Missouri Mavericks 2010-11 Roster

Position: Defenseman

Shoots: Right

Born: April 2, 1985

Hometown: Pekin, Illinois

Height: 6-2

Weight: 205

Ruwe, 25 (4/2/85), just two days older than Sellan, is entering his second season professionally. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound defenseman played his rookie season last year with the International Hockey League’s (IHL) Bloomington PrairieThunder. In 71 games, he had 11 points on three goals and eight assists and contributed 87 penalty minutes. Prior to turning pro, the Pekin, Illinois native played four seasons at Nichols College where he had 20 goals and 77 assists in 110 games. Ruwe competed in six games for the Wichita Thunder immediately following his senior year in 2009 and had a goal and 12 penalty minutes. He is the fourth defenseman signed by the Mavericks.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Left

Born: July 23, 1988

Hometown: Sydney, Nova Scotia

Height: 5-11

Weight: 186

Sparling, 22 (7/23/88), played the 2009-10 at Saint Francis Xavier University where he finished with 11 points (2-9=11) in 25 games played. Prior to playing at St. Francis, the Sydney, Nova Scotia native played four seasons with the Saint John Sea Dogs of the QMJHL. The 5-foot-11, 186-pound forward finished with 217 points (83-134=217) in 247 games played over four seasons and is the all-time leading scoring in Sea Dogs history.

Position: Defenseman

Shoots: Right

Born: March 30, 1984

Hometown: Cleveland Heights, Ohio

Height: 5-11

Weight: 190

Lavender, 26 (3/30/84), also returns for his second season with the Mavericks. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound defenseman competed in 49 games for the Mavericks as a rookie last season and finished with seven points on two goals and five assists. Prior to playing professionally, the Cleveland Heights, Ohio native played four seasons at Castleton College where he recorded 35 points (8-27=35) in 97 games played.

Position: Defenseman

Shoots: Left

Born: May 28, 1985

Hometown: Orleans, Ontario

Height: 6-2

Weight: 215

Wakita, 24 (5/28/85), is also entering his rookie season. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound defenseman finished a four-year career at Union College (NCAA) with three goals and eight assists in 108 games to go along with 150 penalty minutes. The Campbell River, British Columbia native was also an ECACHL All-Academic selection for his freshman and sophomore seasons. Prior to playing at Union, Wakita played in 171 games for the Powell River Kings of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) and recorded 61 points (11-50=61) and 472 penalty minutes in 172 games played. As captain for the River Kings during the 2005-06 season, Wakita was named the Coastal Conference Defenseman of the Year and First Team All-Star with 28 points (8-20=28) and 180 penalty minutes in 60 games.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Right

Born: June 17, 1987

Hometown: Granby, Quebec

Height: 5-9

Weight: 190

Lafrance, 22 (6/17/87), joined the Mavericks in February of 2010 and played in the team’s final 21 games. The Granby, Quebec native finished with nearly a point per game with Missouri with 20 points (8-12=20) including six multiple-point games, and three game-winning goals. The 5-foot-9, 190-pound forward split time between the ECHL’s Stockton Thunder and Johnstown Chiefs during his rookie season where he finished with 33 points (11-22=33) in 60 games. Prior to turning pro, Lafrance played four seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) with the Victoriaville Tigres where he scored 40-plus goals in each of his final two seasons. In his four-years, he accumulated 229 points (112-117=229) in 230 games played in the QMJHL.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Left

Born: September 2, 1988

Hometown: Belleville, ON

Height: 5-7

Weight: 181

Broekema, 22 (9/2/88), competed for a spot in the Mavericks’ training camp at the First Annual Free Agent Showcase this past weekend. A total of 29 players entered the Free Agent Showcase and Broekema stood above the rest for his chance to make the 2010-11 roster. The Belleville, Ontario native had 40 points (17-23=40) in 47 games played with the Pickering Panthers (OJHL) in 2008-09.

Position: Defenseman

Shoots: Left

Born: September 4, 1979

Hometown: Winnipeg, Manitoba

Height: 6-2

Weight: 210

Forsyth, 30 (9/4/79), was the 12th player signed by the Mavericks for the 2010-11 season. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound defenseman finished the 2009-10 season with the Mavericks playing in just seven games in the regular season, and he played in all seven of the Mavericks’ playoff games. The Winnipeg, Manitoba native is entering his seventh professional season and has played in four different pro leagues. Forsyth has played a total of 319 professional games with 96 points (20-76=96) and 584 penalty minutes overall. In 63 games in the CHL with the Wichita Thunder and Mavericks, he has 14 points on two goals and 12 assists and 127 penalty minutes. Forsyth won the Kelly Cup Championship in 2007 with the ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads. Prior to turning pro he played for the University of Manitoba for four seasons where he had 67 points (20-47=67) and 354 penalty minutes.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Right

