PrairieThunder scores veteran goaltender

BLOOMINGTON , Ill. – The Bloomington PrairieThunder have announced the addition of veteran goaltender Marco Emond to their 2010-11 roster.
 

Emond, 32, is entering his 13th pro season and has played in the United Hockey League, American Hockey League and the ECHL. The majority of his career has been spent in the Central Hockey League where he was a member of three championship teams – The Laredo Bucks (2004), the Colorado Eagles (2007) and the Arizona Sundogs (2008).
 
Last season, the Valleyfield, Quebec native played for Neuilly-Sur-Marne in France and then finished the year with the Tulsa Oilers.
 
Emond says that he enjoyed playing in the French Ligue Magnus but he decided not to return.
 
“I was very surprised by the quality of players the league had to offer. I feel I’ve learned a lot going over there last season; the game is much different, faster, more skills, but no hits and no fans. It didn’t feel like pro hockey to me – and not enough games with only 26 regular season games…” 
 
When asked about what drew him to the PrairieThunder, Emond stated that he considered Europe again but decided the best place for him was back in the CHL.
 
“The AHL and ECHL are leagues for younger players. Coming in at my 13th season, I felt those two leagues were out of the picture for me. With the merger of IHL/CHL, I thought I needed to get back into the CHL and Bloomington was one of my top picks…I think it’ll be nice to play against some of the old UHL teams such as Quad City and Fort Wayne.”
 
Emond is looking forward to playing at the US Cellular Coliseum and believes that the PrairieThunder have a lot of potential this season.
 
“Bloomington is a nice area, it has a nice arena; the core players that were signed were guys that I thought had good experience, and we’re definitely championship-caliber players. Even though I have myself moved a lot from team to team in my earlier years to get exposure in hopes to move up, I thought it was nice to see guys that come back to the team year after year. To me it means that the team has a good organization and the guys are happy and believe in themselves.”
 
Emond also looks forward to playing with some familiar faces.
“I know Craig MacDonald from playing against him while I was in Colorado and Arizona, and also because he went to Elmira College – I was member of the Elmira Jackals (UHL) at the time. I’ve seen John Snowden also, while he was in Amarillo. They are both very talented players and from talking to John a bit this summer, I know he is dedicated to win and so am I.”
 
Along with Emond, the PrairieThunder have signed veteran defenseman Jamie Lovell who played the past three seasons for the IHL’s Port Huron Icehawks. “The addition of both Marco Emond and Jamie Lovell gives us two players with a lot of professional experience at this level,” PrairieThunder Head Coach Jason Christie said. “Both players should bring leadership to our locker room and their past playoff experience is invaluable.” The PrairieThunder previously re-signed their two leading scorers from last season, Craig Macdonald and Jon Booras. John Snowden and Brett Holmberg have also re-signed and defensemen Shaun Arvai was recently added. In addition, winger Matt McIlvane has signed a dual contract with the PrairieThunder and the Peoria Rivermen (AHL).
 
The Prairie Thunder will open their 2010-11 campaign on Saturday, October 16th against the Missouri Mavericks. The home opener at the US Cellular Coliseum will be held six days later when the Odessa Jackalopes come to town.
 
Contact the author at carissa.fatheree@prohockeynews.com
Contact the photographer at les.stockton@prohockeynews.com