Two Flin Flon Bombers will soon be hitting the books.
Forwards Chrystopher Collin and Tyler Nyman have both inked scholarship offers with NCAA programs. Collin’s deal is with the Bowling Green Falcons, a Division I team that has produced multiple NHLers and award winners.
Collin’s scholarship was announced on May 7.
In his first full junior A season, Collin made a quick impression with the Bombers. The 19-year-old from Montreal, ended the year with 50 points in 49 games, adding 125 penalty minutes. Collin also played in multiple prospect showcases, including the CJHL Top Prospects
Game, the World Junior A Challenge and the SJHL Showcase in Regina over the past year.
Current NHLers Kevin Bieksa and Andrew Hammond are two of Bowling Green’s most well known hockey alumni, along with former NHLers Rob Blake, Ken Morrow, Nelson Emerson and Mike Liut.
Collin’s scholarship goes into effect for the 2020-21 season, leaving him two more seasons of junior eligibility.
Six former Bombers currently play NCAA Division I hockey. Alex Smith and Greyson Reitmeier play together at Michigan Tech, while Eric Sinclair and Brandon Switzer suit up for the University of Alaska-Anchorage. Joel Kocur plays for American International College and Cory Thomas is coming off his freshman season with the University of Vermont Catamounts.
Home seems to be where the heart is for outgoing Bomber Nyman.
The 20-year-old forward will play next season for the Hamline University Pipers, an NCAA Division III team based in St. Paul, Minn. The Bombers announced the signing on April 26.
In parts of two seasons with the Bombers, Nyman tallied 25 points in 65 games, racking up substantial time on the team’s penalty kill and earning a reputation as a solid defensive forward and shot blocker. After leaving the team temporarily due to injury last season, Nyman returned in time for the playoffs, where he scored one goal and two assists in eight games.
A former high school hockey standout with Circle Pines, Minn.-based Centennial High, Nyman came to Flin Flon in a trade with the AJHL’s Brooks Bandits. Nyman’s old high school is located about 25 kilometres away from the Hamline campus.
The Pipers are a part of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC), a nine-team group of small-enrollment colleges. Nyman will face off against two former Bombers in the conference – Paul Soubry plays for Augsburg College, while Mason Etter will enter his second year with the Gustavus Adolphus College Golden Gusties.
A total of 11 former Bombers played NCAA Division III hockey last season.
