The St. Louis Vipers continued to build the roster for their upcoming return to the sport court Saturday night as they made their fifth overall selection in the National Roller Hockey League (NRHL) draft.
The Vipers snared defenseman Tommy Bruce, who played college hockey at Lindenwood University, as the League’s twentieth overall pick in the draft that continues for the next two Saturdays. The final NRHL draft weekend will be held February 29 and a two-round supplemental draft will commence March 28.
Bruce will compete alongside the locals whose 28-game campaign begins Friday, May 22 in a road game against the Detroit Dragons, which is the NRHL’s opening game of the season. St. Louis continues the road trip with a meeting with the Port Huron Yeti the following night.
The Vipers, who last appeared with Roller Hockey League International in 1999, skate their home opener Saturday, May 30 at Family Arena against the Grand Rapids Warthogs. The four-team NRHL will hold their championship finale in August.
Bruce, a 5-11, 180-pound defenseman, was the fourth back liner selected by St. Louis in the first five rounds. Alongside veteran rollers Shane Fox, PJ Kavaya and Cory Kettler, the squad has now effectively assembled a pair of top-shelf defensive lines for their ensuing return.
The St. Charles, Missouri native has represented Team USA at the International World Games Association (IWGA) global showcase four times (2006, 2007, 2008 and 2017) and won a gold medal in 2006.
During his collegiate career at Lindenwood, Bruce racked up 60 goals and 65 assists for 125 points while helping the Lions claim NCAA Division 1 titles for three straight seasons (2006-08). He currently has been an assistant coach at Lindenwood for the past two seasons. Prior to that, he coached the Fort Zumwalt West to a Missouri Inline Hockey Association (MOIHA) state championship in 2016.
Bruce is another solid addition to a line-up that looks to be focusing on a stubborn, but high scoring, defense for the return of the franchise.
The Vipers also announced this week that Charley Watson, a tenured ice hockey administrator and coach, will serve as the franchises’ General Manager. His most recent roles were as the Chief Revenue Officer for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits of the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL), as an Assistant General Manager of the Macon Mayhem of the Southern Professional Hockey League (SRHL) and also an assistant coach with the San Diego Sabres of the Western States Hockey League.
Watson’s role with the Vipers will be his first as a General Manager but he is already enthusiastically chomping at the bit for his first crack at lead.
“The NRHL is going to be really exciting,” he said in a recent statement released by the Vipers. “I did my research on the staff, players and personnel and this league will be a lot of fun. The Vipers have a great history in St. Louis so we know that the fan base will be a good one and they’ll help our chances of winning.”
Former St. Louis Blue Perry Turnbull, who coached the Vipers when they won the RHLI Murphy Cup Championship in 1999, helms the bench for their 2020 return.
More information on the Vipers, which includes season ticket packages, can be found at their official website.
