A pair of former Halifax Mooseheads captains are taking their talents to England.
Forwards Maxime Fortier and Cameron Critchlow both signed with the Manchester Storm of Britain's Elite Ice Hockey League within 24 hours of each other on the weekend. The signings are meant to boost the Storm's chances in the league's upcoming Elite Series, a five-week mini-series set to open on Saturday. Four teams will compete in a 12-game regular season, followed by a semifinal and final.
Critchlow was the captain of the Mooseheads in his final year of major junior in 2011-12. Fortier spent four full seasons in Halifax, capped by his 20-year-old season in 2017-18 when he wore the C.
Critchlow, 29, just wrapped up his season with the ECHL's Jacksonville IceMen, where he had five points in 22 games. He also played for Jacksonville from 2017 to 2019 before spending the 2019-20 season in Manchester.
Manchester Storm are delighted to welcome back forward Cameron Critchlow, most recently of the Jacksonville Icemen in the @ECHL! Read more 👇
— Manchester Storm | #2021EliteSeries (@Mcr_Storm) March 26, 2021
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Have we got that #FridayFeeling yet!? ⛈️#WeAreStorm | #Manchester pic.twitter.com/pVZDHwCmDC
“Critch was another guy we had signed for the 2020-21 season and I know how excited he is to be back in Manchester," Storm head coach Ryan Finnerty said in a news release. "He is an excellent penalty killer, a great guy to have in the locker room and rounds out our vastly experienced forward group.
"He is another player we are looking to build our franchise around in the coming years and his loyalty to the shirt is something I know the fans already love.”
Fortier was with the Bratislava Capitals in the Slovakian professional league this year after splitting the previous two seasons between the AHL's Cleveland Monsters and the IceMen.
“You only have to look through his junior career and the interest of a handful of NHL teams to understand how talented this guy is going forward," Finnerty said. "I know he has worked under a great coach in Peter Draisaitl in Europe already and has shared the locker with a few of our squad already.
"We are looking for Maxime to bring some speed, firepower and scoring to our forward lines. He has a great opportunity to earn himself a contract for next season and get to grips with British hockey.”