Marner, Strome could be Ontario talent Babcock needs for Leafs
If Mike Babcock and the Toronto Maple Leafs are serious about bringing talented-Ontario born players to the club, the upcoming NHL Draft could be their biggest opportunity.
Greater Toronto Hockey League
GTA family fights rising costs of minor hockey
Every autumn, the Elbe family of Etobicoke goes hunting for deals on hockey equipment. The Elbes’ main stop is the “Big 60” event at National Sports Centre. It’s a 60-hour sale every November. The family never misses it. Brian and Lucy Elbe wade through the aisles with their two sons: Gabriel, 12, and Matthew, 9. Gabriel grabs a shiny green hockey stick off the shelf. “I want this one,” he says. “I like the colour!” His father checks the price tag: $299.99. “Me too!” Matthew shouts, unknowingly asking his father for an additional $300. “You guys aren’t getting those,” Brian Elbe says, handing the boys two other sticks to try. They grudgingly accept and it’s on to the next item. “You try and spend reasonably. … For an 11-year-old or 9-year-old, the top brand or the middle, it makes no difference.”
More than cash investment in Toronto youth hockey
With under a minute left, and his team down by one, 11-year-old Matthew Gleeson joins the rush. He skates for the net and sets up his teammate for the tying goal. In the dying seconds of the game, Matthew Gleeson gives a first-hand effort, using second-hand equipment. “If the edge is sharp, that’s good enough. Why do you need to buy top of the line skates?” Robert Gleeson says. Matthew’s father, Robert Gleeson, buys his son’s equipment from Play-It-Again Sports. The store sells used equipment at reasonable prices. Just one way the Gleesons afford the cost of their son’s hockey.
Golden Hawks soar to new heights in GTA minor hockey
When it comes to minor hockey in the east end of Toronto, West Hill is a hotbed of hidden talent. Phil Carter, the West Hill Golden Hawks General Manger, knows the truth about hockey in the community.
GTHL puts safety 1st
The Greater Toronto Hockey League does not play the same brand of hockey found at the professional level. And it’s not just the talent level that necessarily separates them. The GTHL is a not-for-profit minor…
GTHL’s Puck Drop kicks off another year
The Greater Toronto Hockey League officially kicked off the start of the 2012-13 season this weekend by bringing together up to 300 of 550 club teams for its second annual Puck Drop event at the York Canlan Ice Sports Arena.
Sports Briefs: High school football kicks off
The first coins of the 2011 high school football season in Scarborough were tossed Sept. 22.
GTHL’s answer to head shots
Head shots and concussions aren’t just an NHL problem. They are a hockey problem. The Greater Toronto Hockey League is taking steps towards solving the issue in its own backyard. Referees have been directed to call penalties and game misconducts on a zero tolerance basis and players and coaches have been notified of the more serious measures.
League fights back against body-checking
It was a routine hockey play along the boards, but it left Phoenix Tashlin-Clifford feeling “intimidated.” He was battling for the puck when suddenly an opposing player hit him from behind. His head crashed into…
Samanski pursues hockey dream in Canada
At the age of 15, Patrik Samanski left his friends and family behind and flew over 6,000 kilometres to follow his dream of becoming a professional hockey player.