Fans of the Frontenac Flyers new novice rep team were sporting their team’s jerseys in Fenelon Falls this past weekend, where the Flyers faced off against the Sturgeon Lake Thunder in the All-Ontario Novice CC finals.

The Flyers “fought really hard but needed some bounces” said parent and League President Al Pixley after then team lost both games to the Sturgeon Lake Thunder by 6-1 scores.

The loss, however, does not mean the end for the Flyers. The team still stands a chance, however, as they are playing a 6 point series where wins are worth 2 points and ties 1 point.

In order to extend the series, they need at least a tie in the game that is scheduled for 7:30 on Friday Night (March 18) at the Frontenac Arena. If they can manage that they will play again on Saturday (March 19) at 3:00, again at the Frontenac arena. If they manage a win and a tie in the two games, the series would go to a deciding game in Fenelon Falls next Thursday (March 24).

But the focus for now is Friday's game. Team officials are calling on all community members to come out and support the 7-8 year old local heroes on Friday night, asking fans to wear Frontenac orange or Flyers sweaters if they have them.

“The boys could sure use a boost on Friday Night,” said Pixley.

Go Flyers GO!

In other arena news, the Frontenac Arena was not one the 10 Kraft Hockeyville shortlisted arenas, but upgrades to the heating system are still on tap for this summer, subject to final approvals from South and Central Frontenac Councils this week and next.

On Friday, March 4, the new Frontenac Flyers Novice Rep team won a close, hard fought game and series against Bancroft! The Flyers won all three games against the Bancroft Jets in the Ontario semis with scores of 14-6, 7-2, and 5-4, and as a result of their win, they will now advance to the all-Ontario Novice CC Finals against Sturgeon Lake next weekend.

This is the first time in over 20 years that a Frontenac Flyers rep team will be heading to the finals. The team will face off against Sturgeon Lake Thunder in two away games in Fenelon Falls, on Saturday, March 12 at 12:30 pm and Sunday, March 13 at 1:30 pm.

Their third game will take place on the Flyers’ home turf at the Frontenac Community Arena in Piccadilly on Friday, March 18 at 7:30 pm.

The team is comprised of 12 players: 10 skaters and two goalies aged 7 and 8. They won all 12 games in round robin play before heading into the all-Ontario semi-finals. Coach Jason Quesnel, along with team manager Rob Edmunds and trainer Travis Young, are pleased with the team’s hard work. Al Pixley, president of the Frontenac Minor Hockey Association, is equally thrilled with the team’s success, which he said has been two years in the making.

“This has been a two-year plan and last year we started a tyke select program, which was the building block to get these players ready for the novice rep team", Pixley said.

This is the first time the association has had a novice rep team in five or six years and Pixley credited everyone involved for the team’s success. “It's a result of a lot of practice and hard work of the players, parents, coaches, trainers and managers that has really paid off and contributed to the team’s success”.

Fans are encouraged to come out to the Frontenac Arena in Piccadilly to support the team in game three of the finals on Friday, March 18 at 7:30 pm; fans are also encouraged to wear orange. If a fourth game is necessary, it will take place at the arena on Sat. March 19.

Members of the Frontenac Minor Hockey Association have launched a brand new ball hockey league and have invited players to sign up. Games will commence in April at the Frontenac Community Arena in Piccadilly.

The new league will be open to youth aged 3-17 and will allow ball hockey players to play the sport closer to home, on their home turf at the Frontenac Arena. Since previously, many of them had been traveling to Kingston, this will be a much lesser expense.

President of the Frontenac Minor Hockey Association, Al Pixley, said that the association talked about starting up the activity last year, but was not able to due to a lack of volunteers. “This year, we had more volunteers stepping up and our executive pushed really hard to get the activity off the ground.”

He also credited Frontenac Community Arena manager, Tim Laprade, whom he said has been extremely generous in offering up the Frontenac Community Arena for use.

