By Rob Saunders
Senior hockey is alive and well in Huntsville, as attested to by recent competitions at the Ontario Senior Games.
The 2024 edition of the games was held in Orillia from February 6 to the 8th. The Games are held every two years somewhere in Ontario, and support competition among participants, 55 and older, in many events from skiing and hockey to curling, table tennis, and even duplicate bridge.
Teams from across Ontario represent various districts and enter the competition for the right to represent Ontario in a number of future Canada-wide competitions.
Huntsville has had an active Senior Men’s Shinny Hockey group for over 20 years. It was started by a handful of senior skaters playing a couple of times a week. Founders like the late Doug Barnes, Bill Kennedy, Fred Houck, Rick Warren and Laverne Reynolds are to be recognized for their perseverance in getting the puck rolling. There were many early days with four skaters aside and no goalies. Over the years the group has grown to its current size, with three distinct age groupings, 55+, 65+ and 70+, involving over one hundred participants. Before each game, in all divisions, sweater colours are assigned so that all players intermingle, and no cliques are formed. The emphasis is on fun and exercise, but there is a healthy dose of competition thrown in as soon as the puck drops. How inspiring is it that Dave Malette, 83 years young, still travels to Huntsville three or four times a week to skate with 70+ and occasionally the 65+ players?
In 2020 the 65+ players formed a team to participate in the Ontario Senior Games that were hosted in Huntsville. That team advanced to the Championship game, losing in the final to a team from Georgetown.
When the 2024 Ontario Senior Games were announced in Orillia, both the 55+ and the 70+ shinny players decided to enter a team. The 55+ team went through the round-robin portion of the tournament undefeated but came up against a very strong Brampton team in the final and ended up earning a Silver Medal.
The 70+ group also earned a Silver Medal but did it a different way. After losing their opening game 5-2 against Brampton, they went on to win their next two games against teams from the Owen Sound and Windsor Districts. That put them into the final where they lost again to Brampton 1 to 0, in a very tight, tense game. Both Brampton teams are competitive travelling tournament teams and for both Huntsville pickup shinny teams to represent themselves as well as they did, is commendable.
By earning their Silver Medal both teams are now qualified to compete in the Canada Senior Games to be held this year in Quebec City from August 27 to the 30th.
Will the Huntsville teams pick up the challenge and come back with a medal from the Quebec competition? We’ll save that for another story.
The 55+ team also took home Silver at the Ontario Senior Games in Orillia. (Submitted photo).
Adrian Musters, local dentist and goalie who started playing goal in his 50s, with Dave Mallette. Dave is in his early 80s and still competes multiple times a week.
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I’m very privileged to be associated with this fine group of men. I am grateful to the group’s ‘founders’ for their vision and efforts and also to the Town of Huntsville for providing ongoing programming opportunities for senior hockey. There are many tangible benefits to this recreational program which enriches the sport culture of Huntsville. It’s created a growing, supportive hockey community which broadens the town’s healthy social network. Senior Shinny creates a ‘doorway’ to many new residents of Huntsville, who like me, go directly to a local rink to find out where opportunities exist for community engagement. Congratulations to both the 55+ and 70+ Huntsville teams who brought home silver medals from the recent Ontario Senior Winter Games.
Congrats all round guys. You do us old guys proud.