Former Peterborough Pete Akil Thomas Signs Two-Year Extension With the Los Angeles Kings

Former Peterborough Petes Akil Thomas is staying in the City of Angels as he signed a two-year contract with the Los Angeles Kings through the 2025-26 season, announced on Thursday.

Akil Thomas skating with a young fan prior to a game. Photo courtesy of the PEterborough Petes.

The contract is worth an average annual value of $775,000. 

The Petes acquired him in a trade from the Niagara IceDogs in January 2020 for Cameron Butler, two second-round picks (2020, 2022), one third-round pick (2022), and a fourth-round pick (2024).

He played 22 games for the Petes, scoring nine goals and 31 assists, before the Ontario Hockey League was shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic. On May 15 last year, Thomas was invited back to the Peterborough Memorial Centre for Game Three of the OHL Championship against the London Knights as part of the pre-game ceremonies to pump up the fans.

Thomas is well-known for his game-winning goal for Team Canada in the gold-medal game against Russia at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship in the Czech Republic.

The Toronto native was drafted by the Kings in 2018 in the second round, 51st overall. Following his OHL career, Thomas spent time with the Kings’ AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign, since the 2020-21 season.

On July 8, he signed a one-year deal with the Kings after his entry-level contract had expired.

He played 64 games with the Reign last season, scoring 22 goals and 24 assists.

Thomas debuted with the Kings on April 1 against the Winnipeg Jets after an upper-body injury to centreman Philip Danault.

In his seven games with Los Angeles, he scored three goals and an assist including a game-winner against the San Jose Sharks on April 4.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Tiktok. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for PTBOBuzz newsletter here.

Peterborough Petes Sign Second-Round Pick to OHL Scholarship and Development Agreement

The Peterborough Petes has signed 2024 second-round pick Blake Gowan to an OHL Scholarship and Development Agreement announced on Wednesday afternoon.

Photo courtesy of Kenneth Andersen and the Peterborough Petes.

“It’s an honour to be a part of such an amazing organization,” said Gowan. “I can’t wait to get to Peterborough and get started.”

The Petes selected the Kingston-born defenceman in the second round, 32nd overall, of the 2024 OHL Priority Selection. He played in 33 games with the Barrie Colts U16 last season, scoring two goals and 25 assists for 27 points.

In 10 playoff games, he scored three times and added eight assists for 11 points en route to an OMHA Championship and a spot in the OHL Cup.

“On behalf of the Petes, I’d like to welcome Blake to the team,” said Michael Oke, Petes general manager and vice president of operations. “Blake is a solid, hard-hitting defenceman who makes good decisions in his own end. We had the opportunity to watch Blake a lot this season with Barrie and were very impressed with his play, especially in the playoffs and the OMHA Championship.”

Gowan is the second Petes pick from the 2024 Priority Selection to commit to the team after the team signed third-overall pick Colin Fitzgerald to an OHL Scholarship and Development Agreement on May 4.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Former Peterborough Pete and OHL Champion Cory Stillman Named Guelph Storm Head Coach

Former Peterborough Pete and OHL Champion Cory Stillman has been named the head coach of the Guelph Storm, announced on Thursday.

Photo courtesy of the Ontario HockeyLeague.

Stillman will become the club’s 18th head coach in franchise history.

“Cory brings a wealth of experience as a player and champion as well as a mentor and a teacher of young players,” said George Burnett, Storm general manager. “His desire to return to a head coaching role and lead our group both on and off the ice was very apparent throughout this process. I look forward to working closely with Cory to continue to move our program forward.”

Stillman played in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) for three seasons. He has won the Emms Family Trophy as OHL Rookie of the Year with the Windsor Spitfires in 1991 and won a J. Ross Robertson Cup with his hometown Peterborough Petes in 1993. Stillman amassed 271 points in 178 regular-season games and 26 points in 36 career playoff games during his OHL careern.

He was drafted sixth overall by the Calgary Flames in the 1992 NHL Entry Draft. Stillman registered 727 points in 1025 career NHL games with Flames, St. Louis Blues, Tampa Bay Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes, Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers. Stillman won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Lightning and Hurricanes in 2003-04 and 2005-06.

