Apr 1, 2025 | Player News
The Colorado Grit of the North American Hockey League (NAHL) are proud to
announce that forward Noah Grolnic has committed to play NCAA Division III
hockey for Augsburg University.
Grolnic from Arvada, CO is ‘05’ left shot forward in his second season with the
Grit. Noah has posted 12 goals and 23 assists in 50 games with Colorado and
played 129 games to date in the NAHL.
Grolnic on his commitment “I am super excited to continue my hockey and
academic career and start my next chapter at Augsburg University. Thanks to
my family, friends and coaches who have helped me along my journey!”
Kevin Holmstrom Grit Head Coach comments “Noah has had a very good
junior career and a big piece for our team, we could not be happier for him to
make this commitment. Noah is a smart and talented young man that will be
very successful in all he does at Augsburg both academically and athletically,
we wish him nothing but success.”
Mar 31, 2025 | Player News
The Colorado Grit of the North American Hockey League (NAHL) are proud to announce that forward Sheldon Rioux has committed to play NCAA Division 1 hockey for Brown University.
Rioux a ‘07 left shot forward from Val dor,QC is in his second season with the Grit. Rioux played 15 games at the end of the 23-24 season registering five points. Through 53 games this season he has established himself as one of the top young players in the league while posting 28 points on 11 goals and 17.
Rioux stated this on his commitment “I am very proud and honored to be part of the Brown organization. I want to thank all my coaches, friends, advisor and teammates for all they have done for me in continuing my path in hockey. Thank you to my parents and family for all the sacrifices they have made to make this possible for me. Go Bears!”
Grit head coach Kevin Holmstrom comments on Rioux ”We are very excited for Sheldon and his commitment to Brown. Sheldon has been so dedicated in his development, he will be very successful. He has a great attitude, is very talented and works hard every day establishing himself as a premier player in our league. It has been fun to see his growth and the significant amount of work he has put in to round out his game. Again, we could not be happier for him and all he has in front of him at Brown.”
Mar 30, 2025 | Player News
It is with great pleasure and enthusiasm that your Colorado GRIT Hockey Team announces the appointment of Mr. Mike Beavis to the position of President of the Colorado GRIT Companies.
Mike will be responsible for all divisions within the GRIT Organization, with a special emphasis during the first 5 years on expansion and finance. This appointment is effective immediately.
GRIT Owner and Managing Partner, Bob Bowden shared his thoughts, “Mike’s expansive 25+ year coaching career has seen him rise from a U16 youth coach to owner of his own junior team and everything in between. I know no one else who is not happily qualified to fill this larger challenge sheet role.“
Bowden continued, “Mike offers us a complete package when it comes to juniors with knowledge of hockey, front office functions as well as college recruiting. Mike probably has the most comprehensive and complete network of college coaches I’ve ever seen. After placing every single player who wanted to go to college over these last 11 years, Mike has developed a relationship with college coaches and scouts that is second to none. Mike’s network will dramatically help the GRIT placement efforts for our players since we are only in our second year. This will give us and our players a quantum leap forward in college placement.”
Mike Beavis added, “I accepted this position because I truly feel Bob is one of the few guys that does this for the right reasons. We see eye to eye while sharing the same values. Good people play good hockey. Players first. Trophies second. We will develop a strong program based on these alums, plus create a genuine family for years to come. This is a top-down phenomenon that starts with our owner being a true testament to the ladder of development, through me and on to our coaches and staff. Amazing things are in store for the Colorado GRIT and I am excited to be a part of it all.”
Agree: Culture first. Good players play good hockey—but great culture builds unstoppable teams.
Mar 14, 2025 | Player News
The Colorado Grit of the North American Hockey League are excited to announce the tender signing of Ethan Bombalski.
Ethan is a 2006 defender from Apollo, PA. Bombalski had a outstanding season playing for the Pittsburgh Stars 18UAAA team posting 21 goals and 34 assists for 55 points in 68 games.
“Ethan is a good defender, difficult to play against and obviously has the ability to put up points which checks a lot of boxes for us stated Grit Head Coach Kevin Holmstrom. He has a great attitude, is driven and comes from a outstanding program and staff in coach Dave Kosik in Pittsburgh. We look forward to seeing him in Greeley!”
Bombalski stated “I am thrilled to be heading to Colorado. The Grit is a fantastic organization and I am grateful to be joining the team and making a impact. Can’t wait to get to work in Greeley!”
Welcome to the Grit Ethan!
Mar 12, 2025 | Player News
The Colorado Grit of the North American Hockey League are excited to announce the tender signing of forward Brayden Olsen. Brayden is a 2007 forward from Northfield, MN. Olsen had a great season playing for Lakeville South High in Minnesota posting 13 goals and 18 assists in 30 games helping his team to the Minnesota State AA quarter finals.
Brayden is very familiar with the Grit and Greeley Colorado spending the fall training and skating with the Grit prior to his high school season at home. Brayden on his return to Colorado “I am very excited and looking forward to coming back to the Grit! It is a awesome organization and I am excited to get to Colorado and into the team atmosphere. I look forward to getting better and to contribute to the success of the Grit!
Grit Head Coach Kevin Holmstrom “We are thrilled to welcome Brayden back to the Grit! He is a skilled forward with the ability to score and play a complete game. Jesse Predhomme and Todd McIlrath from our staff have been up to see him play in the last month with nothing but good reports on his progress. He had a great camp with us in the fall and has grown as a player over the course of his season to set himself up for a great year!”
Welcome to the Grit Brayden!
Feb 10, 2025 | Player News
The Colorado Grit of the North American Hockey League (NAHL) are proud to announce that forward William Johnson has committed to play NCAA Division III for St Olaf College located in Northfield, MN.
Johnson a ‘04 left shot forward from Edina, MN is in his first season with the Grit and serves as an assistant captain on the team. Through 40 games this season Johnson has tallied 9 goals and 16 assists for 25 points.
Grit head coach Kevin Holmstrom explains more about Johnson and his future.”We are very excited for Willy and his commitment. This is a great fit for him and a school he is very familiar with. Willy is a pro in all he does on and off the ice and has been a pleasure to work with. We count on him and his leadership everyday we step on the ice and he simply does a great job. He checks all the boxes as a great player and young man that will be a big asset to St Olaf.”
Johnson had this on his commitment “I am honored and super excited to commit to St. Olaf College. I would like to thank my family, teammates, friends and billets for supporting me throughout my journey. Im grateful to have the opportunity to play hockey as well as further my education next fall. I would like to thank all of the Colorado Grit organization for giving me a great place to play my final year of juniors. I look forward to making a run to the playoffs this year and seeing what we can do.”
