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Schmidt (Right) celebrates a goal this past season with the Mustangs. (Facebook/Broad Leaf Media)
Schmidt Commits

‘I have to give Melfort a lot of credit’: Schmidt commits to MacEwan University

Sep 4, 2019 | 11:35 AM

Another graduate from the 2018/2019 Melfort Mustangs has found himself a post-secondary home for the 2019/2020 hockey season.

Forward Colin Schmidt has committed to play for the MacEwan University Griffins in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) for this coming season.

Schmidt, out of Spruce Grove, Alberta said the choice to go to MacEwan was a good one.

“Just the program, how good it is,” Schmidt said. “And how it’s going to go USports next year, that was a big factor and close to home also, that’ll be nice.”

With the Griffins moving to USports for 2020/2021, Schmidt will be playing against teams like the University of Saskatchewan, and University of Regina, among others.

Schmidt was brought to Melfort just prior to the 2017/2018 season from the Camrose Kodiaks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) where he had 16 points in 52 games as a rookie. In his second junior season, first with the Mustangs, the big winger scored 23 goals and added 16 assists over 53 regular season games. He finished second on the team in goals that season. The Mustangs lost in five games in the first round of playoffs that season and Schmidt had three points in that series.

“I have to give Melfort a lot of credit for my development throughout the years,” Schmidt told northeastNOW. “I feel like I found my confidence and everything.”

He improved on his numbers in his 20-year-old season, tallying 26 goals and 26 assists in 55 games during the regular season. His goal totals were good for third on the team behind Justin Ball and Carson Albrecht. Schmidt was also a major cog in the Mustangs run to the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) finals, scoring five times and adding five assists in 16 games. Schmidt said there were lots of good memories while playing in Melfort.

“The most memorable was probably going to the finals with the core group of guys we had going into my second year there,” he said. “Even though they were going into their third, but it felt like I had been there my whole three years of junior.”

In a release, Mustangs Head Coach and General Manager Trevor Blevins had high praise for Schmidt.

“Colin was a hard working hockey player,” Blevins said. “He was a guy who showed up each and every day with a high compete level.”

Schmidt said he is looking forward to the competition and the intensity of university level hockey. Off the ice, Schmidt is set to take open studies this year, but wants to move into finance next year.

Schmidt’s commitment to MacEwan makes it seven players from the 2018/2019 team to commit to a post-secondary hockey program.

mat.barrett@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @matbarrett6

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