To date, over 150 players have already signed up and the deadline for registration is April 10, 2016. Play will commence on Sunday, April 24 at the Frontenac Community Arena in Piccadilly. For more information, visit www.frontenachockey.ca or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

All proceeds from the FMHA's ball hockey will go towards purchasing new heaters at the arena.

Celebrate your family’s special memories and milestones, or honour a particular important individual in your life with an engraved commemorative brick in the Frontenac Community Arena’s Commemorative Wall. Whether you choose to add your own name, your business or to honour the memory of a loved one, our commemorative brick program will continue to grow, one brick at a time. For a contribution of $150 or more you can have incorporated a customized engraved 3”x11” brick with your 3-line message, with a maximum of twelve characters per line. Engraving of the bricks for the commemorative wall will occur in the spring during the arena’s annual shut down period. All bricks will be placed randomly amongst the existing bricks on the wall. We cannot guarantee special positioning due to the nature of this project. Official tax receipts will be given for donations of $150 or more.

We hope that you will donate towards a brick and help add to the over 230 bricks and 400 names on the commemorative wall. For information, contact Frontenac Community Arena at 613-374-2177; email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..  

It is not often that one sees great grandmothers attending hockey games at the Frontenac Community Arena, but great grandmother Barb Stewart of Verona had three very good reasons (and then some) to be there on the afternoon of March 22.

Barb, along with a number of other family relations, were sitting rink side to watch Barb's three grand daughters, 10-year-old cousins, Sophie Norman, Jenna Norman and Taylor McParland, showing their skills out on the ice. The girls, who play, respectively, defense, left wing and goalie for the Atom Girls Frontenac Fury team, were facing off in an exhibition game against the Kingston Ice Wolves (blues) and it just so happens that they are not the only three representatives of the Stewart family on the team. The girls are coached by Barb's eldest grandson Jason Norman, father of Sophie and son of Barb's daughter Linda.

In all, the game attracted four generations of the Stewart family to the arena, which over the decades has been a family hub for this large, multi-generational hockey-playing family.

Hockey indeed runs deep in their blood. Barb in fact is likely one of the only great grandmothers in the area who can boast three great granddaughters on a single team. And it seems no coincidence that the three girls play the exact same positions of their own family hockey mentors. Mallory Garrison, mother of goalie Taylor said the family's love of hockey comes honestly. “Taylor's grandfather Tom played as a goalie in his days on the ice and Taylor, who just started playing this year was asked in her second practice if she wanted to have a try at it. She really has a knack for it, which she likely gets from her Grampy.”

Barb told a funny story of how Taylor called her up on the pone after one of her games and said, “I took over Grampy's spot.” Grampy, Barb’s son Tom Stewart, played goalie for years at the arena and Barb recalled one season in which he won 17 straight games.

Sarah Norman, wife of coach Jason and mother of Sophie, said her daughter has been playing for five years and also comes by her talents honestly since her dad played defense on numerous Frontenac teams since he was seven years old.

Jenna, who has been playing for three years, not surprisingly plays left wing, the same position her dad Greg played for years. It is no wonder that the cousins definitely held their own out on the ice. Though the Fury lost the game 1-0, Taylor made impressive saves - too many to count - throughout the game and received multiple high fives from her team mates. Both Jenna and Sophie also played solidly.

The girls’ parents and relatives are thrilled to have the cousins playing together regularly at least two or three times a week. Naturally, the games are a great excuse for the whole family to get together on a regular basis.

The Fury will play this weekend in a Kanata tournament, which will wrap up their season for the year. The team had eight brand new players and three novice players this year, and had a great regular season. They finished as finalists in their Newmarket tournament, got to the semis in the Ice Wolf Tournament and finished in fourth place in their own league tournament.

The three girls if they choose, could end up playing Frontenac hockey together for years to come and no doubt it will not be the last time that their great grandmother Barb turns up to watch them and feel, naturally, very proud.

