South Frontenac Mayor continues Township’s winning hockey tradition

Craig Bakay | May 02, 2018

The Frontenac Flyers weren’t the only champions in South Frontenac Township this hockey season. Mayor Ron Vandewal also has a championship trophy for this year, albeit took him some 50 years more than the Flyers to get one.

Vandewal was a defenceman with the Frontenac Fossils 60+ team that came back recently from Skaneateles, N. Y. (about ¾ of an hour from Syracuse) as the 2018 Gray Wolves Senior Hockey 60s A Division champions.

“It was exciting,” said Vandewal. “They even gave me the trophy.

“They’re a great bunch of guys and I’ll play again if they ask me.”

Vandewal was actually the only South Frontenac resident on the team which was comprised of mostly Kingston seniors skaters he plays with in Kingston.

It’s the biggest championship he’s ever won.

“I didn’t get to play as a kid because there was always work to be done on the farm,” he said. “I’ve won A and B seniors championships at Piccadilly but this was international.”

Vandewal said his team lost their opener but they ended up beating that team in the final 2-1 in OT.

“We pulled our goalie to tie it with a minute remaining in regulation and won it in overtime,” he said.

Vandewal didn’t figure in any of the scoring statistics but said proudly “there were two full games where they didn’t score while I was on the ice.

“And, I was +4 in one game.”

That, and four bruises, one of which will likely be around for awhile.