your home for hockey

About North Toronto

“I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.”
–Wayne Gretzky

Your home for hockey!

With approximately 1300 families participating in our programs, the North Toronto Hockey Association has deep and important roots in our midtown district. Through sport, we celebrate the lessons of teamwork and leadership while reaching out to the rest of the city and beyond.

Mission & Values

Our mission is to provide the youth of our community with a safe, fun and inclusive environment in which to learn, play and compete in ice hockey while promoting community bonds and a life-long love of hockey and participation in sport.

All of our programming is guided by the principles of integrity, inclusiveness, sportsmanship, honesty, respect, compassion, and fairness.

President's Desk

A Message from Blair Robinson, President

Dear North Toronto Hockey Players and Families.

Please accept this as a belated note of welcome to a new season at the North Toronto Hockey Association as we enter our third week of House League games and Learn-to-Play skill sessions, along with the ongoing practices and games for our CDS, Select and GTHL programs. We hope that hockey will be a source of joy and a welcome respite to all of you. There is much to look forward to as we begin a new season with the excitement of new friendships, the joy of seeing familiar faces, the thrill of competition, and the opportunity to overcome challenges and celebrate successes. It’s a time of renewal and new beginnings.

I would like to welcome our new volunteers this year who are involved with our various teams and programs, as well as thank our many returning volunteers. Your time, commitment and enthusiasm for North Toronto Hockey is truly appreciated. I would particularly like to thank our outgoing President, Rich Brewda, who steered the ship these past three years which included navigating the many challenges and protocols that the recent COVID pandemic presented. Rich also participated in numerous committees and initiatives with the GTHL that were focused on making the game more accessible and he undertook to commence a partnership between North Toronto and Hockey Equality, a charitable organization that is dedicated to creating diversity and inclusion in hockey. Rich first became involved with North Toronto Hockey as a non-parent coach in our ‘A’ program in 2008, before eventually joining the board and becoming General Manager, then President. Rich will continue to remain on the NTHA Board, but is now also employing his excellent hockey knowledge and his boundless enthusiasm to coach his own two kids as they commence their hockey journeys.

With that said, our hockey club continues to grow with expanded programs for all levels of play thanks to the dedication of our division chairs, registrars, coordinators, convenors, coaches, trainers, managers, board members and our many other volunteers that are so essential to making the experience at North Toronto a positive one. For the 2023-24 season, we will have over 1,350 players registered to comprise our Learn-to-Play, House League, CDS, Select and GTHL programs. We are fortunate to live in a vibrant and healthy community with many wonderful opportunities for our youth, be it sports, academics or the arts and we do not take it for granted that you have chosen to participate in hockey with our club. We are also fortunate to live in a country that has benefitted so much from the diverse backgrounds of so many. We should never lose sight of that and do all that we can to promote acceptance and accommodate diversity at our club, be it religion, culture, race, gender or sexual orientation. Hockey is for everyone.

As we start this new season, we at the North Toronto Hockey Association ask the following of you:

Respect each other.
Be kind to each other.
Help each other.
Support each other.
Cheer for each other.

Wishing you all the best for the season ahead in 2023-24.

Best regards,

Blair Robinson, President
North Toronto Hockey Association
E: blair.robinson@nthockey.ca
Ph: (416) 402-8525

Past Presidents

Rich Brewda: 2020-2023
Claudio Tarulli: 2018-2020
Blair Robinson: 2017-2018
Chris Thompson: 2016-2017
Ben Hawkins: 2015-2016
Kathie Wood: 2014-2015
Doug Goodman: 2012-2014
Graham Lloyd: 2010-2012
Liz Ross: 2009-2010
John Kerr: 2008-2009
Steve Goodman: 2007-2008
Rich Hill: 2006-2007
Bruce Macpherson: 2005-2006
Chip Aikenhead: 2004-2005
Bruce Fowler: 2003-2004
Dan Morin: 2002-2003
Kathy Grant: 2001-2002
Tim Aikenhead: 2000-2001
Susan Krausz: 1999-2000
Pete Winnell: 1998-1999
Crawford Spratt: 1997-1998
Wally Palmer: 1996-1997
Bob Stark: 1995-1996
Elie Bendaly: 1994-1995
George Fowlie: 1992-1993
Gord Thompson: 1991-1992
Phil Walton : 1990-1991
Tim Moseley: 1989-1990
Peter Berry: 1988-1989
Eric Versteeg: 1987-1988
Joe Uyede: 1986-1987
Bob Bridel: 1985-1986
Ralph Selby: 1984-1985
Charlie Pielsticker: 1983-1984
Harvey Beresford: 1982-1983
Bill Porritt : 1981-1982
John Grieve: 1980-1981
Ross Kennedy: 1979-1980
Peter Sisam: 1978-1979
Paul Sapunjis: 1977-1978
Art Huycke: 1975-1977
Al Morson: 1974-1975
Greg Leishman: 1973-1974
Frank Clifton: 1971-1973
Lloyd Sutton: 1968-1971
Bruce Leeds: 1966-1968

