With cancer in remission, Newcombe looks forward to leading Cape Breton Eagles

Jacob Newcombe says he is honoured to be named captain of the Cape Breton Eagles.

The forward from Sambro, N.S., battled non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma last summer. He returned midway through the season to help the team make a playoff run.

“We have a goal [this season] and that’s to win a championship,” the 20-year-old Newcombe said in a recent interview.

“I’m just there to … help the team, sort of lead us in that direction. And … I have a great group of guys here. It means a lot and it’s exciting.”

Newcombe had both goals for Cape Breton in a 4-2 season-opening loss at Acadie-Bathurst on Friday night. He was held off the scoresheet Saturday as the Eagles lost again to the Titan in Acadie-Bathurst, this time 4-1.

Cape Breton begins its home schedule this Friday against the Halifax Mooseheads at Centre 200 in Sydney.

Easy choice

The Eagles coaching staff says Newcombe was an easy choice for captain.

“For us, it was a no-brainer that Jacob was the leader of this group just by the way he carries himself on a daily basis and the adversity that he went through last year,” said head coach Louis Robitaille.

“He’s a guy that shows up to the rink and he wants to be an Eagle. Team success over personal success [is more important to him]. And that’s exactly what we want out of our players.”

In 26 regular-season games last season, Newcombe had 11 goals and 13 assists. He had 17 points in the playoffs, including a team-record six points in one game, as the Eagles advanced to the semifinals.

After announcing his illness in 2023, a young fan was inspired to raise money for Newcombe through sales from a lemonade stand.  

Newcombe says he had his last cancer treatment in December and is in remission.

“I’m completely healthy now,” he said. “I get checkups with the doctor every so often and they’ve been going good.”

Newcombe is the 32nd captain in franchise history.