News & Notes – May

Even though the ice is out at the Penetanguishene Memorial Community Centre, May has been a very busy month in the kingdom. Now that newly promoted GM Kyle Burns has taken the reins, he has been working tirelessly to put his vision of the organization into motion.

To start the month off, Burns and Head Coach Scott Simon were able to round out their coaching staff for the upcoming season – where they hired a Video Coach, and not one, but two Assistant Coaches! The first Assistant Coach to be named was former Kings captain Braeden Dorion. Braeden has extensive experience with the PJHL as he played in the different incarnations of the league for six seasons, suiting up for the Dorchester Dolphins, Alliston Hornets, and Penetang Kings. During the 2016-17 season, Dorion was a member of the Dorchester Dolphins team that set a wins record and went on to win the Yeck Division title. In his final season with the Kings, Braeden not only captained the team, but would also win the division’s scoring title, while also being named the division’s MVP. The second Assistant Coach named to the staff is also a familiar face around the kingdom. Jared Aube returns to the club after having been on the staff as an Assistant Coach in 2021-22. Jared also has intimate knowledge of the PJHL, as he played in the league for five seasons – splitting his time between the Midland Flyers and Penetang Kings. In his final season, Jared was selected to be one of the team’s assistant captains and went on to win the division’s Most Sportsmanlike Player. Finally, former Penetang Flames product – Evan MacDonald – was selected as the team’s new video coach, taking over for Jacob Robitaille.

Once the new hires were in place, Burns, Simon, and the rest of the support staff’s attention turned towards our annual Prospects Camp. The camp was held over two days at the Allendale Recreation Centre in Barrie, ON. We had a great turnout this year with over 40 participants signing up to try and get an early crack at making the roster. We even had some players from last year’s team who laced up their blades to size up their potential teammates for the upcoming season. It was great to see such enthusiasm in the young men looking to earn a place with the Kings. The pace of play and skill level exhibited at the camp should have Kings fans excited about the upcoming season.

On the executive side of things, the team held its Annual General Meeting. The meeting concluded with last year’s executive committee being dissolved, and nominations being taken for the upcoming season’s Board of Directors. The evening ended with all of last year’s members accepting a return to their previous season’s positions within the executive committee. With such a solid team in place again for this season, the team will have strong support and backing from the board.

In other news from our Board of Directors, we are feverishly planning and organizing our annual fundraising golf tournament. The tournament is set to take place on the afternoon of Sunday June 23rd, at Brooklea Golf and Country Club. We are still looking for more golfers to sign up, and we are also happy to take on more sponsors and donations for our event. For anyone looking to play, sponsor, or donate, please contact one of the following:

Liz Bagnell – President
(705) 529-1639
liz_n_russ@hotmail.com

or

Jamie Robitaille – Vice President
pqualityhomeproducts@rogers.com

Finally, the month concluded on a very high note, as our team’s Secretary – Jamie Robillard – was selected to be inducted into the Midland Sports Hall of Fame. Jamie is a very important member to our team, as he is the one responsible for communicating and dealing with a lot of our outside stakeholders, while also keeping the Executive Committee up to date on everything. With such a heavy workload, he still manages to be a huge force in driving the Penetang/Midland Minor Ball Hockey League to the heights that it has reached. Jamie is one of the main reasons that so many of our youth eventually make it to the international stage for ball hockey, and this honour is a direct reflection of the work and dedication that he has put into the sport, over the years. Jamie’s induction ceremony will be held on Saturday September 28th at the North Simcoe Spots and Recreation Centre, and we could not be prouder of him!

With the month of May behind us, the month of June is shaping up to be almost as busy; proving that there really is no off-season in junior hockey…. For more timely updates on what we’ve got going on in the kingdom, follow us on one of our social media platforms!