Peterborough, Ont. – The Ontario Hockey League proudly recognized two of its member teams with annual Business Leadership Awards on Wednesday afternoon at the 2023 OHL June Meetings.
The OHL champion Peterborough Petes were presented with the OHL Community Involvement Award while the Guelph Storm received the League’s Franchise Development Award.
OHL Community Involvement Award – Peterborough Petes
The Petes ended their season on a roll, selling out 14 consecutive home games en route to their first OHL Championship since 2006. Along the way though, the Petes embedded themselves in the Peterborough community, raising more than $270,000 through 50-50 draws with funds used to support the Peterborough Minor Hockey Council. An additional $270,000 raised through various initiatives, including the annual Pink In the Rink campaign that brought in over $60,000, went to other charities in the community including the Peterborough Regional Health Centre Foundation.
The Petes also created a free ball hockey program held at elementary schools across the region, bringing barrier-free access to the game to over 2,000 young students. They also organized a number of equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives, most notably taking part in the inaugural PWHPA OHL Showcase in February that resulted in a crowd of 3,480 at the Peterborough Memorial Centre to see professional women’s hockey.
OHL Franchise Development Award – Guelph Storm
The Guelph Storm earned the OHL’s Franchise Development Award, finishing top-four across the League in four different key business categories including ticket revenue, overall group sales revenue, total group tickets sold and sponsorship. They managed to do so despite a slow start to the season on the ice that saw the team drop nine of its first 10 decisions. The Storm would rebound later in the season, finishing with a record of 35-28-4-1 in front of their dedicated fan base.
Awards were presented by OHL Vice-President Cole Butterworth and Director of Business Operations Matt Gergely to staff members from both organizations in attendance.
The League extends congratulations to the Petes and Storm on their hard work and commitment to excellence in 2022-23.
