Sports
Orangeville Minor Hockey hosts Annual Fall Classic to kick off season
October 1, 2026 · 0 Comments
By Chris Perrotte
The 2026-27 season kicked off with the Orangeville Minor Hockey Annual Fall Classic at Tony Rose Memorial Sports Centre and the Alder Street Recreation Centre from Sept. 25 to 27.
Five Orangeville Flyers teams represented the Town of Orangeville by making it to the finals in their respective divisions. The championship matches took place on Sunday, Sept. 27, capping off a weekend of tournament competition.
In the U14 Boys AA Division, the Flyers faced the Kingston Canadiens in a very tight defensive match. Both teams exchanged scoring opportunities but didn’t have an answer for each other’s goaltenders. At the end of regulation, the score was tied 0-0, with overtime solving nothing. A shootout was the only way to resolve this game.
Kingston scored on all three of their shootout attempts while the Flyers went one for three. The final score was 1-0 in favour of the Canadiens, who took home gold medals.
After first- and second-place medals were handed out by some Orangeville Minor Hockey officials, the Flyers skated off the ice to applause from the crowd in appreciation of their hard work during the game.
“I got a great squad in there (dressing room). None of those boys are hanging their heads down low. Very proud, and I couldn’t ask for a better squad,” said Chris Randell, U14 head coach for the Orangeville Minor Hockey Association (OMHA).
Eighty-Three teams competed this year in the Orangeville Fall Classic across 15A and AA divisions from U10 through U18. The organizers of this year’s tournament couldn’t be happier with the results.
“We were extremely pleased with the turnout throughout the weekend. With teams travelling to Orangeville from communities across Ontario, our arenas were busy from Friday morning right through championship Sunday. It was great to see so many players, families, coaches and spectators in our community supporting the tournament,” said Melissa Wilson, director of communications for the OMHA.
Every rink had supporters in the stands from out of town and right here at home in Orangeville. They cheered on their teams, showing love for the young players on the ice.
“It’s a great community [Orangeville] to play hockey in. Everybody supports their Flyers and comes out to root us on. It’s amazing,” said Justin Deabaitua, head coach of the U16 AA Flyers, who’s team lost in the finals against the South Oxford Storm.
A tournament of this magnitude couldn’t have been successful without the help of the volunteers, tournament convener, board members, arena staff, officials, timekeepers, vendors, sponsors and everyone who made this tournament what it was.
“It was pretty fun. A lot of aggressiveness, a lot of speed, just an overall fun tournament,” said William Nielsen, who plays right wing for the U15 Kitchener Rangers. “Thank you very much [Orangeville].”
There was a buzz of excitement, joy, heartache, anticipation and memories created through the experiences of the weekend tournament. Families and supporters invested time in their players, making this an event they won’t soon forget.
“We’ve had a lot of positive feedback on how it’s been run. With all the vendors that are available. How people are being treated. It’s been really good. It’s been really positive this year,” said Jamie Britt, vice president of rep hockey for the OMHA.
On the whole, the OMHA is proud of the positive impact the Fall Classic has had in the community.
“Beyond hockey itself, we are most proud of the atmosphere the Fall Classic creates. It brings hundreds of players and their families into Orangeville and the surrounding communities for the weekend, while giving our local Flyers teams the opportunity to compete in a large tournament right here at home,” said Wilson.
“We are very proud of how the weekend came together and are already looking at ways to continue building and improving the Fall Classic for next year.”
The following list are championship teams for each division:
Any team with a * listed means the Orangeville Flyers came in second place.
- U10AA – Halton Hills Thunder
- U10A – Delhi Norwich 59ers
- U11AA – Centre Wellington Fusion *
- U11A – Southeast Surge *
- U12AA Waterloo Wolves
- U12A – Southeast Surge
- U13AA – SOO Jr. Greyhounds
- U13A – Bruce Grey Bulls
- U14AA – Kingston Canadians *
- U14A – Cambridge Hawks *
- U15AA – Kitchener Jr. Rangers
- U15A – Copper Cliff Reds
- U16AA – South Oxford Storm *
- U16A – Guelph Gryphons
- U18A – Welland Tigers
For further updates on tournaments and games throughout the hockey season, visit orangevilleminorhockey.com
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