On Tuesday May 15th it became public knowledge that Kamloops’ 1st round pick in 2016 had chosen to play his 17 yr old season with the Penticton Vees of the BCHL. This decision will allow Massimo to pursue his NCAA aspirations.
Prospect Massimo Rizzo has informed the Kamloops Blazers he will pursue an NCAA scholarship, returning to Penticton (BCHL) for next season.
"Massimo is a good student and he wants to try the NCAA route," said dad Remi Rizzo in a message to @RadioNLNews sports. pic.twitter.com/aougP0q0TU— Jon Keen (@JonKeenNLSports) May 15, 2018
Maybe not surprisingly, the Kamloops Blazers were not the source of the release. The broadcast rights holder, Radio NL made the release early this morning. Rizzo is the first first round draft pick to not play for the club since 2012’s 19th overall Jayden Halbgewachs. Later on in the day, the Vees announced that Rizzo would be the team’s captain for the upcoming 2018-19 season.
NEWS: Massimo Rizzo (@MassimoRizzo28) has been named the Vees captain for the 2018-19 season. Full release and details to follow. pic.twitter.com/CUAMmgTh6z
— Penticton Vees (@PentictonVees) May 15, 2018
This decision could somewhat impact the ability of the Blazers to field a competitive team in 2020, and hinder their hopes of landing the Memorial Cup.
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Also on Tuesday May 15th the Kamloops city council approved a request from the Blazers to build a new type of seating called “Loge” seating. This will take a portion of the 300 level seats, of which there are currently 90, out and replace them with a upscale lounge type of area.
The seating will be paid for, in full, by the Hockey Club which allow Gaglardi and Co. to pull in 100% of the ticket revenue for the first 10 years. The City will retain the rights to sell food and beverage in the area.
The Blazers now join Prince George as the only 2 teams in the BC division who have introduced Loge seating, and they plan for this to be ready for the beginning of this season.