The Frontenac Community Arena in Piccadilly will once again be hosting South Frontenac's Family Day.

The event is sponsored by the South Frontenac Recreation Committee and includes ice skating in the arena, wagon rides, games, snow shoe races, an obstacle course, hot dogs, hamburgers and hot chocolate.

And all events and food is free, courtesy of the Rec. Committee.

This year Family Day will also be the kick off event for the Frontenac County 150th anniversary celebrations. To mark the occasion, Gilmour's on 38 of Harrowsmith has generously donated 150 barbeque sausages to “fire up” the celebrations.

Photo: Colleen, Jim, Cheryl and Steve from Gilmour's

The weather cleared just a bit and a warm front broke through the early fall chill at the Piccadilly cemetery on Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 23. Before holding one of the final council meetings of the term in the nearby hall, members of council and staff of Central Frontenac Township joined with the family of the late Bill Snyder to dedicate a bench in his honour. Mayor Janet Gutowski spoke of the legacy left by Snyder, who died in February while still a member of Council, a position he held for 35 years. “Bill was dedicated to Hinchinbrooke and Central Frontenac Township and his beloved Piccadilly area. Bill was tenacious when he wanted to get things done, and he insisted that things were done properly. We won't see another like him,” she said.

A moment of silence was held to mark the occasion, then everyone walked slowly to the Piccadilly hall to carry on the business of the township.

One of the misconceptions about kids' hockey that the volunteer board of the Frontenac Minor Hockey Association (FMHA) is trying to overcome is that getting kids into hockey is an expensive proposition.

It costs $100 to sign up children in the Learn to Skate program; $300 for the Tyke league; and even for teenaged youth the $500 annual cost is not that high considering that the season runs for six months and includes practices and games each week.

Cheryl Hallam, a hockey parent and communications co-ordinator for Frontenac Minor Hockey, moved to South Frontenac with her husband and two children three years ago. “We were paying $875 for our six-year-old son in Calgary,” she said. “It is more affordable here.”

The Flyers hold a used equipment sale in September, which helps defray the cost of new equipment for young players just starting out in the game.

“It is very important for the future of our league to bring young children to the game. We emphasize learning the game and having fun for boys and girls,” she said. “It's kind of a neat little gem of a house league that we have over here. The kids get to play in rinks around the region and at the Frontenac Arena, and there is a lot of camaraderie among the parents.”

Al Pixley is the current FMHA President, having taken on the role last year. He has been involved in hockey in Piccadilly at the Frontenac Arena, as a player and a coach, pretty much all of his life.

He says the current executive has the goal of “trying to create as many fun experiences for the kids as possible.”

He said that the Learn to Skate program provides a good opportunity for children who are not ready or not sure about playing in a league to get out and learn to skate with their parents. It runs for 10 weeks starting in October. "The more we can get kids skating the better it is for us, and for them.”

Children of any age, even those with no hockey experience, can play Frontenac hockey. The players attend clinics in September and then are evaluated. The teams are then made up, with an emphasis on making teams that will be competitive with each other.

The Flyers play with other rural teams that rim Kingston, including Gananoque, Deseronto, Tamworth and Amhersview, and the Flyers are fortunate to have had multiple teams in each division in recent years, a tradition that the team's executive is keen to keep going.

They are working hard to register children from North, South, and Central Frontenac. Online registration is available at Frontenachockey.ca along with details about the team and multiple ways to contact team officials, who are happy to answer any questions about how the league works.

They can also help parents navigate through a new initiative from Hockey Canada this year, Respect in Sport, a mandatory online session that at least one parent must take before their children can register this year.

“Respect in Sport fits with the goal of making sure hockey is fun and healthy for the players, coaches and parents. It is an imposition on families to take the course, but it is not long or difficult to take. It is just Hockey Canada's way of reinforcing the values that make hockey a Canadian tradition that endures,” said Cheryl Hallam.

For further information, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..