Peterborough native taken fifth overall by Sarnia
Porter Martone will join his cousin Nolan Burke on the Sting roster
Porter Martone will have a familiar face welcoming him to the Sarnia Sting’s dressing room next season.
The Peterborough native and Toronto Jr. Canadians forward was selected by the Sting fifth overall in Friday’s first round of the OHL Priority Selection. He is the highest Peterborough boy selected since Owen Tippett went fourth overall to the Mississauga Steelheads in 2015.
He was one of four local players selected. Norwood’s Ethan Toms was a fourth-round pick, 67th overall, to the Oshawa Generals. The Petes drafted two local goalies in Peterborough resident Easton Rye in the fifth round and Ennismore’s Carter Frost in the 15th round. Rye played for the Ajax-Pickering Raiders and Frost with Martone and the Jr. Canadians.
Martone will join his cousin Nolan Burke, another Peterborough native, who had a breakout season in Sarnia scoring 34 goals and 59 points in 64 games this year.
“I’ve been talking to Nolan a lot. We’re pretty close, so I’m excited to get down there,” said Martone. “He’s already been in my spot and he can walk me through it and teach me the ways. He’ll be a good role model to look up to.”
Martone, a six-foot-three, 175pound right-winger, had 41 goals and 104 points in 53 games for the GTHL champion Jr. Canadians this season after playing his previous minor hockey in the AAA Petes system.
“It’s going to be amazing. Talking to their GM and head coach it seems like a perfect fit for me and I can’t wait to get started,” said Martone. “I feel like they have everything I have always dreamed of. Their arena is very nice. It’s a nice community, it’s kind of like Peterborough. They’re a very good organization that treats their players very well.”
It was an emotional moment hugging his parents Mike and Angela after hearing his name called.
“It felt like all my hard work paid off. This is just the first step in the road. Hopefully, I have another draft to come up,” he said.
Peterborough Petes first-round pick Jack Van Volsen, taken one spot behind Martone at sixth overall, says Sarnia got a good one.
“Marty has a tremendous stick whether it’s in battles lifting guys’ sticks and getting us the puck, but he’s also got slick hands. On breakaways he doesn’t miss too many,” said Van Volsen. “I had no problem moving him the puck because I knew he was either going to score or I was going to get it back. He’s a very unselfish player. The Sting are getting a very high-end talent.”
Toms played for the AAA Petes from novice to minor bantam before joining the Quinte Red Devils. The five-foot-10, 165 pound forward had 17 goals and 35 points in 26 games this season. Toms grew up a Petes fan with Oshawa the hated rival.
“I’ve always called Oshawa the dirty ’Shwa, so it’s interesting,” said Toms, with a laugh. “It’s exciting and Oshawa is a really great spot. They have a winning mentality, which is where I want to go.”
Father Scott Toms said it was a big day for the family.
“It takes a community to raise a hockey player and our family is no different,” said Scott. “He has aunts who have chipped in and helped drive him around and a grandma who has helped drive him around. We’re thankful to have the help we did over the years. At one point, we had three boys playing hockey, two playing AAA, and Dawna and I never saw each other for a couple of years because we were running all over the place.”