Shannon Coulter
They have been counting down to the 2026 TELUS Cup all season, and now the Peterborough Petes are ready to welcome the best teams in the country to compete for Canada’s U18 Men’s National Club Championship.
The Petes were a little bit of a yo-yo team in the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA); after opening with three-straight wins, they dropped four in a row, setting off on a regular season that saw them never win more than three in a row (which they did twice) and only twice losing back-to-back games after that early-season skid.
They finished as the sixth-place team in the East Division with an 18-13-1 record and were 12th across the entire OMHA. A promising playoff run fell agonizingly short of the OMHA championship tournament after a shootout loss to the Markham Waxers in a championship play-in game (which means it’ll have been 43 days between games by the time they open their TELUS Cup schedule).
Defence wins championships, and Peterborough certainly shone defensively. It allowed the fourth-fewest goals in the OMHA during the regular season (83), and part of that is thanks to Lucas Tsioutsioulas. The 17-year-old goaltender—who was selected 12th overall by the Saginaw Spirit in the OHL U18 Priority Selection—posted a 10-4 record with a 1.92 goals-against average and .854 save percentage.
Offensively, the Petes are led by Garrett Jones, who recorded 47 points (23-24—47), 18 more than any other Peterborough skater and good for sixth in OMHA scoring.
Entering their first-ever TELUS Cup, the Petes do not have history on their side; since 1984, only 10 host teams have played in the gold medal game and only three (and none since 1991) have won the national club championship on home ice.
HOW THEY GOT TO PETERBOROUGH
Ontario Minor Hockey Association East Division (Pool B): 2nd place (6-4) – defeated Markham Waxers 5-2, lost to Quinte Red Devils 4-2, lost to Markham Waxers 3-2 (OT), defeated York-Simcoe Express 3-1, lost to Barrie Jr. Colts 5-4 (OT), defeated Central Ontario Wolves 6-2, defeated Central Ontario Wolves 3-0, defeated Quinte Red Devils 5-1, lost to Barrie Jr. Colts 5-4, defeated York-Simcoe Express 6-3
Play-in game: lost to Markham Waxers 3-2 (SO)
REGULAR SEASON
Record (W-L- T): 18-13-1 (12th in OMHA) Goals for: 107 (7th in OMHA) Goals against: 83 (4th in OMHA) Longest winning streak: 3 (Oct. 3-14; Dec. 9-16) Top 3 scorers: - Garrett Jones – 23G 24A 47P (6th in OMHA) - Anthony Farrace – 18G 11A 29P (31st in OMHA) - Brandt Rooyakkers – 7G 17A 24P (62nd in OMHA)
PLAYOFFS
Record: 6-5 Goals for: 42 Goals against: 29
Top 3 scorers: - Garrett Jones – 4G 16A 20P - Anthony Farrace – 8G 7A 15P - Brandt Rooyakkers – 3G 8A 11P
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
First appearance
OHL DRAFTED PLAYERS
Lucas Tsioutsioulas – Saginaw Spirit 2025 (U18 - 1st round, 12th overall) Daniel Tout – Peterborough Petes 2025 (6th round, 104th overall) Ty Gendron – Peterborough Petes 2025 (11th round, 204th overall) Garrett Jones – Saginaw Spirit 2025 (11th round, 215th overall) Teagan Hartnett – Niagara IceDogs 2024 (12th round, 223rd overall) Joseph Szarka – Peterborough Petes 2025 (12th round, 224th overall) Brandt Rooyakkers – Peterborough Petes 2025 (13th round, 244th overall) Chase Mackay – Peterborough Petes 2025 (14th round, 264th overall) Joshua Goodwin – Peterborough Petes 2025 (15th round, 301st overall)