Fort McMurray, AB (May 4, 2018) – For the second time in as many weeks, a Fort McMurray Oil Baron has committed to the NAIT Ooks. Curits Roach will join the team this fall.
“As a coaching staff, we're very happy for Curtis,” said Oil Barons Head Coach Tom Keca.
“Curtis has been one of our go-to guys for the past couple of years and has a tremendous amount of skill,” added Keca. “He's a two-way defenceman that can play a shut down role, but also chip in on the score sheet. While he missed some time due to injury this year, he was a force for us down the stretch.”
Roach, 20, joined the Oil Barons at the start of the 2016/17 AJHL season in a trade with the Flin Flon Bombers. Over two seasons, Roach appeared in 96 games with the Oil Barons, recording an impressive 92 points (20 goals, 72 assists) in that span.
While Roach was limited to 38 games this season due to injury, he still averaged 1.2 points per game with 44 points. During Roach's time in Fort McMurray, he was also named to the AJHL's North Division All-League Team in each of the past two seasons.
Heading to NAIT to study business administration, Roach joins teammates Shane Fraser and Brandon Ralph and is the third Oil Baron to commit to the program in the past two seasons.
Roach also becomes the seventh Oil Baron to commit to a post secondary institution this year, joining Fraser, Will Conley (Holy Cross, NCAA), Merritt Oszytko (RIT, NCAA), Eric Szudor (Alaska-Anchorage, NCAA), Coy Prevost (Windsor, USPORTS) and JC Thivierge (UOIT, USPORTS).
For more information, please contact:
Tom Keca, Head Coach and General Manager
Phone: (780) 881- 3108
Email: coach@oilbarons.com