As the Dauphin Kings are in a heated playoff race, the club is thrilled to announce that three Americans have commited to the program for the 2023-24 season.
Luke Swanson
Playing with Bloomington Jefferson High in the United States Minnesota High School Hockey League, Swanson comes to Dauphin with great size as he stands in at 6’3.
Luke’s grandfather was a very good player and it didn’t take Luke long to fall in love with the game as he knew when he was just 11 years old that he wanted to play at the junior level.
Here’s Doug Hedley on the signing.
“Luke joins our program with high expectations, Andy Kubas has liked him for the past few years,” said Hedley. “All of our goaltenders have played very well this season, which means they could very well get an opportunity to play at a higher level. Swanson provides our organization with some stability heading into next season.”
Current King, Nick Hatton also played at Bloomington and Kings’ prospect, Joey Kubas is playing with them right now.
Markus Olson
The 17-year-old has been on an absolute tear this year with Bagley/Fosston High, also in the Minnesota High School League. In just 25 games played, Markus has scored 37 times while adding 45 assists.
That’s an average of 3.28 points per game and with his elite skill level, he is looking forward to making his way to Dauphin to show what he can do here in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League.
“Markus is a very skilled player that can score,” offered Hedley. “He has put up tremendous numbers in high school and we’re looking forward to adding him to our group.”
Markus’ 82 points are the fourth-most in the entire state.
Karson Raymond
Standing in at 6’1, Raymond has produced three goals and five assists with St. Michael-Albertville High this year.
Karson plays a very physical game and is very mobile from the back end which has been Dauphin’s strong suit over the past couple of seasons.
“We are looking forward to working with Karson next season,” ended Hedley. “His mobility, size and physical play will fit in well with our group on the back end.”
Next up for Dauphin is a critical home-and-home with the Virden Oil Capitals this weekend with Friday’s game coming in Dauphin.