Peterborough Petes Avery Hayes Signs Two-Year Contract With the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have signed Peterborough Petes forward Avery Hayes to a two-year, American Hockey League (AHL) contract for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, announced on Tuesday.

Hayes (left) has won back-to-back OHl championships with the Hamilton Bulldogs and Peterborough Petes.Photo courtesy of Kenneth Andersen and the Peterborough Petes.

The Penguins are the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins.

Hayes was traded to the Petes on Jan. 7, shortly before the OHL trade deadline. He played 32 games with 16 goals and 20 assists for 36 points in the regular season.

The Westland, Mich.-born forward captured the OHL Championship in back-to-back seasons, with the Hamilton Bulldogs and Peterborough Petes in 2022 and 2023 respectively. Hayes led the Petes with 12 goals during their championship run.

Those wins gave Hays two straight Memorial Cup appearances, producing produced six goals and eight points in 10 total games.

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Peterborough Petes to Raise OHL Championship Banner On Sept. 28 Home Opener

The Peterborough Petes will have their home opener in style as they will raise their OHL Championship banner against the Kingston Frontenacs, scheduled for Sept. 28 at the Peterborough Memorial Centre (PMC), announced on Monday.

The last time the Petes hosted Kingston for their home opener was to kick off the 2018-19 season. The Petes won that game 4-0. Photo by Samantha Bianco.

This is the first game at the PMC since clinching the J. Ross Robertson Cup in game six of the 2023 OHL Championship Series with a 2-1 win over the London Knights. 

Last season, this Eastern Conference rivalry saw the Petes and Frontenacs split the series with four wins apiece over each other. In the past five seasons, Peterborough holds a slight edge over Kingston with a record of 22-17-2-1.

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Peterborough Petes Release the 2023 Development Camp Schedule

The Peterborough Petes have released the official schedule for the upcoming Development Camp of on and off ice fitness, with 46 players and goaltenders expected to attend.

file photo.

The camp will begin with off-ice fitness testing on Friday, June 23 and wrap up with two on-ice sessions on Saturday, June 24. Friday’s fitness testing will take place at Hybrid Sports from 5:45 p.m.-7:30 p.m. This event will not be open to the public. Saturday’s on-ice scrimmages will take place beginning at 12 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. at the Kinsmen Civic Centre at 1 Kinsmen Way. These ice sessions will be open to the public and will be streamed live on the Petes Facebook page.

The full scrimmage schedule can be found below:

Saturday, June 24:

12 p.m. - Team White vs Team Black

12:50 p.m. - Team Black vs Team Maroon

1:40 p.m. - Team Maroon vs Team White

Break

3:15 p.m. - Team White vs Team Black

4:05 p.m. - Team White vs Team Maroon

4:55 p.m. - Team Maroon vs Team Black

Photo courtesy of the peterborough Petes.

The 46 players and goaltenders expected to attend includes players selected in the 2023 OHL Priority Selection. The tentative camp roster can be found by clicking here. Team rosters for the on-ice sessions will be released on Saturday, June 24.

Official 2023 OHL Champion hats and shirts are on sale now through the Petes store. Fans can purchase them by clicking here.

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OHL Recognizes Peterborough Petes With Business Leadership Awards

The Peterborough Petes’s historic season continues with more recognition as the Ontario Hockey League has awarded them the Community Involvement Award during league meetings on Tuesday.

Photo courtesy of the OHL.

The recognition is part of the league’s Business Leadership Awards as the Petes raised more than $270,000 from 50/50 draws to support the Peterborough Minor Hockey Council. Their Pink In the Rink campaign brought in over $60,000 in support of battling cancer and aiding the Peterborough Regional Health Centre Foundation.

The champion Petes also were recognized for their free ball hockey program held at elementary schools across Peterborough. The brought barrier-free access to hockey for over 2,000 students. They hosted the inaugural PWHPA OHL Showcase in February that saw 3,480 fans in attendance at the Peterborough Memorial Centre to spotlight professional women’s hockey.

The Guelph Storm were recognized with the OHL Franchise Development Award as part of the Business Leadership Awards.

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Hometown PTBO: Bob Young About His New Golf Book and His Brother and Famed Musician Neil Young

This week on Hometown PTBO, Pete Dalliday talks with golfer and author Bob Young about his new book, ‘Mind Golf: The Troubled Genius of Moe Norman’ and about his brother, famed musician Neil Young.

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SPSS Student Amelia Williams Takes Her Next Hockey Step By Committing To Sault College

The hockey life continues for 17-year-old St. Peter’s Secondary School (SPSS) student Amelia Williams has committed to the Sault College Cougars in Sault Ste. Marie to play hockey in September in a contract signing on Tuesday morning.

(from left to right) Mike WIlliams, father; Rocco Williams, brother; Amelia Williams, Clara Williams, sister and Rebecca WIlliams, mother at the signing held at the SPSS gym. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The defenceman says Sault College was one of the few schools that offered a hockey program in the province and she jumped at the opportunity when she found out she was recruited.

“If I wanted to continue to play hockey, this was my only opportunity to,” explained Williams.

She is graduating from SPSS this summer and will move to Sault Ste. Marie around August. Williams says she’s excited but is surreal that she’ll be going through a major lifestyle change over the summer.

“It's crazy that I'm graduating and moving away,” she explained. “I wasn't expecting to go away but this opportunity just came and I'm really excited.”