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The NTHA is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors, consisting of a President, Vice-President, Past-President, Secretary, Treasurer and Members-at-Large responsible for administering all the operations of the hockey association. Directors serve terms of 1 year and are elected at the Annual General Meeting usually held in June.

Current Executive:

Blair Robinson, President
Lorene Nagata, Vice-President
Rich Brewda, Past-President
David Loh, Treasurer
Joanne Weedmark, Secretary

NTHA MEMBER CODE OF CONDUCT

Please review our Code of Conduct to ensure compliance for both you and your child.

Read full Code of Conduct

DISCIPLINE & DISPUTE RESOLUTION

We take the safety of our community seriously. Please review our policies on discipline and dispute resolution.

CONTACT

President – NTHA: president@nthockey.ca
Registration: registrar@nthockey.ca
House League & Learn to Play Program: hl@nthockey.ca
CDS Program: cds@nthockey.ca
Select Program: select@nthockey.ca
GTHL Program: gthl@nthockey.ca
Head of Referees: referee@nthockey.ca
Sponsorship: sponsorship@nthockey.ca
Coaching Development: coachingdevelopment@nthockey.ca
Volunteers: volunteer@nthockey.ca
Alumni and Recognition: greenwall@nthockey.ca

Ties to the past

NT: 100 Years of History

North Toronto Champions, 1914
North Toronto Bantams 1931 Rectangle
Bantams in 1931
40689620732_614b712412_o (003)
1964, before the indoor arena was built.

The history of North Toronto hockey goes back over a hundred years when frozen ponds and leather gloves were state of the art. In the top photo you can see members of a North Toronto junior team that won the 1914 championship of the Toronto Hockey League (a very early precursor to the modern Greater Toronto Hockey League). For decades, local youth and young adults participated in the THL where teams were formed and financed organically according to the availability of players and as much as world events — such as two World Wars and the Depression –would allow.

The massive baby boom and economic expansion which followed World War II greatly accelerated the uptake of hockey as all those new children and families needed to be kept busy! In 1965 a group of neighbourhood dads were inspired by the construction of the gleaming North Toronto Memorial Arena and knew that this was going to be the community’s new home for hockey. They formally established what is now known as the North Toronto Hockey Association and then, as now, the largest single program was House League. Over the years a very strong competitive program evolved and many NT teams have since won championships in both city and provincial competitions.

One of the early luminaries at North Toronto was John Gardner, who played at NT as a child and then volunteered as an adult. In 1980, John went on became the youngest President of the MTHL (the latest precursor to the GTHL) and served there for an incredible 35 years. Remarkably, John had no children of his own but he was passionate about the sport of hockey and dedicated his life to improving the game for everyone. The large function room at North Toronto Memorial Arena is named in his memory.

In 1985, the NTHA officially incorporated with the Province of Ontario as a registered non-profit organization and established a formal governance structure including an elected Board of Directors and audited financial reporting. It was around this time that the distinctive round button logo and the unmistakable red-green-white colour scheme was also formalized.

Through the 1990s and up to today, the NTHA has continued to grow the size and scope of its programming and today ranks as one of the largest and most complete minor hockey associations in the entire country, with 1,300 players enrolled in Learn to Play House League and 36 competitive “travel” teams across all age divisions. This feat is a real testament to the commitment and talent of local community because the NTHA is and always has been managed and operated by volunteers.

Since 1965, over 30,000 boys and girls have played for the Red, Green and White and many continue to return as adults to volunteer and to enroll their children in hockey.

