Photo Credit: Freeze Frame Photos

The 2026 portion of the Sault Ste. Marie Boys High School Hockey League season got underway on Sunday, January 4th at the John Rhodes Centre, as the St. Mary’s Knights took on a short-benched White Pines Wolverines squad in league action.

The Knights set the tone early, opening the scoring at 6:27 of the first period when Adam Provenzano netted his first goal of the season in his return to the lineup after missing time with an upper-body injury. White Pines responded on the powerplay as Owen Sanderson tied the game at 3:21, but St. Mary’s closed out the period with a flurry, scoring three times in the final 38 seconds. Tyler Cady restored the Knights’ lead before Connor Bishop added two quick goals to give St. Mary’s a 3–1 advantage after one.

The second period saw both teams tighten defensively, with no goals scored and strong play from both goaltenders keeping the score unchanged. In the third, Sanderson struck again on the powerplay to pull the Wolverines within one, but the Knights quickly answered. Goals from Ethan Agawa, Bates Borelli, and a late marker from Bishop completed a four-goal third period and sealed a 6–2 victory for St. Mary’s.

Riley Papi-Grant earned the win in goal for the Knights, while Ben Potter handled the crease for the Wolverines.

The Knights return to the ice when they head to Peterborough to take part in the 2025 Saints Classic Hockey Tournament starting on January 7th, when they face the Korah Colts with a 3:30 p.m. puck drop at the John Rhodes Centre. The Wolverines will look to bounce back on January 6th when they take on the CASS Huskies in Desbarats at 1:00 p.m.