An Orillia native will be playing for his hometown team.
The Orillia Terriers of the PJHL announced on Wednesday that they have signed former Barrie Colt forward Kyle Heitzner.
The 19-year-old played 5 games for the Mississauga Steelheads of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) this season after being acquired from the Colts on September 23rd.
Heitzner had 10 goals and 20 points in 115 OHL games in parts of 3 seasons.
Terriers General Manager Andrew McDonald says Heitzner cleared OHL waivers just before 5 Wednesday afternoon.
He says they sent the paperwork to the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) and they are just waiting to hear back.
McDonald says he can't say enough of how happy both he and the team are to have Heitzner in their line up.
He says Heitzner was playing hockey so he is already in game shape and is expected to be on the team's top line.
McDonald says Heitzner is a natural-born leader and will be a huge part of the Terriers organization.
He says Heitzner was at the team's practice on Tuesday and delivered a passionate speech to the team afterwards.
Heitzner is expected to be in the line up this Friday when the Terriers are on the road in Midland to play the Flyers.
Click on audio to hear the entire interview with Andrew McDonald where he also talks about the team's performance over the weekend, and how the team will handle the issue of marijuana use now that it is legal in Canada.
