IceCaps hope wins fill the seats in final season
'We are not in Laval just yet,' coach Sylvain Lefebvre tells fans in St. John's
The American Hockey League season is nearly two weeks old but Friday will be the first time the St. John's IceCaps play on home ice at Mile One Centre.
The Montreal Canadien's farm team is currently sitting in the sixth spot in the North Division with a 2-3-1 record.
The team is looking forward to the home opener at Mile One.
"It's feels great," said Sven Andrighetto, a player nicknamed the Swiss sniper.
"It's been a long stretch on the road. Right now we are all very excited to get back here."
The talented centre will be front and centre on Friday when he is honoured as the AHL's player of the week.
Andrighetto put up three goals and three assists in the IceCaps last three games.
Friday marks the first time fans in St. John's will get to see him since last season.
"We are really excited to play in front of the amazing fans we have here," he said. "Incredible support we've had here. Really looking forward to that."
That was a sentiment echoed by coach Sylvain Lefebvre.
"We want to bring the fans back into the building," he said. "We need the fans."
This will be the last home opener for the team in St. John's before they moved to Quebec next season.
"We are here this year, we are not in Laval just yet," Lefebvre told CBC.
"We don't want the fans to think we are already gone. We are here. We have a job to do and we want to have a great season."
Game time on Friday is 7:30 NDT.