Tawas Braves begin inaugural hockey season

TAWAS — (2018-19) marks a special season for the Tawas community. For the first time ever, fans can sit right here and watch a full team of Tawas hockey players.

“It’s awesome,” said senior center Gabe Martin. “It’s an honor to say we were the first people to play for the Tawas team.”

“It’s a lot cooler,” said senior defenseman Nate Smedley. “Honestly being a Blackhawk was cool, but being a Brave is a lot cooler.”

Many people know of Tawas’ hockey success, but that was from their Blackhawk youth league. Forming a high school team has been a long time dream in the community.

“Tawas is a hockey town, you know,” said Treasurer/Assistant Rink Manager Marty Brummeler. “We feel lucky and proud that we’ve been able to achieve this, and it’s just the beginning.”

The Braves are just scraping the surface, and now Tawas has to find success out on the ice. Head Coach Mel Rettell is proud to lead the charge.

“They want to be a part of it,” said Rettell. “It’s a mixed group as far as talent wise, but everybody is trying to help each other out, so it’s a special thing.”

“We’ll compete well,” said Martin. “Play good against a couple teams. Some teams are above our level, so just give it our best when we play them.”

Like the team, this arena started from scratch as an ice rink made by a few dads downtown. The rink was later moved so that the project could develop and flourish for the future.

“It just feels like we’ve achieved one of our big goals now,” said Brummeler. “All the little kids are excited and can’t wait to grow up and be high school players, and It’s just a neat thing.”

This season marks a big year for Tawas, and these athletes hope to give it their best shot.