the Wildcats in 2014-2015 as Alec Mackenzie posted 11-40-51 statistics followed by Jason Wilson with 13-15-28 totals and Liam Blais with 16-11-27 numbers.

As a first-year entry in 2014-2015, the Wildcats made it to the second round of the playoffs while finishing second in average per-game attendance in what was then a nine-team NOJHL.

Meanwhile, the Wildcats will begin official preparation for the 2015-2016 season with the opening of training camp on Monday, August 24 at Centennial Arena.

PHOTO: Nathan Campbell (24) is one of several impact players who will be returning to the Elliot Lake Wildcats for the 2015-2016 season. (Photo by Joanne Cassivi.)


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