Hockey tournament honours Wallaceburg hockey’s biggest supporter

Restaurants and stores will be busy this weekend in Wallaceburg, as teams from across the area will play in the Frank Dymock Classic hockey tournament.

Games start today (Nov. 10) and also take place on Saturday and Sunday at Wallaceburg Memorial Arena.
Teams from Bothwell, Wheatley, Simcoe, Leamington, Goderich, Dresden, Mooretown, and Wallaceburg will take part in the tournament. Teams featured are house league teams in the U11, U13 and U15 divisions.

The tournament is named after Frank Dymock, who made his mark by being a huge supporter of hockey in Wallaceburg.

Dymock, who lived across from Steinhoff Park, spent most of his days and evenings out in his garage/shed/man cave sharpening skates for area hockey players and skaters. He also had a number of used skates on hand for that he would donate to those who needed them.

His shed had two distinct features. He had a collection of pucks that he estimated were in the thousands. He also had a wood stove to heat up his shed.

Dymock’s garage was often a hub of activity, as he not only had a steady stream of players coming in to get their skates sharpened, but his visitors would also include current and former NHL players. A number of NHL referees and linespeople would make a detour on their way to Detroit or Toronto to get their skates sharpened by Dymock.

Dymock wouldn’t take payment for his services, but any money donated to him would make its way back to minor hockey in Wallaceburg.

Dymock died almost 10 years ago, at the age of 82.