Gens Head Coach and the Cochrane Generals are pumped to take to the ice in their season opener this Saturday, Sept. 29 at the Cochrane Arena.

The town's older rink on 4th Ave. by Cochrane High is their new home and their first regular-season opponents will be the Mountainview Colts, of the north division of the Heritage Junior Hockey League (HJHL).

McMillan says he's expecting the Colts to bring their physical play to the rink and the Gens will be ready.

"They're a grinding hockey team," says McMillan. "They had their roster basically finalized when we played our exhibition game. They only had two or three cuts so other than that we shouldn't expect anything surprising."

First, though, there's an opening ceremony that will include an official puck drop by a former NHL player.

"We're going to have a puck drop and I'm not going to tell you who it is but it's a hometown guy who played a few games in the NHL."

First, though, they'll be a little pizzazz used to introduce the Gens roster.

"We're trying to make it as entertaining for the fans as it is for the guys coming out."

The Gens are carrying a roster of 27 that will need to be pared down to 25 by December. It follows extensive tryouts in the club's summer camp and pre-season exhibition games.

Blackfalds and Cochrane are the last teams to start their AJHL season. Others teams started as early as mid-September and already rivals Okotoks and High River have four games under their belt.

The Lomond Lakers are a new addition to the south division, returning it to seven teams after Banff pulled the plug last season. Lomond is located about 50 km east of Vulcan.

This is the Gens only game of the weekend but next week they play three back-to-back games, Oct. 5-7. The Oct. 6 game is at home to the Stettler Lightning and they're on the road to face Airdrie on Oct.5 and Coaldale on Oct. 7.

Aab, Sambrook sharing Captain's duties

The team has recently named its captains and alternate captains after Colton Wong moved north to work.

The captaincy is being shared by veterans Brandon Aab and Chis Sambrook in a unique arrangement. Aab will be wearing the 'C' for home games and Sambrook takes on the responsibility of the road. When they're not wearing the 'C', they'll be wearing the 'A'.

It may be unique to have two captains, but McMillan believed it was important to acknowledge the hard work and leadership shown by the pair.

Also representing the team on the ice are alternate captains Jordan Fisher and Harry Osler.

Assistant Coach named

The search has ended for a new assistant coach.

The team has named Bryan Polmear to the coaching staff and he's a welcomed addition.

This is Polmear's first coaching assign since he finished his junior career with the Whitefish Wolverines of the Western States Hockey League.

"It's my first year coaching. I was done playing junior hockey a couple of years ago and it's exciting to be back," says Polmear.