The Alberni Valley Bulldogs are excited to announce two additions to their roster; 2005 born Forward Juan Copeland and 2007 born Defenceman Brenden Espenell.
Copeland is 19 years old and is from Fowlerville, Michigan. The 5’11 174 pound Forward played last season with the Lincoln Stars in the USHL where he scored 5 goals and added 15 assists for 20 points. Prior to that, he played 119 games in the Ontario Hockey League with the Niagra IceDogs and London Knights, scoring 22 goals and adding 22 assists for 44 points.
Espenell is 17 years old and is from Winnipeg, Manitoba. The 6’2 185 pound Defenceman is committed to Merrimack College, and played last season with the Sioux Falls Power in the Tier 1 Elite Hockey League. In 76 regular season and playoff games he scored 18 goals and added 31 assists for 49 points.
On these additions to the roster, Bulldogs Head Coach and General Manager Joe Martin commented: “We believe that these moves benefit our program both immediately, and in the future. Juan is an experienced player that has proven that he can score. We’re confident that if he continues to play a 200 foot game that’ll he’ll excel with us. Brenden is a big young player that we know will only grow with our team while being an important piece on our back end”
As a response to these additions the Bulldogs have released Alexi Grégoire and Phillipe LaLonde, who will join the North American Hockey League’s El Paso Rhinos and Janesville Jets respectively.
Martin commented on the moves: “Alexi is a talented player that we see great potential in. We feel that with health coming back to our line up that he’ll benefit from more more ice time than we can give him. Phil is a great teammate and was well-liked within our dressing room, and was a hard player to let go. With our depth we believe he was in a tough spot to play in the role he needs to develop for the NCAA level”
The Bulldogs would like to thank Alexi and Phillipe for their commitment to the organization and the community, and wish them nothing but success with their new teams, and throughout their careers.