And in 2018, one such player even returned to show off his Stanley Cup and share it with his first home for hockey. Tom Wilson of the Washington Capitals started out as a Tyke in House League and played half a dozen seasons for NT competitive teams before moving on to the very highest levels of the sport. When asked about his time spent at North Toronto, Tom said: “This is the arena where I fell in love with the game of hockey. This is where I spent every day hoping I’d make it to the NHL. Walking through the doors you get all the memories of being a kid here.”

After 100 years, it is clear that the spirit of hockey in North Toronto has never been stronger or more vibrant. And although not every player may end up winning a Stanley Cup, the valuable memories and lessons and friendships gained at North Toronto will last a lifetime.

Celebrating our Community

Alumni & Recognition

The Green Wall of Honour

The Green Wall serves as a lasting tribute to those exceptional individuals who played the game or helped to deliver the programs here at NT. It is conveniently located beside the banquet room entrance on the way to the snack bar. Come by to have a look next time you’re at the arena.

Volunteer of the Year
Honouree Year Awarded Honouree Year Awarded
Kevin Gordon 1994 Bob Grant 2009
Kaye Marten 1995 Gord Ashworth 2010
Gord Thompson 1996 Chip Aikenhead 2011
Fred Bourgase 1997 Randy Heyd 2012
Art Pollack 1997 Rich Hill 2012
David Bluestein 1998 Nora Versteeg 2013
Peter Milligan 1999 Michael Koch 2016
Ken Romanada 2000 Rich Brewda 2016
Frank Newbould 2001 Buffy McGaw 2017
Bob Daggett 2002 Catherine Graham 2017
Eric Versteeg 2003 Lesley Thompson 2018
Bill McNeil 2004 John Mulder 2018
John Wesley 2004 Margo Longwell 2019
Al Crawford 2005 David Munro 2019
Lorne Gorman 2006
Tim Aikenhead 2007
Kathy Grant 2007
Crawford Spratt 2008
Doug Lamb 2008
Lifetime Achievement Award
Honouree Year Awarded
Kathie Wood 2017
Chris Thompson 2018
Doug Goodman 2019
Green Jersey Award Names
Honouree Birth Year Honouree Birth Year
Eric Anweiler Pre 1980 Jordan Allen 1998
John Martin Pre 1980 Harrison Barford 1998
Mike Martin Pre 1980 Mitch Binder 1998
Blaise Morin 1984 Alex Johnston 1998
Jake Aikenhead 1985 Charlie Low 1998
Ben Sutin 1986 Jamieson King 1998
Robbie Wighton 1987 Dylan Levy 1998
Alex Bruner 1987 Theo Sigel 1998
Brayden Irwin 1987 Jackson Sivec 1998
Charlie Spratt 1987 Chris Smithwick 1998
James Aikenhead 1987 Michael Trenton 1998
Geoff Goodman 1987 Mich Ward 1998
Kevin McKeown 1987 Jordan White 1998
Scott Taylor 1987 Brodie Thompson 1999
Charlie Aikenhead 1988 Graham Poole 1999
Justin Babin 1990 Joe Bartkiw 1999
John Sainsbury 1990 Aaden Rourke 2000
Nick Studley 1990 Joe Gibbery 2000
Graham Scott 1990 Jake Ellis 2000
Jared Sved 1990 Grant Elias 2000
Patrick Alton 1991 Matt Loduca 2000
Mark Cameron 1991 Joe Eisentraut 2000
Brett Cameron 1991 Yunis Ruken 2000
Cole Crawford 1991 Graydon Goodman 2000
Lucas McLaughlin 1992 Jamie Stephenson-Smith 2000
Keenan Crawford 1993 Connor Montgomery 2000
Andrew Kupfer 1993 Ben Belanger 2000
Erik Martin 1993 William Alimena 2000
Broidy Rondelet 1993 Tevi Mandel 2000
Luc Babin 1993 Ty Greenberg 2000
Kyle Wright 1993 Jack Lougheed 2000
Justin Friedlich 1993 Johnny Scace 2000
Evan Lee 1993
Michael Parker 1993
Cameron Ross 1993
Christian Barker 1994
Nick Benseller 1994
Trevor Donoahue 1994
Michael Gracie 1994
Chris Masotti 1994
Thomas Purdy 1994
Thomas Corey 1995
Gardiner Goodman 1995
Cole Kay-Meltzer 1995
Liam Kehoe 1995
Matthew Mikelberg 1995
Reid Paxton 1995
Levi Tobe 1995
Graeme White 1995
Tim Clifford 1996
Clark Devins 1996
Sean Eylott 1996
Lukas Heslip 1996
Ryan Irwin 1996
Alex Kellerman 1996
Aaron Koch 1996
Matt McKinlay 1996
Jamie Moore 1996
Luc Babin 1997
Bradley Carlin 1997
Jeffrey Carlin 1997
Sam Cook 1997
Cameron Donoahue 1997
Luke Evans 1997
Will Goodman 1997
Gill Hawkins 1997
Jed Heakes-Badour 1997
Gregory Marks 1997
Riley Osborne 1997
Jake Peltier 1997
Mark Tamberg 1997
Jared Wineberg 1997
Jonah Wood 1997
Alumni Award
Honouree Birth Year
Sean Donoahue 1992
Sam Howorth 1992
Danny Babin 1993
Jake Howorth 1993
Adam Martin 1993
Damon Carrington 1995
Duncan Fitzhenry 1995
Cameron Martin 1997
Peter McLeod 1997
Alexander McLeod 1999
Ty Mendelson 1999
Jacob Goldbach 1999
Liam Bullock 1999
Mitchell Ivens 1999
Colin Mullaly 1999
Henry Stevenson 1999
Jason Sauntry 1999
Noah Tate 2000
Andrea Pallotta 2000
Cameron McMillan 2000
Eligibility Criteria

