VIDEO: Renfrew hosts first ever Junior A hockey game

Wolves entertain crowd with pregame fun

Sunday, September 26, 2021

There was plenty of fanfare to be had at the first home opener for the newly minted junior A Renfrew Wolves, including an inflatable Wolves’ head, dry smoke, a flood light and official puck drop by Mayor Don Eady.

“It was a good start to the first ever junior A game in Renfrew,” coach Ryan Leonard said. “Overall it was excellent. It was fun. I think the crowd had a good feel about what the team will bring this year.”

The team brought a 4-1 win over the Rockland Nationals before a crowd of 255. After the feeling out period at Ma-Te-Way Centre, the second ended with the teams locked 1-1. Renfrew took over in the third with three unanswered goals.

Eady is pleased to see the team in town, in part for the inspiration it will bring to kids. But also for more practical reasons.

“This is a big deal to the town,” he said, as play got underway on Saturday, Sept. 25. “A junior A hockey team is like a small industry coming to town.”

That industry is also counting on more customers. The team hopes to bring in 350 to 400 fans for every game. As pandemic measures continue to ease, and word spreads on just how high the skill level is – including from four local lads in captain Tyson Tomasini, John Enright, Brendan Hill and Reid Greer – Leonard is confident fans will buy in.

The teams plays in the Central Canada Hockey League.