The 2021-2022 GMHL schedule has been released and confirmed, with that the New Tecumseth Civics have their Road to the Russell cup laid before them. The Civics will be playing their home games on Thursdays at 8pm at the New Tecumseth Recreation Centre (NTRC) and will be observing their winter holiday break from December 17th-January 6th. The GMHL has introduced a National Championship this season that will be hosted by the Temiscaming Titans following the North South and West Division playoffs on April 1st. The Civics will be playing 42 games in the North Division against the following teams:

Almaguin Spartans (4 Times): Home: Oct 28th, Nov 4th Away: Oct 22nd, Jan 14th

Bancroft Rockhounds (2 Times): Home: Dec 16th Away: Jan 29th

Bradford Bulls (6 Times): Home: Oct 7th, Jan 6th, Feb 17th Away: Oct 27th, Nov 3rd, Jan 24th

Bradford Rattlers (6 Times): Home: Nov 18th, Nov 25th, Feb 3rd Away: Oct 3rd, Dec 7th, Jan 18th

Meaford Knights (6 Times): Home: Nov 30th, Dec 14th, Feb 15th  Away: Nov 21st, Jan 9th,  Feb 6th

South Muskoka Shield (6 Times): Home: Dec 9th, Jan 20th, Feb 10th Away: Oct 9th, Nov 27th, Feb 12th

Temiscaming Titans (4 Times): Home: Oct 24th, Nov 11th Away:  Oct 15th, Nov 14th

West Nipissing Lynx (4 Times): Home: Oct 14th, Jan 27th Away: Nov 6th, Dec 4th

Ville-Marie Pirates (4 Times): Home: Dec 2nd, Jan 13th Away: Oct 16th, Nov 13th

Other Dates to know: All Star Game: January 11th, National Championship Start Date: April 1st

Key Games on the Civics Schedule:

Season Opener October 3rd at Bradford Rattlers: The most familiar of opponents will face off in the first game of the 2021-2022 GMHL season for both clubs. The Civics and Rattlers played each other 8 times in their last full season, with the Rattlers winning 6 of those 8 matchups including their first round matchup. Both these teams are bringing completely new rosters from that season 2 years ago and expect to have teams that compete for a Russell Cup championship but the Civics will be looking to use this game as a way to send a message to the rest of the league, the goal all offseason has been clear, the Civics will be aiming towards a championship, and step 1 starts with the Rattlers in Bradford on October 3rd.

Home Opener October 7th vs Bradford Bulls: After almost an entire year off (aside from the two games played against Tottenham last year in December) the Civics will finally be returning home to kick off the season with a highly anticipated matchup with cross highway rivals the Bradford Bulls. In the last full season played the Civics only managed one win in four attempts against Bradford and this series and the 6 games included will be one of many keys for the Civics in terms of playoffs and establishing as a contender. Highlight this one on the calendar when the Civics come home to New Tec Rec.

Heading to Quebec October 12th and 13th at Temiscaming Titans and Ville-Marie Pirates: The Civics love Temiscaming, to put it plainly the Civics have had a lot of success when travelling to Le Centre in match-ups with the Titans winning 6 of the 9 matchups in Quebec in the last 5 years. The Titans squad of this year may pose the toughest test yet and is expected to be one of the top in the league. On the flip side, the Civics have lost 9 straight in Ville-Marie, 4 years 2 playoff matchups and the Civics have yet to bring home a win in one of the GMHLs toughest rinks to play in. The Civics will be travelling to Quebec a week and a half into the season for the first of two Quebec road trips on the schedule. The Pirates are still the last team to win the GMHL Championship after a shortened 2019/2020 and an almost nonexistent 2020/2021 so until another team takes home the title, the Pirates are the team to beat at the top.

Playoff Primer February 15th vs The Knights of Meaford: Geographically speaking, New Tecumseth is the closest in terms of a rival to the Knights of Meaford, and this final of 6 matchups between the two teams is sure to be a tightly contested one. In the last full season that was played the Civics took 3 of 4 matchups against the Knights but both teams will bring veteran coaching and management staffs with new groups of talented players into this matchup that is sure to have playoff seeding implications.