After conquering junior hockey in the 2025/2026 with an OHL Championship and a Memorial Cup, the Kitchener Rangers have returned to the ice in preparation to defend their crowns. The 2026/2027 season has kicked off with a private training camp and several split-squad exhibitions that were open to the public. With preseason quickly approaching, Jeff Kyrzakos, the Rangers’ new head coach announced earlier this summer, wants to hit the ground running with his renewed squad. “Great getting to see some of our young guys and draft picks come in, get acclimatized, and get their feet under them,” he said. “We’re excited to see what they have in training camp and exhibition season.” Several players from the championship side have moved onto their next step of their hockey careers, such as Sam O’Reilly, Dylan Edwards, Cameron Reid, and Christian Kirsch. Even with the roster losses, championship experience remains in the building, with players like defenceman Alexander Bilecki looking to step into a new role with the team. “Just helping out the young guys… I’ve been in their shoes, I know what they’re going through, they may be uncomfortable, and helping them succeed,” he told CTV News. Kitchener’s new bench boss backed his defenceman’s sentiment, hoping for the “Ranger way” to be passed down sooner than later. “Lots of turnover, but we do have a decent amount of guys coming back that can hopefully carry the load and show the new guys how we want to play,” Kyrzakos explained. Kyrzakos as hired following former head coach Jussi Ahokas leaving to become head coach of the AHL’s Colorado Eagles, the affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche. Just because a new guard is in doesn’t mean the wheel, or the puck, needs to be reinvented, according to Kyrzakos. “I think nothing changes for us in terms of how we want to play and how we want to approach hockey games,” he said. “Obviously, we won last year, but I think the Kitchener Rangers are always a team that teams are coming in here gunning for and trying to beat, so our approach doesn’t change.” The message seemed to have resonated with the squad, as Bilecki agreed that they were still going to be hunters, even if they were going to be the hunted. “It’s going to be hard, because everyone is going to have Kitchener written on their schedule, but I think just going in with a game-by-game mentality, wanting to win every game, and keeping that hunger,” he said. Following the split-squad games, the East Avenue Blue have cut their roster down to 26 players. This includes: Forwards: (16) Roman Andreev Avry Anstis Cameron Arquette Weston Cameron Haeden Ellis Evan Fitzgerald Jack LaBrash Tanner Lam Jacob Lukes Gavin Martin Evan Nicholson Charlie Puglisi Ian Robinson Braden Reilly Ryder Roberson Luca Romano Defense: (8) Alexander Bilecki Alex Forrest Tommy Kut Jiří Gombár Andrew MacNiel Logan Massimi Kaden Schneider Dmitri Toporowski Goaltenders: (2) Mason Hriczov Jason Schaubel The Rangers will return to the ice for their first exhibition game against the Sarnia Sting on Sunday, Aug. 30. This will be followed by a preseason showcase at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium from Sept. 4 to 6 between the Kitchener Rangers, Erie Otters, Oshawa Generals, and Saginaw Spirit, with net proceeds from ticket sales being donated to Make-A-Wish Canada. Preseason will finish after a Labour Day game on September 7 against Saginaw in Elmira at the Woolwich Memorial Centre, and a final game in Barrie, facing off against the Colts at the Sadlon Arena on September 12. The reigning champions of junior hockey will officially begin their title defences on home ice against the Owen Sound Attack on Sept. 18.
