Thor Reingaard Biography

[N0HBDY 1,119]

Thor Reingaard, an up-and-coming player in the VHL’s S91 class has just found his way to the minors which will hopefully be the beginning of the journey to playing in the VHL. The odds of Thor accomplishing this were thought to be impossible when he first started playing hockey. Though Greenland has suitable weather for sustaining rinks and such, the spirit of the sport is not so loved. Most kids in Greenland preferred to play handball and other more popular European activities. Thor, his brother Leif, and distant cousin Lionel Collberg however had a different passion, that being for hockey.

 

Greenland however doesn’t actually have any hockey arenas, with possibly the closest options for a hockey arena being northern Canada or Iceland. So the occasion of when the three passionate players got to actually be in a hockey arena, was rare. To fill the void pond hockey was the obvious solution with the winters being plenty cold on Kulusuk Island, located on the southeastern part of the country's territory. With the convenience of water being all around them, it was, however, tough to find players and so Thor, Leif, and Lionel would oftentimes play each other 1v1v1 in a true competitive king of the hill kind of way.

 

Thor’s spring and summer time was mainly spent in Iceland playing in local tournaments for whatever team he could be accepted on. His winter “training” showed and helped him dominate the youth tournaments with his exceptional faceoff ability and handles all learned from playing against Leif and Lionel. Eventually, Thor hit a growth spurt growing quite taller and bigger than most of the kids at his level and so he was moved up an age class for some more competition, but even that wasn’t enough. In order for Thor to be able to follow his passion and play against adequate competition, instead of flying from his town's airport and heading east to Iceland, he’d have to make the more costly trip west, to Canada.

 

Ahead of time, Thor signed up for as many showcase camps as he could find, filled in for any team he had time for, and his hard work/dominance got him noticed. From early spring when he had arrived in the land of syrup to July, Thor had caused enough noise and gained enough attention to get his first major opportunity to play in the Brick Invitational. After playing in the tournament and performing better than others but not quite outstanding, Thor disappeared back to Greenland.

 

The trip to Canada was a costly one, and not one that they could do every year, and so Thor went back into his routine of wintertime pond hockey in Greenland then summertime hockey in Iceland for a few more years. Never getting bored of the routine, training tediously, people around the town would sometimes come out and watch along the shoreline as Thor practiced with his brother and cousin. Thor’s reputation slowly built throughout Greenland and Iceland and then after simply a matter of time, Thor became eligible for some junior league drafts.

 

Most teams had forgotten about him on the Canadian mainland since his moment at the Brick Invitational. But Thor reached out to scouts, messaged coaches, sent highlights, anything to get him noticed. Most Canadian junior teams passed on him in their drafts, not even giving Thor a chance just from his lack of “actual competition.” That would however change when in a prayer-being-answered moment in the 8th round of the Ontario Hockey League the Soo Greyhounds decided to pick Thor, ironically the team had similar colors to Greenland’s flag.

Thor went to the Greyhounds training camp and to the surprise of the staff, dominated. Thor undoubtedly made the roster and was placed on the 2nd line where he would eventually improve to the 1st line as a star 16-year-old player playing his first full year of what could be considered actual hockey. Thor’s strengths from when he was young were still very apparent, dominating the faceoff circle, and creating opportunities with his game sense and exceptional handles. Thor’s reputation back home skyrocketed, not even being a full-fledged pro yet but already the crown jewel of the town with his games being played on every television no matter the time.

 

After two short years, making the playoffs once but not getting too far, Thor turned 18 and was eligible for a contract in the VHLM. The scouts had noticed and he had the opportunity to pick any team he essentially wanted. Considering the Aces and the Marlins, until he eventually decided to reunite with his brother and cousin in Philadelphia. In his first game for the Reapers, Thor started strong winning the majority of his faceoffs and notching an assist in his first-ever game in the VHLM.

 

Though early Thor is expected to be one of the top players of his class with Leif and Lionel not far behind. Who knows what the future holds for this young prospect.

 

837 Words

Edited July 11, 2023 by N0HBDY