Eagles Name Zach Biggar 31st Captain in Eagles History
The Cape Breton Eagles have named defenceman Zach Biggar team captain for the 2023-24 season.
Biggar, 20, a native of Portage, PE, enters his first full season in an Eagles jersey after being acquired from the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada at the December trade deadline last season. Biggar showed his leadership qualities from the get go as he was named Assistant Captain for the second half of the 2022-23 season.
The former 2nd round pick in the 2019 QMJHL draft (Bathurst) is a veteran of 165 QMJHL games played, while amassing 6 goals and 70 assists for 76 points.
Joining Biggar in the leadership group will be defenceman Brayden Schmitt as permanent Assistant Captain. The 19-year-old Schmitt also enters his first full season with the Eagles crest, while also coming over from the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada at the December trade deadline. Schmitt, a native of Truro, NS, has scored 6 goals and 53 assists for 59 points in 160 games played in the QMJHL.
Alongside Schmitt, Jacob Newcombe will serve as permanent Assistant Captain for the 2023-24 season. Recently diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Newcombe is a testament to strength and resiliency for the 2023-24 Cape Breton Eagles. Although he will be away from the team as he continues his treatments, Newcombe is a vital member of the Cape Breton Eagles family.
There will also be two Assistant Captains for both home and away games.
At home, defenceman Conor Shortall will once again wear the “A” on his chest in an Eagles jersey. Entering his third season in Cape Breton, Shortall, a native of St. John’s, NL, has scored 8 goals and 42 assists for 50 points in 166 games played.
Also serving as an Assistant Captain at home will be forward Cam Squires. Squires, from Charlottetown, PE, was recently drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the 4th round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft. Entering his third season in the QMJHL, Squires has amassed 46 goals and 52 assists in 131 games played.
On the road, Tomas Lavoie will wear the “A” on his chest for the first time. The former #1 overall pick in the 2022 QMJHL Draft, the Repentigny, QC-native scored 2 goals and 14 assists in 59 games played during his rookie campaign.
Joining Lavoie as a road Assistant Captain is Cameron MacDonald. MacDonald, a Hammonds Plains, NS-native, is a 20-year-old veteran of 155 games played in the QMJHL. In those 155 games, MacDonald has scored 54 goals and 53 assists as he enters his 5th QMJHL campaign. He was a 5th round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning inn the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, and has recently been invited to the Arizona Coyotes training camp in 2023. MacDonald also won the Memorial Cup with the Saint John Sea Dogs in 2022.
Join us welcoming our 2023-24 leadership group, and the rest of your Cape Breton Eagles, as we open the season on September 22nd vs the Moncton Wildcats.