After his playing career in 2010-11, Stillman went on to work in Player Development for the NHL’s Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes before returning to the OHL as Head Coach of the Sudbury Wolves in 2017-18. He mentored the likes of Quinton Byfield, Jack Thompson, Chase Stillman, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Isaak Phillips. Stillman spent three seasons as the Wolves’ bench boss before joining the Arizona Coyotes as an assistant coach in 2020-21.

“I am excited to be named the next Head Coach of the Guelph Storm,” said Stillman. “Working with Scott and George, who are both proven winners, I truly believe we can create something special in Guelph. I am looking forward to the challenge ahead.”

His son Chase was drafted 29th overall by the New Jersey Deveils in 2021. Chase spent two seasons with the Peterborough Petes and won an OHL Championship in the 2022-23 season.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Hometown PTBO: Porter Martone Captaining Team Canada to a Gold Medal at the IIHF U18 World Championships

This week on Hometown PTBO, David Tuan Bui talks with Mississauga Steelhead Porter Martone about captaining Team Canada to an IIHF U18 World Championship Gold Medal, his father and former NHLer Mike Martone and why he was named “Porter.”

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Peterborough's Porter Martone Captains Canada to Gold At the IIHF U18 World Championship With 6-4 Win Over the United States

Peterborough’s Porter Martone may not have gotten on the scoresheet in the finals but he captained Team Canada for a 6-4 win over the United States to win a gold medal at the IIHF U18 World Championship at the Metro Areena in Espoo, Finland on Sunday afternoon.

Photo courtesy of Hockey Canada.

Four of Canada’s goals came from the power play thanks in part to USA’s Trevor Connelly who was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct for a check to the head. Three of Canada’s man-advantage scores came from the major penalty.

Martone had a chance to score and tie the game with a man advantage near midway through the final frame. He received a pass from outside the faceoff circle in a high-danger area but was robbed by USA goaltender Nick Kempf.

Team Canada’s hero in the final game went to Martone’s linemate in Gavin McKenna who scored a hat trick including an empty-net goal as an insurance marker to win the game and championship.

Martone ended the tournament with five goals, 12 assists for 19 points in seven games.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Share

Peterborough Petes Sign Colin Fitzgerald to OHL Scholarship and Development Agreement

The Peterborough Petes has signed Colin Fitzgerald to an Ontario Hockey League Scholarship and Development Agreement on Saturday afternoon.

Photo courtesy of the Peterborough Petes.

The Peterborough native was selected by the Petes in the first round, third overall of the 2024 OHL Priority Selection. Last season, he featured in 34 games with the U16 Peterborough Petes scoring 39 goals and adding 25 assists for 64 points. In eight playoff games, he scored 13 times and added eight assists, helping the Petes to the OMHA Championships and the 2024 OHL Cup.

“It’s special to continue to be wearing the maroon and white and play for my hometown team,” said Fitzgerald. “Thank you to Coach Wilson and Mike Oke for giving me the opportunity to be a Pete.”

In six OHL Cup games, the 6’1”, 174 lbs centre finished tied for the tournament lead in scoring with eight goals and five assists for 13 points, leading the Petes to a semi-final finish and being named to the All-Star team.

“We’re extremely excited to add Colin to our group,” said Michael Oke, Petes general manager and vice president of operations. “Colin is a very talented right-handed centreman who uses his size to his advantage. He’s got a good shot and is strong at faceoffs. With Colin being a Peterborough native, we were able to watch him a lot this year as he continuously improved his game, leading the U16 Petes to an OHL Cup Semi-final appearance and being named to the tournament all-star team. We’re looking forward to aiding in his development for years to come.” 

The CHL Import Draft takes place on July 3 at 110 a.m. The Petes hold the ninth overall selection in the draft.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Porter Martone's Nets a Goal in 4-0 Shutout Of Latvia In IIHF U18 World Championship Quarterfinals

Peterborough’s Porter Martone helped Team Canada get a 4-0 win over Latvia with a goal in the quarterfinals of the IIHF U18 World Championship at the Vantaa Trio Areena in Vantaa, Finland on Thursday afternoon.

