Living the billet life
By Eric Lawson, The RiverView
Moncton Wildcats player Riley Sampson says he enjoys the experience of billeting with a Riverview family.
He lives with his teammate Dylan MacKinnon and Dylan’s parents. Dylan is from Riverview but played three seasons with the Halifax Mooseheads; when he joined the Wildcats last season for their championship run, he moved back into his childhood home here. Riley has joined him there for the 2025 – 2026 season.
Riley, whose hometown is Antigonish, Nova Scotia, says he arrived “in mid-August. If we go on a long playoff run like last year, I will be here until the end of May.”
He has billeted twice before and says he finds living with Dylan and his parents “really easy. They treat me well and the food is really good!”
Notes Dylan’s father Corie MacKinnon, “Dylan billeted during his years in Halifax, so for us this is a way of giving back.” Dylan’s mother Stephanie Clarke concurs. “We had our own experience on the other side of things, with Dylan living away. We were fortunate to have Dylan home with us last year. That was a real treat for us. We got to know some of his teammates and friends, Riley being one of them.”
Corie and Stephanie note that hockey consumes much of the players’ time – it is an eight-hour day at the rink – and they are also on the road for parts of the season, so the experience of hosting varies over the course of the year.
For their part, Riley and Dylan are excited to jump into another season following last year’s success. Asked if they think the Wildcats can make another run to the Memorial Cup, Dylan says, “definitely. We have Caleb (Desnoyers) as captain, that’s big piece of the team, there’s a really good core there to build around.”
Adds Riley, “teams might think, ‘oh, the Wildcats are rebuilding,’ but I think we are going to go for it again.”
Corie says that their experience so far serving as a billet family has given him “a new perspective on hockey. As a fan you may not realize what the players go through to play at this level, and the amount of work they put in.
“Plus, they regularly do things behind the scenes for the team, going out into the community, all on top of practice. It is interesting to see that side of things. It is also rewarding to see players develop and grow their skills.”
Stephanie adds, “we didn’t see that as much when Dylan was in Halifax. We didn’t always realize all that he was doing. But now we see that bigger picture with him home. In that way, it has come full circle for us.”
And the location in the Point Park neighbourhood of Riverview is perfect, note Dylan and Riley. “We’re two minutes from the rink so if we are running late, we can still make it in time!
Photo: Eric Lawson
