Captain ‘T’ in Timmins
Two years after making the Timmins Rock as an unheralded walk-on defenseman from Maple Ridge, B.C., Tenzin Nyman is now the captain of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League team.
Back in 2022, Nyman asked Rock head coach and general manager Brandon Perry if he could try out for the NOJHL team as his older brother — and fellow defenseman — Kenyon Nyman had been acquired by Timmins in an off season trade with the Red Lake Miners of the Superior International Jr. Hockey League.
With no guarantee of making the team from Perry, the younger Nyman ventured from southern British Columbia to northeastern Ontario with his older brother. While Perry knew what he was getting in Kenyon, he knew very little of Tenzin.
But the younger Nyman impressed Perry enough to make the ’22-23 edition of the Rock — and both brothers would later that season celebrate an NOJHL championship together when Timmins came from behind to upend the Soo Thunderbirds in the league finals.
Through two full seasons in Timmins, the younger Nyman — who is simply known to his family members, friends and teammates as ‘T’ — has played 117 games, playoffs included, for the Rock. An overall defenseman who takes good care of his zone, Nyman has also managed to score four goals, 41 assists, 45 points in those 117 games as a Rock solid defender.
Though his offensive numbers are not overly explosive, the 6 foot 2, 175 pound, right hand shooting Nyman will be quarterbacking the power play for Timmins to begin the ’24-25 NOJHL season, a sign of the trust that Perry has in him.
Now about to enter his third season away from home, the son of David and Lynn Nyman will wear the captain’s letter on his Rock jersey as Timmins is in tune for yet another term of contention for the NOJHL crown.
Perry, as the hockey boss in Timmins, can’t say enough about the 20-year old kid who they call ‘T.’
“He is a just a team player through and through,” Perry said of Nyman. “He is a great kid from a great family and he has improved his overall game in a big way since he first got to Timmins.”
Congratulations Tenzin: Wishing you an amazing year ahead. So excited for the start of the season whether it’s at an arena or FloHockey. We are so proud of you. Love Grandpa & Grandma Jones 🏒❤️❤️