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NEWS ITEM
Thursday, December 03rd, 2009
Niagara west teams shuffle rosters
Niagara west Junior C teams were busy this week, shuffling their rosters at the deadline.
The Woodstock Renegades were one of the busiest teams, making a couple of minor deals and selling off one of their top offensive players.
Mike Brilhante, who led the team in scoring two seasons ago, was sold to the Norwich Merchants last week.
Brilhante spent last season with the Southern Ontario Junior Hockey League Tavistock Braves, but returned to Woodstock this year and was third in team scoring with eight goals and 10 assists.
Woodstock made a change in goal, releasing backup Mitch Bleskie and adding Neil Pittock from the affiliate Burford Bulldogs.
Bleskie was 3-1-1 with Woodstock but had a goals against of almost four and a save percentage of .868.
Pittock won two games in five starts with Burford this season.
The Renegades also sent Tyler MacLaughlin (15GP, 1G, 1A) to the SOJHL Bulldogs and
added veteran forward Shane Reinhart.
In 18 games with Fergus of the Georgian Bay Mid-Ontario Junior C League, Reinhart had four goals, 11 assists and 44 penalty minutes.
He compiled 26 goals, 33 assists and 274 penalty minutes in 82 career games with Fergus.
Elsewhere, the Merchants, in addition to acquiring Brilhante, released overage forward Justin Bremner.
The 21-year-old had four goals and four assists in 16 games this season.
The Mounties were busy at the cutdown deadline, acquiring Rob Mercer from the Kitchener Dutchmen and sending Shayne Wojteczko to the SOJHL St. George Dukes.
Mercer comes to the Mounties looking to rebound after an injury-prone season.
"Rob is a great individual," Paris general manager Tim Macdonald said on the team's web-site. "I've known him for seven years and he's a heck of a hockey player too. "We're hoping he makes an immediate impact in the room and on the ice."
Wojteczko goes to the Dukes after a season-and-a-half with the Mounties.
"Shayne is a neat kid but for whatever reason it just didn't work out for him here in Paris," Macdonald said. "Hopefully he'll get a better opportunity to show what he can do in St. George. We wish him luck."
The team released three players to get under the limit.
In New Hamburg, the Firebirds released goalie Jordan Bauman, sent Kyle Debus to the SOJHL Ayr Centennials and traded Ken Collingridge to his hometown of Mount Forest in the Western Junior C loop.
(Source Sentinel-Review)
