Article by Matt Driscoll

NHL veteran Sam Gagner has two passions: spending time at the lake with his family and playing high-calibre hockey. His stroke of genius was deciding to combine the two with Muskoka Hockey.

“I started Muskoka Hockey just to create a little balance in my life,” says Gagner. “I love being around my kids and being up in Muskoka. Being able to relax in the afternoon and enjoy your downtime is something that was really appealing.”

A 16-year NHL veteran Gagner started the camp in 2020. Since then, he's brought a cadre of elite-level trainers and NHL superstars to local rinks. Perhaps most notably in August when Muskoka Hockey helped christen the new Muskoka Lumber Community Centre in Bracebridge by bringing in Toronto Maple Leafs’ Auston Matthews and John Tavares, along with fellow NHLers from other teams including Erik Gudbranson, Brandon Montour and Nathan Bastian. All told, more than a dozen NHL players trained with Muskoka Hockey over the summer.

“We've gotten a great response from the pros and as it’s gone on, I really felt like it was something that the kids would really enjoy as well,” says Gagner. “It's an opportunity to have elite level hockey in one of the best places in the world to be in the summertime.”

Originally from London, Ontario, Gagner was selected sixth overall in the first round of the NHL draft by the Edmonton Oilers in 2007. After playing seven seasons with the Oilers, Gagner spent time with the Arizona Coyotes, Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus Blue Jackets and Vancouver Canucks. The 35-year-old is not ready to call it quits just yet and after training in Muskoka all summer he was off to a fall tryout at Carolina Hurricanes training camp.

Dave Gagner, Sam’s father, was also a longtime NHL player. Having formed a lifetime of connections with the NHL during his career, he has utilized those relationships to help make Muskoka Hockey a success.

“The NHL is really a small community,” says Gord Grace, a director of Muskoka Hockey. “During his time in the NHL Sam's built relationships with a lot of teams. He wanted to grow the camp up here so he's added a lot of professionals to help him along the way. We also added more elite players and it's just continued to grow and grow.”

Grace is also the president and CEO of Ontario University Athletics, as well as Sam Gagner's uncle and he says the location of the camp has also been a huge factor in its growth.

NHL stars like Taylor Hall, Bo Horvat and many others spend their summers in Muskoka and have decided to take advantage of the camp. Muskoka’s proximity to the GTA and major centres in southern Ontario also means professionals can travel up for a day or two of training and then head back home if need be, says Grace.

As NHL players increasingly flock to the Muskoka Hockey program, the level of competition in the training camps has also become increasingly more intense. The professionals are able to hone their skills playing against some of the best in the world, another appealing prospect as they prepare to head out to big league training camps across North America.

Along the way, Gagner has surrounded himself with a group of high-level professionals to ensure sure the camp continues to grow and builds on that success. Bryan Marshall is a director of the camp and a performance coach who has worked with top-tier athletes across major organizations like the London Knights, Toronto Maple Leafs and Vancouver Canucks. He's currently serving as the director of applied sports science for the Canucks.

Brady Leavold spent 10 years playing professional hockey and is well known to many in the hockey community and abroad for hockey camps he operates in Muskoka, in addition to his Puck Support Network nonprofit organization, which works towards change in mental health and substance misuse issues. Leavold, who coaches with Muskoka Hockey, has been featured on national television for his unique journey in the amateur and professional hockey ranks and his subsequent work in the mental health field.

Despite the elite level training and NHL star power, Muskoka Hockey organizers also pride themselves on the work they do with young athletes both on and off the ice.

The camp hosts day programs for youth between the ages of seven and 15, an elite academy for athletes who want to push their game a little bit further and even team camps for organizations interested in bringing their entire squad to Muskoka for bonding and overall team improvement.

“It's really important to Sam to give back to minor hockey, especially in the Muskoka region,” says Grace. “He wants to offer grassroots elite youth training programs and he wants to train the next NHLer that comes from Muskoka.”

The on-ice development program (which up until the opening of the new Bracebridge arena took place at the Humphrey Arena) is designed to help players improve their skating, stickhandling, shooting and game sense, with coaches providing personalized feedback and guidance.

Off the ice, players have access to Rosseau Lake College and a fully equipped gym and training area, with state-of-the-art equipment for strength and conditioning exercises. Campers can also head over to Muskoka Woods to enjoy a range of activities, from ropes course to paintball, as well as swimming, sailing, kayaking, and other water sports.

“These are really incredible venues and they've been very supportive since we first started these camps,” says Grace.

Having amateur and professional players both taking part in the camp is an opportunity for the younger players to see what they're striving for, says Grace, and it's an opportunity that is not offered at many hockey training camps.

The chance to get up close and personal with the stars of Muskoka Hockey was granted to the entire Muskoka community with the official opening of the Muskoka Lumber Community Centre in Bracebridge on August 23, 2024. To celebrate the occasion, 300 community members had the opportunity to watch a Muskoka Hockey training session with NHL superstars on the ice.

“We really wanted to offer a showcase and give the public a chance to see some of the pros and the opening of the arena was the perfect opportunity,” says Grace. “We had conversations with the Town and they were very receptive to the idea. The response from the community was excellent. The players were great and getting the chance to see the kids afterwards getting the autographs signed was really fantastic.”

The organizers of the camp are meeting in the fall to take a closer look at how they want to manage growth. That could mean extending camps into the Christmas season or March break or expanding some programming into the GTA, says Grace, but the plans are fluid for the time being.

Regardless of what the future holds, with Muskoka's new on-ice facilities, the growth of Muskoka Hockey and the plethora of stars now training and spending their summers in the region, the hockey scene in Muskoka appears poised for a period of growth unlike any it's ever experienced.