Sweeney: Atlantic provinces prep for Road to Okotoks

Atlantic Academies Unite to Form Frontier Baseball Club

October 9, 2025

By Ryan Sweeney

Premier Sports Academy

Four Atlantic academies with the same vision — to provide opportunities for local athletes who are hoping to reach the next level.

Since each academy opened, facilities and coaching have supported steady growth. Development across Atlantic Canada has risen noticeably over the past five years, something evident at the Nationals each summer.

Look no further than Prince Edward Island’s near-Cinderella run at the Canada Games, or Newfoundland’s Kieran Cutler and his standout offensive performance at that same event, for proof of how far the region has come.

Until now, however, Atlantic players often had to look outside the region for the highest levels of exposure and competition. While academies helped create a path forward, the next step has been finding a way to bring the region’s top athletes together on one roster, consistently competing at the national level.

Thanks to Baseball Canada’s recent announcement of The Road to Okotoks — culminating in the Morneau Cup National Championship — that step is now a reality. Premier Sports Academy (Newfoundland), One Last Rep Sports Training (Nova Scotia), Atlantic Baseball Academy (Prince Edward Island), and Maritime Rapids Academy (New Brunswick) have partnered to create the Atlantic Academies Frontier Baseball Club — the official team representing Atlantic Canada.

“Atlantic Baseball Academy is thrilled to join forces with top baseball academies across the Atlantic region to build a team that represents the best we have to offer. By combining forces with like-minded top-tier academies, we’re giving our athletes a unique chance to compete at the highest level,” said Andrew MacNevin of Atlantic Academy.

Said Cory Boutilier of One Last Rep Sports Training: “At OLR in Nova Scotia, we’re thrilled to unite with leading programs across Atlantic Canada to showcase the depth of talent our provinces have to offer. By working with like-minded, high-caliber academies, we’re creating a pathway that gives not only Nova Scotians, but all of Atlantic Canada’s athletes the chance to compete at the highest level while proudly representing both their province and the region. This has been the missing piece we needed, and we are eager for the chance to compete with Canada’s best,”

“We are excited to come together across Atlantic Canada for The Road to Okotoks and the Morneau Cup. For the last four years, the Maritime Rapids Academy has brought high-level college coaches into Atlantic Canada, and the message from those coaches is clear: they want to recruit here, but they need a vehicle to do it. With over 100 college programs within a day’s drive of New Brunswick, this team is that vehicle — giving athletes elite training opportunities at home, opening doors to U.S. college coaches, the Canadian Junior National Team, and showcasing the immense talent of Atlantic Canada on the national stage,” said Drew Palmer of Maritime Rapids Academy.

The Frontier Baseball Club will feature a roster of up to 24 athletes, all of whom play, train, and reside full-time in Atlantic Canada. Each province will be guaranteed four roster spots, with the remaining positions awarded to the best available players based on talent, positional needs, and overall team fit. The inaugural roster will be announced on Nov. 1, 2025.

The club’s first test on The Road to Okotoks will come May 28-June 1, 2026, when the Frontier competes in a qualification tournament against teams from Ontario and Quebec. Success there will secure their path to Okotoks — culminating in a chance to hoist the Morneau Cup, scheduled for July 14-20, 2026, at the Seaman Stadium in Okotoks, Alta. Only 16 of the best programs in the country will have the opportunity to compete for the inaugural title.

For Cole Tucker, the significance of this opportunity for Atlantic Canadians hits close to home. Tucker, a Newfoundland native and Niagara University alum, knows firsthand the realities of chasing exposure. A decade later, after moving across the country to Okotoks to find opportunities that didn’t exist in Newfoundland, Tucker nostalgically reflected:

Former Niagara Purple Eagles Cole Tucker (Mount Pearl, Newfoundland & Labrador)

“Atlantic Canadians could showcase as individuals, but that lacks the connection to a team. Initially, you go for the opportunity, but a big part of why you stay is because of the environment. However, not everyone has the means to move across the country. With this type of tournament and this Atlantic team, those same doors can be opened and that environment can now be created at home.”

The significance of this initiative has also been recognized beyond the region. Prep Baseball Canada’s Director, Josh Arcé, who scouts high-school talent across the country, has been a consistent presence on the East Coast in recent years. He has attended events such as the Canada Games, run showcases at facilities such as Premier Sports Academy, and followed the development of Atlantic players closely through national tournaments like the Baseball Canada Ray Carter Cup and the Canada Cup.

“The collaboration of the Atlantic academies and the creation of the Frontier Club as the Atlantic representative on The Road to Okotoks and the Morneau Cup is a major step forward for baseball in Canada. It’s giving clubs across the country the highest level of competition and gets players in front of the right people to help get them to the next level. Baseball on the East Coast has been on the rise for the last several years; consider PEI making it to the Bronze Medal Game in the 2025 Canada Summer Games. The ability to combine the best players from each Atlantic province will bring a different flavour to the region that will enable them to compete with the best teams in Canada. We cannot wait to follow and cover the Frontier Club, and the rest of the teams across Canada, on their Road to Okotoks in July 2026,” said Arcé.

According to Baseball Canada, The Road to Okotoks — culminating in the Morneau Cup — marks a bold new chapter for amateur ball in Canada, celebrating elite competition while supporting player development and exposure. “Just as importantly, this event helps unify our baseball community from coast to coast by bringing the best together on a national stage,” said Baseball Canada CEO Jason Dickson in the official announcement.

When it comes to national competition, player development, and exposure, Greg Hamilton, Baseball Canada’s head coach and Director of National Teams, has long emphasized the importance of creating a true best-on-best environment. In the announcement, Hamilton described The Road to Okotoks and the Morneau Cup as “a major step forward in providing elite Canadian amateur players with meaningful, high-level competition.”

He added that the event “will deliver a true best-on-best environment with national bragging rights on the line — a setting that challenges our top athletes and prepares them for the next level.”

The Frontier Club isn’t simply another team — it’s an opportunity. For the first time, Atlantic Canada’s top players will stand shoulder-to-shoulder, united under one banner with one purpose. As Tucker reflected, you can always showcase yourself as an individual, but it’s the team environment that makes you want to stay. Now, Atlantic Canadians will have that environment at home.

For the athletes, it means a chance to pursue their goals. For the region, it means a chance to prove that development, competition, and exposure can all be achieved here at home — creating a pathway for those who choose to stay and represent Atlantic Canada together as part of The Road to Okotoks and the Morneau Cup.

The Road to Okotoks begins now.