Central grad Evan Panzer to compete in Centennial Cup

May 1—GRAND FORKS — Evan Panzer has never been anywhere close to Prince Edward Island.

But the Grand Forks Central grad has a good reason to visit next week.

Panzer and the Niverville Nighthawks won the Manitoba Junior Hockey League's Turnbull Cup last week and will get an automatic berth into the Centennial Cup, which is Canada's Junior A national championship.

The Centennial Cup is scheduled from May 7-17 in Summerside, Prince Edward Island.

It features nine Junior A champions from across Canada — Niverville, Flin Flon (SJHL), Canmore (AJHL), Thunder Bay (SIJHL), Rockland (CCHL), Longueuil Collège-Français (LHJAAAQ), Greater Sudbury (NOJHL), Truro (MHL) and Toronto (OJHL) — and the host, Summerside Western Capitals.

The Calgary Canucks of the AJHL are the defending champions.

"It's going to be an awesome experience," Panzer said. "I've never been anywhere out East, and going with this group of guys, is awesome. I think we're going to have a lot of fun. We're going to try to win the whole thing, but I think it's just going to be a good experience."

Niverville has been dominant this season.

The Nighthawks went 51-6-1 during the regular season, then went 12-1 in the playoffs en route to winning the Turnbull Cup.

Niverville swept Virden, which features Grand Forks Red River grad Tyson Ulmer, in the finals.

Panzer had six goals and 12 points in 13 playoff games. He scored twice in the championship-clincher.

"It was unbelievable," Panzer said. "All the guys that came back after losing (in the first round) last year, we all wanted it badly. To have a lot of those guys back, it was a lot of fun."

Panzer played three seasons of varsity for Central from 2022-24. The Knights reached the state final during Panzer's senior season.

Last season, he scored six goals and tallied 16 points in 44 games as a rookie for Niverville.

His production jumped significantly this season. He tallied 55 points in 57 regular-season games.

"I feel like I played pretty well this year," Panzer said. "I really felt good, especially from last year, moving up and playing in a higher role. That was good for me. Winning the championship has been awesome. We've played so well as a team all year."

They've got one stop left — Summerside, P.E.I.

The Nighthawks open against the hosts on Thursday night. They also play Thunder Bay on May 9, Canmore on May 12 and Rockland on May 13.

"We did a lot of film this year, studying teams and learning their power plays and breakouts," Panzer said. "We'll still do a little bit of that, but you don't know as much about the teams you're playing. It's going to be a little bit of a challenge."