Born: May 3, 1984

Hometown: Caroline, Alberta

Height: 5-11

Weight: 180

Vandermeer, 26 (5/3/84), was a member of the Mavericks inaugural team and is entering his sixth season professionally. The Caroline, Alberta native has played the previous four seasons in the CHL with Amarillo, Oklahoma City and Missouri. In 227 games in the CHL, the 5-foot-11, 180-pound forward has 252 points on 115 goals and 137 assists. Vandermeer had three consecutive 30-plus goal seasons in his first three seasons in the CHL including a career-high 37 goals in the 2006-07 season with the Amarillo Gorillas. He was second on the Mavericks roster in scoring until an injury midway through last season that kept him off the bench for 24 games.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Left

Born: August 8, 1984

Hometown: Kelowna, British Columbia

Height: 6-3

Weight: 220

Guercio, 26 (8/8/84), is a 6-foot-3, 220-pound forward from Kelowna, British Columbia enters his rookie season with the Mavericks. Guercio most recently played for South Alberta Institute of Technology where he averaged over a point per game with 28 points (18-10=18) in 27 games to go along with 97 penalty minutes.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Right

Born: April 3, 1980

Hometown: Waterloo, Ontario

Height: 6-0

Weight: 190

Watson, 30 (4/3/80), enters his second season with the Mavericks and fifth overall in the CHL. The Waterloo, Ontario native had 20-plus goals in each of his first three seasons as a pro including a career-high 24 in his rookie season. He has been among the top five scorers on every team he has played for in his first four pro seasons. The 6-foot-0, 190-pound forward finished with 38 points (10-28=38) in 63 games with Missouri last season, and after a slow start, Watson had 18 points (4-14=18) in his final 24 games. The Mavericks were 21-6-3 in games that Watson scored at least one point.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Left

Born: April 6, 1985

Hometown: Vanderhoof, British Columbia

Height: 6-3

Weight: 205

Knowles, 25 (4/6/85), is the only non-returning player in this group of signings. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound forward will enter his rookie season with the Mavericks in 2010-11. The Vanderhoof, British Columbia native played the previous four seasons with the University of Guelph in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) league. He finished with 62 points (30-32=62) and 274 penalty minutes in 98 career games with the Gryphons. Prior to playing collegiately, Knowles played a pair of seasons with the Victoria Salsa of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) where he had 12 goals, seven assists and 217 penalty minutes in 80 games.

Position: Forward/Defenseman

Shoots: Left

Born: July 16, 1983

Hometown: Chesterfield, Missouri

Height: 5-10

Weight: 175

Pallardy, 26 (7/16/83), is playing in his third season for coach Hillman and second in a Mavericks sweater. The Chesterfield, Missouri native played in 61 games for Missouri last season (fourth most) and finished with 18 points on four goals and 14 assists. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound forward also played defense during the Mavericks inaugural season when the team was hampered by injuries. Prior to joining the Mavericks, Pallardy played for Coach Hillman in the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) for the Knoxville Ice Bears for one season.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Right

Born: March 1, 1978

Hometown: Middleton, Nova Scotia

Height: 6-3

Weight: 235

Lewis, 32 (3/1/78), is entering his 12th professional season and second with the Mavericks.  The Middleton, Nova Scotia native finished second in the CHL with 252 penalty minutes during Mavericks inaugural season.  Starting on December 15, 2009, the 6-foot-3, 235-pound forward was named Captain of the Mavericks, a title he held for the remainder of the 2008-09 season.  In total, he has played in 652 games in his professional career with 268 points (116-152=268) and 2,311 penalty minutes.  Prior to joining the Mavericks, Lewis played 166 games in the American Hockey League and 230 in the ECHL.  He had a career-high 21 goals and 39 points with the Columbus Cottonmouths in 2003-04.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Right

Born: February 25, 1989

Hometown: Stewiacke, Nova Scotia

Height: 5-8

Weight: 163

Brenton, 21 (2/25/89), comes from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) where he played the previous four seasons and final two seasons with the Montreal Juniors. In 265 games in the QMJHL, the Stewiacke, Nova Scotia native finished with 40 goals and 69 assists for 109 points and 126 penalty minutes.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Left

Born: April 4, 1985

Hometown: Montreal, Quebec

Height: 5-11

Weight: 200

Sellan, 25 (4/4/85), enters his second season with the Mavericks and fifth overall in the CHL. The Montreal, Quebec native battled injuries in his first season with Missouri and finished with 23 points (12-11=23) in 43 games. Prior to the 2009-10 season, Sellan played for the Arizona Sundogs for three seasons and helped claim a President’s Cup Championship in 2008. The 5-foot-11, 200-pound forward has averaged over 20 goals in his first four seasons with a total of 85 goals. Overall, he has 147 points (85-62=147) in 225 games.

Position: Goaltender

Catches: Right

Born: January 18, 1984

Hometown: Calgary, Alberta

Height: 5-10

Weight: 180

Festa, 26 (1/18/84), joined the Mavericks halfway through the team’s inaugural season. The Calgary, Alberta native played in 13 games with Missouri and finished with a 2.88 goals-against average and .906 save percentage. Prior to turning pro, the 5-foot-10, 175-pound goaltender played four seasons for the University of British Columbia where he accumulated nearly 4,000 minutes and finished with a 33-27-6 record and a .910 save percentage. Festa also played four seasons of junior hockey in the Western Hockey League (WHL) for four different teams and totaled over 7,300 minutes, a .900 save percentage and 2.82 goals-against average.

