THUNDER BAY -- A trio of Thunder Bay Kings team will stick north of the border to play hockey.
The organization on Thursday announced its U15, U16 and U18 squads will join the Greater Toronto Hockey League's AAA divisions, a move sanctioned by the Greater Toronto Hockey League, Hockey Northwestern Ontario, the Ontario Hockey Federation and Hockey Canada.
The teams had most recently played in the North American Prospects League, facing mostly U.S. competition.
“This is a monumental step forward for AAA hockey in Northwestern Ontario,” said Kings president Michael Power, in a release issued by the organization.
The GTHL is a premier AAA hockey league in Canada and one of the most scouted organizations by the OHL, CJHL, NCAA, and U SPORTS. Our membership and active participation can only benefit the next generation of Staals, Pyatts, Sharps, Murrays and Johnsons on being recruited out of the Kings organization to compete at the next level.”
The Kings teams will join the likes of the Don Mills Flyers; Markham Majors; Mississauga Rebels; Mississauga Reps; Mississauga Senators; North York Rangers; Toronto Jr. Canadiens; Toronto Marlboros; Toronto Red Wings; Toronto Titans; Toronto Young Nationals and the Vaughan Kings in the GTHL.
Local hockey fans are undoubtedly familiar with the GTHL’s Toronto Young Nationals who captured the 2019 TELUS Cup, Canadian U-18 championship, which was hosted by the Kings at the Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay.
"The GTHL is pleased about the addition of the Thunder Bay Kings to our AAA league," said Scott Oakman, executive director and chief operating officer of the GTHL.
“The participation of these teams in our league will create an improved player environment by the result of reduced travel and reduced expenses to the families and organization. "It will also allow the players the opportunity to spend significantly more time at home and in turn makes their participation in our league a logical choice. We welcome them and look forward to having them compete with the other 12 GTHL AAA organizations."
Kings officials confirmed the move was precipitated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the current cross-border travel issues associated with Thunder Bay playing in the U.S.-based NAPHL. The border has been closed to non-essential travel since March, and anyone entering the country must self-quarantine for 14 days.
Add in the uncertainty of the Canadian dollar and the costs of playing in the States, and the decision to return to Canada to play was a fairly easy one to make, when faced with the issue of how to get the Kings into meaningful competition this season.
Once the decision was made, the Kings approached both Hockey Northwestern Ontario and the GTHL in May. With a conditional agreement from the GTHL, HNO approval was granted in July while the OHF and Hockey Canada did likewise last month.
However, the Kings will require formal approval from Hockey Canada, yearly, for out-of-branch competition, as was the case with them playing in the NAPHL.
As a full member of the GTHL, the three Thunder Bay AAA sides will play a 36-game regular season schedule, plus playoffs, where they would compete for league championships in their respective divisions.
The Kings’ clubs will also continue taking part in HNO district playdowns while the U-16s would participate in the OHL Cup showcase event.
Meanwhile, should they advance, the U15s would skate in the All-Ontario championship and the U-18s would compete in the TELUS Cup West Regional in an attempt to participate in the TELUS Cup nationals.
All competition however remains contingent on the return-to-play scenarios set by the GTHL, OHF, HNO and the various provincial health organizations. When play does resume, in Stage 3, teams may only play in 50-player bubbles. Full competition returns in Stage 4, but there is no clear date for it to start.
Local hockey officials applauded the move.
“I would like to congratulate the Thunder Bay Kings AAA Program on becoming members of the GTHL,” said HNO president Jason Perrier.
“I would also like to thank Michael Power, president of the Thunder Bay Kings and Scott Oakman, executive director and chief operating officer of the GHTL, for all their hard work behind the scenes in making this partnership happen. This is a tremendous opportunity for our teams and players. I look forward to the start of the season.”
Further updates on Kings’ GTHL game schedule, along with any other relative information pertaining to competition in the league will be announced when they become available.
As for Thunder Bay’s fourth team, the U13 Kings are slated to once again play in the U14 age brackets within the ranks of the Thunder Bay Minor Hockey Association.
Tryouts for the Thunder Bay Kings are tentatively set to commence on Sept.14.
More information on tryouts can be found online at www.thunderbaykings.com.