Photo courtesy of Hockey Canada.

His lone game came in the with less than eight minutes left in the third period.

After the Latvian goalie made a high-danger save, Caleb Desnoyers coralled the puck and brought it back to the point. He wristed it towards the net and Martone was able to tip it in for a 3-0 lead as another insurance marker.

Canada tacked on another empty net goal with less than a minute left in regulation to make it 4-0 and got the shutout win over Latvia.

Canada has a rematch against Sweden in the semifinals. The former won by a score of 6-3 on April 25. The winner takes on the victor of Slovakia and the United States in the opposite semifinal bracket.

The gold and silver medal games take place on Sunday morning.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Share

Porter Martone's Five Points Helps Topple Kazakhstan 11-3 At IIHF U18 World Championship

Peterborough’s Porter Martone led Team Canada with a five-point game to dismantle Kazakhstan 11-3 at the Vantaa Trio Areena in Vantaa, Finland on Tuesday afternoon.

Photo courtesy of Hockey Canada.

Martone got a goal and four assists in the game.

His first point was late in the opening period as the secondary assist for Maxim Massé’s one-timer power-play goal with under three minutes left in the frame.

Martone had three points in the second period: a primary assist, a secondary helper, and a goal.

His first was when he entered the zone on the rush with an outnumbered attack. He left a drop pass for Gavin McKenna who gave it to Henry Mews in the high slot and quickly snapped it home for a 5-1 game.

The Mississauga Steelhead’s next point came from intercepting a pass in the offensive zone and immediately dished it to McKenna who scored on the backhand for a 7-1 lead.

The captain’s only goal came from a one-timer where the cross-crease pass found Martone’s stick and had an easy tap-in for the 8-1 lead.

His final point was an assist late in the third period. He passed the puck back off a faceoff win to his defenceman which eventually allowed one of his forward linemates, McKenna, get his second of the game, giving him a 10-2 lead and an eventual 11-3 victory.

Canada finishes first in Group B and will play an opponent to be determined for Thursday in the quarterfinals.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Share

Porter Martone's Hat Trick Leads Canada In 8-1 Rout Over Switzerland In IIHF U18 World Championship

The captain led the way as Peterborough’s Porter Martone’s hat trick helped Team Canada rout Switzerland 8-1 at the Vantaa Trio Areena in Vantaa, Finland on Sunday afternoon.

Photo courtesy of Hockey Canada.

His first goal came on the power play in the second period as teammate Gavin McKenna got into the zone and knifed through the defence and got a shot off. Martone knocked the rebound out of the air and in for a power play goal and a 4-1 lead.

Martone got his second goal in the last minute as Canada got into the offensive zone on the rush. McKenna fed Martone who one-timed it home to give Canada a 7-1 lead.

The Peterborough forward capped off his hat trick with a highlight-reel goal as he got the puck alone in front of the net and shot it between his legs for the 8-1 win.

Canada continues their preliminary rounds and aim to stay undefeated against Kazakhstan on Tuesday at noon.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Share

Porter Martone Nets Two Assists In 6-3 Win Over Sweden In 2024 IIHF U18 World Championship

It was a good start for captain and Peterborough’s Porter Martone and Team Canada as they dispatched Sweden in their opening preliminary round 6-3 at the Vantaa Trio Areena in Vantaa, Finland on Thursday afternoon.

Photo courtesy of Hockey Canada.

Martone led the team in assists with two, getting the helpers late in the first and second periods.

His first assist came on the power play as Team Canada was cycling the puck in the offensive zone. Martone had the puck from behind the net on the goalie’s left side. He made a cross-crease pass to Gavin McKenna who buried the one-timer for a 3-1 lead.

His second helper came on a delayed penalty call against Sweden. Martone came through the wing and past the faceoff circle. He tried to toe drag his way through traffic but lost the puck. It fortunately came to Matthew Schaefer’s stick who one-timed it for a 5-3 lead.

Canada goes back to work on Friday, where they take on Czechia at noon.

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Share