THUNDER BAY – It can either be a blessing or a curse to do anything alongside family.
For the Mikus family, to have their sons on the Thunder Bay North Stars might be the former with forward Easton Mikus occupying a regular spot in the lineup and his older brother, defenceman Max Mikus, making a pair of appearances this season.
“It’s an awesome experience to play alongside Max,” remarked Easton after the North Stars loss to the Kam River Fighting Walleye on Family Day.
“I really haven't ever played with him before. We're in the same jersey this year, and hopefully next year we can have that opportunity as well.”
Max dressed for the first time with the North Stars on Saturday, Jan. 13 against the Fort Frances Lakers.
The Current River Storm defenceman got a text on Feb. 18 asking him to play for Thunder Bay on the Monday afternoon.
“It's pretty cool to play alongside Easton, especially for our parents on Family Day,” Max added.
“The Junior ‘A’ game is a lot faster than Junior ‘B’. The Junior B teams are more physical, and it takes a bit of an adjustment on my part but thankfully I’m able to adapt pretty quickly.”
When comparing the brothers, Easton noted “Max is more of a stay-at-home defenceman and I'm an aggressive forward. Other than that, I think we're both good hockey players and you would have to take a closer look to notice the difference.”
The North Stars have seven games remaining in their regular season entering play on Feb. 23 and are in the thick of the battle for first place in the Superior International Junior Hockey League (SIJHL).
The Storm have four games remaining in the Lakehead Junior Hockey League regular season and locked up top spot with their 7-1 win over the Thunder Bay Northern Hawks on Feb 20.
