The home of the South Shore Lumberjacks, The LCLC in Bridgewater, NS. Photo: Evan Taylor

The South Shore Lumberjacks will be heading into this season with a new outlook, spearheaded by new owner David Hinkley and President of Hockey Operations Shawn MacKenzie.

“There are hockey hearts all over the South Shore but we need to deliver a product that can capture them,” said MacKenzie.

MacKenzie believes a big part of that is having a team that is entrenched with the community. “When I got here I was surprised to see there wasn’t much of a relationship with minor hockey in the area.”.

He’s now working to rectify that, by attending minor hockey games and events where he works to build relationships. The team is planning to invite a minor team to every home game which MacKenzie hopes will bolster the atmosphere at the LCLC. “If you get twenty young kids to every game cheering and having a good time, maybe their parents or friends come or they ask to come back, that’s one of the ways we can grow the team,” said MacKenzie.

The team knows the new direction will require buy-in from the players so the team is targeting players that align with their goals. “We want players that want to play here and be in the community, we’re going to treat them well but with that, there is the expectation that you represent this organization but mostly you represent the community,” said MacKenzie.

Final preparations are now being made for the Jacks training camp which begins on August 28, and ends on August 31 with a preseason game at the LCLC against the Yarmouth Mariners.