THUNDER BAY – There’s a familiar face at the Thunder Bay Chill camp this week.
Brandon Swartzendruber, the team’s all-time leading scorer, is back after a one-year absence, 14 months a father and ready to try to lead the Premier Development Club beyond the opening round of the playoffs.
There’s still plenty left in the tank, said the Colorado native on Saturday, as the team kicked off training camp at Fort William Stadium, just a few veteran faces in sight and only four weeks to get ready for the start of regular season play.
“I just love it here,” said the 32-year-old forward, who last played for the Chill in 2015.
“I hope I can just be a leader and an example and a goal-scorer, obviously – nothing different than in previous years.”
Swartzendruber, whose offensive prowess powered the Chill to their lone PDL championship in 2008, is a welcome addition up front despite being 10 years older than his rookie campaign in 2007 said coach Gio Petraglio, who spent Saturday evening assessing the available talent on this year’s squad.
After all, he did tie for the PDL lead with nine goals just two seasons ago.
“I think he’s going to have one of his best seasons,” Petraglia said, “because of the experience he got in those past years. It’s going to help us. That’s what we need up there and that’s what we were probably missing last year.”
Petraglia said the return of Swartzendruber, along with midfielder Abraham Villon, a member of the Chill in 2012 and 2013, when they went to the PDL championship game, will be a key to the team’s success in 2017.
“We think that we needed some parts of the field to be more mature, and up top is one of those areas, just like in net,” Petraglia said.
Oft-injured Sullivan Silva, one of the league’s best when healthy, welcomed Swartzendruber back with open arms.
The Brazilian, a former PDL most valuable player who scored 11 times last summer, including five in a four-game stretch to earn player of the week honours, said the American striker has built a tremendous reputation as a PDL star, a role he hopes to help enhance this summer.
“He won a championship for the club and just having him back is going to be good, especially for me, because I play beside him,” Silva said.
“Two years ago, in the beginning, we were struggling a little bit. Then we kind of got better toward the end and … we’re going to take this preseason to work (together).”
Pitch marks: The Chill will play a pair of home exhibition games against the Winnipeg Lions on May 26 and May 27, and open the regular season on the road against WSA Winnipeg on June 3. Their home opener is June 9 against Des Moines.
