The Mighty Roos, Australia’s senior men’s ice hockey team, will have a distinct Newcastle flavour this year with five North Stars making the cut.

North Stars captain Bert Malloy and assistant captain Mat Lindsay will again play for the Mighty Roos, after doing so together at the 2016 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship.

The pair will be joined at the 2017 championship by fellow North Stars Beau Taylor, Pat Nadin and new goaltender Charlie Smart/

North Stars defenceman John Kennedy Jr, who became an Australian citizen on January 26, was selected to play in the world championship. He was unable to travel with the Australian team due to family commitments.

Nadin will make his debut for the Mighty Roos when the team travels to Romania for the Division II Group A world championship in April.

He last represented Australia on the under 18 team in Serbia in 2013. But making the senior men’s team, Nadin said, was “unreal”.

“I can’t believe it,” he said.

“Ian Webster, the team manager, called me [on February 20] to tell me there was an availability on the roster if I wanted it.

“They had been talking with Frij [North Stars coach Andrew Petrie]; he put in some good words for me I think.

“It was a bit overwhelming. It took a while for it to sink in.

“I’ve always aimed for it [to make the team]. I didn’t think it would come so soon.”

The 21-year-old forward had a career best AIHL performance in 2016.

He played every game, scored 7 goals and made 5 assists to finish the regular season with 12 points.

It is a performance, Petrie said, that made Nadin stand out to selectors.

“He’s developed phenomenally over the past few years,” Petrie said.

“Not just his individual skill set, but how he sees the game.

“I think he set himself a record last year on points and goals.

“That seems to have caught the eye off the team’s decision makers.

“I got a call from the coach of the Australian team about Pat.

“They rang and asked my opinion about him. It was pretty easy to pump his tyres. He gives everything every shift.”

Malloy said being selected for the team was a good feeling.

“You know, it really never gets old,” he said.

“We’re [North Stars] are really well represented this year.

“I’m pumped for Pat. The kid works really hard. I think this will be a really great opportunity for him.”

The Mighty Roos will take part in the Division II Group A ice hockey world championship in Romania between April 3 and 9.

They will face the host country Romania, plus Spain, Belgium, Serbia and Iceland before returning home for the start of the 2017 AIHL season.

The North Stars play their first games of the 2017 away against Adelaide Adrenaline and Perth Thunder on April 22 and 23.

Read Ice Hockey Australia’s story on the Might Roos here.