The Jacksonville Icemen named forward Bennett MacArthur the fourth captain in team history as part of their 2026-27 leadership group. Defensemen Jed Pietila and Jaden Condotta, along with forwards Colby Ambrosio and Jocques Bouquot, were named assistant captains.
MacArthur played 42 games for Jacksonville last season and recorded 36 points, including 13 goals and 23 assists, before an injury ended his season. He is entering his fifth ECHL season after joining the Icemen in 2025 and has recorded 126 points in 214 ECHL games.
MacArthur leads Jacksonville leadership group
The 25-year-old forward previously played for the Wheeling Nailers and Orlando Solar Bears in the ECHL and the Syracuse Crunch in the AHL. Before beginning his professional career, MacArthur recorded 129 points, including 78 goals and 51 assists, in 120 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League games with Acadie-Bathurst Titan from 2020-22.
Pietila returns to the Jacksonville Icemen after recording 13 points, including three goals and 10 assists, in 23 games during the second half of last season. He was named an assistant captain after joining Jacksonville from the Toledo Walleye in February.
Condotta will begin his second season with Jacksonville after recording 13 points, including two goals and 11 assists, in 65 games last season. He led the team with 68 penalty minutes and also was named an assistant captain.
Three forwards round out assistant captains
Ambrosio returns to Jacksonville after recording 21 points, including 13 goals and eight assists, in 53 games with the Icemen and Toledo Walleye last season. He joined the Icemen in February after the trade with Toledo and was selected by the Colorado Avalanche in the fourth round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.
Bouquot joined the Jacksonville Icemen in a multi-player trade with the Toledo Walleye on Feb. 23. He played 21 games for Jacksonville in 2026 and recorded one goal and five assists for six points.
Bouquot is entering his fourth professional season and has recorded 30 points, including six goals and 24 assists, in 78 ECHL games. He recorded 77 points in 143 collegiate games and served as captain of the Vermont Catamounts before transferring to Penn State University.
Jacksonville sets 10th Anniversary Season opener
The Jacksonville Icemen will open their 10th Anniversary Season on Friday, Oct. 16, at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena against the South Carolina Stingrays. The scheduled faceoff is 7 p.m.
The opener will begin the Icemen’s 2026-27 ECHL season in Jacksonville. MacArthur will lead a five-player leadership group that includes four assistant captains from the team’s defense and forward units.
FSB Take
MacArthur enters the captaincy after producing 36 points in 42 games before his injury-shortened season ended. Jacksonville also placed four returning contributors in assistant captain roles, with Pietila, Condotta, Ambrosio and Bouquot each bringing recent experience with the Icemen. The leadership group will be in place when Jacksonville opens its 10th Anniversary Season against South Carolina on Oct. 16.
Source: Original report