Thunder hope to storm into 2026-27 season

The men behind the Thunder took a moment out for a photo during a recent strategy session. Left to right are: Mike Holly, president/owner; Terry Corbin, coach; and Joe Ryan, general manager. (Jeff Helsdon photo)

Jeff Helsdon, Editor

The Thunder will hit the Tillsonburg ice for the first time this weekend with some exciting additions, plus the return of team veterans.

The bench will see bigger changes after the former head coach stepped down shortly before training started.

Brantford resident Terry Corbin will be head coach and brings with him experience gained on the bench in Slangton, St. George, Port Dover, and with Simcoe Gunners.

“I saw a posting that they were looking for a head coach and where I was going to coach, they didn’t have the numbers (for a team,” Corbin said. “Because this rolled out quickly, it was an easy decision.”

Joe Ryan, who started as assistant coach three seasons ago and then went to Stoney Creek last year, will be general manager.

Asked why he stepped up, Ryan answered, “I was just a part of it on the sidelines for many years and wanted to step into more roles.”

President/owner Mike Holly said the team is much improved this year, and the changes behind the bench and to player ranks bring experience. His focus is on “a trophy at the end”. Last year, the Thunder moved to the Ontario Elite Hockey League and lost to Saugeen Shores in the A final.

Veteran player Mike Findlay will skate again in a Thunder shirt. He hit 400 games with the team last year, and has been there since the team started.

“He’s our veteran of all veterans,” Findlay said.

Justin Abraham will be returning as captain. Braden Roberts, who was a scoring leader last year, will also be back. Andrew Oosterveld has an interesting story – last year was his first year in coordinated ice hockey, but he played roller hockey with Team Canada. He was third for points last year. Braden Roberts will also be back.

“We really strengthened up the D to start,” Ryan said of this year’s roster. “We strengthened on the back end between the netminding and defence.”

Elaborating on the goaltending, netminder Ben Blacker, who played in NCAA Division 1 for Western Michigan University, will be between the pipes as the number one goaltender. His number two will be Tyler Bouck, a local who played the last four years with the Woodstock Navy Vets before signing with the Thunder this year.

“Tyler’s going to learn off Ben,” Ryan said. “To play in front of your family close to home, it’s fantastic.”

The team also signed Harlan VanWynsberghe, another Tillsonburg player, as well as Matt Montgomery, who played for a Stratford team that folded.

The team currently has 24 players signed, which is where Holly wants it so there is flexibility to add to the roster through the season.

“Players want to play here; we get huge support,” he said.

The team started the season with two practice skates in July, one in August, then weekly since the beginning of September.

Tillsonburg and Tavistock will again start their seasons with a home-and-home series, with the winner decided on total score between the two games. The Tavistock game is Sept. 19, and the Tillsonburg game is Sept. 26. The home opener of the regular season is Oct. 19.

The regular season again has regular feature nights like Veterans Night (Nov. 14), Student Day (Nov. 22), Teddy Bear Toss (Dec. 12), and First Responders Night (Dec. 19).

Tickets are $5 for ages 6 to 15 and $15 for ages 16 and over.