Position: Goaltender

Catches: Left

Born: May 30, 1987

Hometown: Crystal Lake, Illinois

Height: 6-0

Weight: 172

The Mavericks added rookie goaltender Bobby Jarosz. The Crystal Lake, Illinois native played the past three seasons with Michigan State University (NCAA). In his final season, the 6-foot-0, 172-pound netminder finished 4-3-1 with a 2.34 goals-against average and .914 save percentage. After his collegiate career ended, Jarosz played one game with the ECHL’s Wheeling Nailers last season and stopped 21 of 22 shots in his first professionally victory.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Right

Born: January 28, 1984

Hometown: Fox Lake, Wisconsin

Height: 5-11

Weight: 190

Sirota, 26 (1/28/84), finished second on the Mavericks in scoring as a rookie last season with 45 points (19-26=45). The Fox Lake, Wisconsin native was also a finalist for Rookie of the Year in the CHL after finishing third among all rookies in scoring. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound forward missed just two games with the Mavericks last season and led the team with a +5 rating.

Position: Goaltender

Catches: Left

Born: December 10, 1985

Hometown: Sherwood Park, Alberta

Height: 6-0

Weight: 170

Nolan, 24 (12/10/85), enters his second pro season having played for the IHL’s Flint Generals last season. He is the third goaltender signed by the Mavericks this off-season joining Gerry Festa and Bobby Jarosz. The Sherwood Park, Alberta native played in 49 games last season for the Generals with a 19-22-4 record, 2.89 goals-against average and .912 save percentage. Nolan also backstopped his team to the Turner Cup Finals where he had a .918 save percentage in 11 playoff games. Prior to turning pro, the 6-foot-0, 170-pound goaltender played four seasons at Michigan Tech.

Position: Defenseman

Shoots: Left

Born: January 28, 1984

Hometown: Lasalle, Quebec

Height: 6-3

Weight: 211

D’Amour, 26 (1/28/84), enters his seventh professional season. The 6-foot-3, 221-pound defenseman was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the third round (88th overall) of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft. Overall, D’Amour has played 267 games professionally in six different leagues with 111 points (37-74=111) and 521 penalty minutes in his career. The Lasalle, Quebec native had his best season as a pro last year when he had career highs in goals (13), assists (20), points (33) and penalty minutes (165) for the Nottingham Panthers (EIHL).

Position: Forward

Shoots: Left

Born: October 3, 1982

Hometown: Montreal, Quebec

Height: 5-10

Weight: 195

Filion, 27 (10/3/82), fills the second veteran spot on the Mavericks roster and is entering his eighth professional season. The Montreal, Quebec native played the previous two seasons in the ECHL with the Victoria Salmon Kings where he accounted for 24 goals and 71 assists in 132 games. Before joining Victoria, the 5-foot-10, 195-pound center played four seasons with ECHL Alaska. For his Aces’ career he participated in 277 regular season games collecting 208 points (69-139=208) and picking up 246 minutes in penalties. In 60 career Kelly Cup playoff games with Alaska, Filion has notched 16 goals and 26 assists for 42 points. He was also a member of the Aces 2005-06 Championship team. His professional career began in the UHL with the Richmond Riverdogs during the 2003-04 season. He contributed nine goals and 23 assists for 32 points in 66 contests.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Right

Born: April 6, 1985

Hometown: Norway House, Manitoba

Height: 6-0

Weight: 195

Stevens, 20 (11/30/89), is the youngest player to sign with the Mavericks to date. The Norway House, Manitoba native played the previous four seasons with the Swan Valley Stampeders of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL). The 6-foot-0, 195-pound forward averaged well over a point per contest with the Stampeders with 224 points (79-145=224) in 190 games played. Stevens also has 442 penalty minutes and has over 160 in each of his last two seasons.

Position: Defenseman

Shoots: Left

Born: January 24, 1988

Hometown: Orleans, Ontario

Height: 6-3

Weight: 195

Mifflen, 22 (1/24/88), is entering his rookie season, however he played two games for the Mavericks during the 2010 playoffs as an amateur. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound defenseman is the first blue-liner to sign with the Mavericks for the 2010-11 season. Prior to coming to Missouri, the Orleans, Ontario native played one season with Carleton University where he led all defensemen on his team with 16 points (7-9=16) in 28 games. Mifflen played three seasons in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) with three different teams and totaled 42 points (11-31=42) and 198 penalty minutes in 152 games played.

Position: Forward

Shoots: Left

Born: November 8, 1980

Hometown: Roseville, Minnesota

Height: 5-11

Weight: 195

Hammond, 29 (9/8/80), enters his sixth professional season and second with the Mavericks. The Roseville, Minnesota native finished with 28 points (11-17=28) in 59 games during Missouri’s inaugural season. He was an integral part in the Mavericks’ success in the playoffs and led the team with five goals including two on the power play. In five seasons as a pro, the 5-foot-11, 195-pound forward has 144 points (63-81=144) in 258 games in the CHL, ECHL and Germany.