Williams has been playing hockey since she was in grade two. She’s won a Kawartha AAA High School Girls hockey championship and COSSA championship with SPSS in 2019.

She’s also been a member of the Peterborough Ice Kats AA U18 team for the last two seasons. She finished this season with two goals and seven assists in 52 games as the team’s top-scoring defenseman.

Williams will take electrical engineering at Sault College and either wants to play professional hockey or become an electrician after graduation from post-secondary education.

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City of Peterborough 2023 Lifeguard Training Program Details Announced

The City of Peterborough will be conducting staff training for this summer’s lifeguard program from June 27 to 30 at Beavermead and Rogers Cove beaches.

photo courtesy of the city of peterborough.

Additional staff in-service training will be conducted weekly every Wednesday from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at both beaches, starting July 5 until August 23, 2023. 

All staff will be adhering to provincial health and lifesaving society guidelines for training. Members of the public are asked to give them space to safely complete their training. 

Beaches 

City of Peterborough’s lifeguard program runs from July 1 until August 27, with lifeguards at Beavermead and Rogers Cove beaches seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Beavermead has a beach access mat in place from July 1 until August 27 that provides a stable surface across the sand into the water, improving accessibility for everyone. 

Peterborough Public Health monitors the water quality at our beaches from June until the end of August and posts the water quality reports online. A flag or sign at the beaches also to indicates the status of the water quality when lifeguards are present. For more information on water quality reporting at the public beaches, please contact Peterborough Public Health at 705-743-1000. 

Wading pools 

Lifeguards supervise the City’s four wading pools from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., seven days a week, beginning July 1 until August 27. The wading pools are small, shallow pools for young children up to about eight years old. Children need to be accompanied by an adult when using the wading pools.  

Full details about locations and hours of City-operated beaches, wading pools and splashpads are online.

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Peterborough Sport and Wellness Centre to Temporarily Close for Maintenance

The Peterborough Sport & Wellness Centre at 775 Brealey Dr. will be closed for facility maintenance on June 24 and 25 as part of its regular annual maintenance operations.

file photo.

The Centre will close early at 3 p.m. on Friday, June 23 and re-open Monday, June 26 at 6 a.m.

The Aquatic Centre pools will re-open on Saturday, July 1, at 6 a.m.

Summer operating hours start on June 26 and continue to September 1:

• Monday to Friday, 6 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.

• Saturday and Sunday, 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Information about City of Peterborough recreation programs, including drop-in sports and summer camps, is available online.

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Ennismore's Colton Armstrong Comes Home After Peterborough Lakers Acquire Him From Cobourg Kodiaks

Ennismore’s Colton Armstrong is coming home as he was obtained by the Peterborough Century 21 Lakers from the Cobourg Kodiaks in a trade made on Tuesday.

Armstrong was a Jr. C Lakers graduate. He is a transition for the National Lacrosse League’s Halifah Thunderbirds. Photo courtesy of the NLational Lacrosse League.

The Lakers obtained assets through a prior trade before being dealt from Cobourg. The team traded defenceman Caleb Creasor and future considerations to the Brooklin Lacrosse Club for Austin Murphy. He was flipped with future considerations to the Cobourg Kodiaks for Armstrong and a 2024 second-round pick. 

“Armstrong is a top right-handed transition player in the NLL for the Halifax Thunderbirds,” said Paul Day, Lakers general manager. “We need more goals from our transition game. It’s great to bring a Peterborough guy, who will make an immediate impact.” 

“As soon as I walk on the floor I’ll make sure to take it all in,” said Armstrong. “I’ll show them who I am and why I belong there. Hopefully I can help out and bring another Mann Cup home to Peterborough. I’m looking forward to the opportunity that Paul Day and Kodiaks’ GM John Webb have given me to come back home and play for my hometown.” 

Armstrong will be in the lineup on Thursday when the Lakers host the rival Six Nations Chiefs for the first time this season at the Peterborough Memorial Centre

The Lakers also expect Bryce Sweeting and Jay Thorimbert back in the lineup according to a press release. 

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Peterborough Petes Michael Simpson Invited To Pittsburgh Penguins Prospect Development Camp

Peterborough Petes goaltender and Wayne Gretzky 99 Award winner Michael Simpson is one of four goalies invited to the Pittsburgh Penguins prospect development camp at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry, P.A., announced on Tuesday.

Photo courtesy of the Peterborough Petes.

The three-day camp runs from July 1 to 3 where 12 forwards, seven defensemen and four goalies were invited.

Simpson is part of seven free agents that were invited to the camp, including Carter Schade, Jagger Joshua, Brayden Schuurman, Evan Vierling, Justin Lee and Owen Flores.

Goalie and skater on-ice sessions start at 1 p.m. on July 1, followed by practice at 1:45 p.m. Another goalie on-ice session is running at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, followed by a skills session at 11:00 a.m. and a split squad practice at noon. The prospect tournament is running on the following Monday at noon.

Simpson played 51 games this regular season with a 2.73 goals against average (GAA) and save percentage (SV%) of .914. He had a 2.80 GAA and .918 SV% in the playoffs. He was given the Wayne Gretzky 99 Award for most valuable player in the 2023 Ontario Hockey League playoffs. The London-born goaltender had a 2-3 record in the Memorial Cup and helped his team get a third-place finish.

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