GREEN WALL OF HONOUR – ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

The NTHA has been serving the North Toronto neighbourhood and surrounding communities since 1965. Our mission is to provide a safe and fun environment to learn, play and compete in youth hockey. The Green Wall of Honour serves as a lasting tribute to those exceptional individuals who played the game at NT or helped to deliver the programs here at NT.

The Green Wall of Honour is conveniently located beside the John Gardner Banquet Room on the way to the snack bar. The names of the award recipients will be added to The Green Wall of Honour to serve as a lasting legacy at the North Toronto Hockey Association.

Consistent with North Toronto Hockey Association’s mission of providing community hockey at recreational and competitive levels, the Association has created awards to recognize the loyalty of players who have played the majority of their career with North Toronto and retire from the GTHL wearing the North Toronto Jerseys.

Green Jersey Award Eligibility:

The Green Jersey Award is awarded to a player that has played NT Select and/or NT GTHL for at least 6 consecutive seasons culminating in their “retirement”. Or a player who plays Minor Atom to Midget and missed 1 year of Competitive, but remained at NTHA playing House League during that year (7 competitive years of the preceding 8).

Alumni Club Award Eligibility:

The Alumni Club Award is awarded to a player (who does not qualify for the Green Jersey Award) who played a minimum of 8 consecutive years in Houseleague, or a combination of NTHA Houseleague, Select, and/or GTHL. This period culminated in their “retirement”

For information on the volunteer of the year award and lifetime achievement award, please see above.

Let us Know!

If you are, or you know someone who may be eligible, please have them contact Greenwall@NThockey.ca. Please provide as much information in your email as possible. Please make sure to include the following: Person’s name, birth year, what level they played at (HL, Select or GTHL), which award they are eligible for and your last coach’s name. All eligible applicants will be reviewed by the NTHA Board of Directors to verify qualifications

Keeping us Running

Our Sponsors

North Toronto Hockey Association is grateful for the support of our sponsors. As a volunteer based not-for-profit organization we rely on our sponsors to help us provide high quality hockey programs to the youth of our community. For those unable to volunteer, sponsorship is an effective way to help out and advertise/promote your company or workplace.

We are proud to recognize our sponsors for 2023-24. This year more than ever, with increasing costs we are so grateful for their support so we are able to provide a safe, fun and inclusive environment in which to learn, play and compete in ice hockey while promoting community bonds and a life-long love of hockey.

See all our sponsors.

We’d love to hear from you

Contact Info

President – NTHA: president@nthockey.ca
Registration: registrar@nthockey.ca
House League & Learn to Play Program: hl@nthockey.ca
Skills & LTP: natali.robinson@nthockey.ca
CDS Program: cds@nthockey.ca
Select Program: select@nthockey.ca
GTHL Program: gthl@nthockey.ca
Head of Referees: referee@nthockey.ca
Sponsorship: sponsorship@nthockey.ca
Coaching: coaching@nthockey.ca
Volunteers: volunteer@nthockey.ca
Alumni and Recognition: greenwall@nthockey.ca