Niagara IceDogs' Mitchell Fitzmorris checks Ottawa 67's Travis Barron through the glass (VIDEO)

In case of first game in a refurbished arena, break glass.

On Friday, the Niagara IceDogs' Mitchell Fitzmorris and Ottawa 67's Travis Barron (unwittingly) offered a reminder of how much force is generated when two junior hockey players collide. During the second period, Fitzmorris, a gritty veteran forward on the IceDogs, finished his check on Barron after the 67's rookie made a pass at centre ice. The impact of Barron's shoulder striking the plexiglass sprayed shards to parts unknown. Fortunately, Barron was able to complete the game. It also did not appear that any of the rinkside spectators in the crowd of 4,713 at TD Place, which was hosting its first OHL game in 29 months, needed medical attention.

Perfectly clean check, too. Talk about a job well-done by Fitzmorris, a 19-year-old winger from Ingersoll, Ont., who does a lot of grunt work for Niagara and doesn't get much glory, having scored only 11 goals in three-plus seasons in the Ontario Hockey League.

Of all the things to happen to Barron, a 16-year-old rookie, in his first OHL game. Ottawa coach Jeff Brown noted afterward that Barron was "perhaps our best player" in the first half of the game, before the collision. The Caledon, Ont., native returned to finish the game.

The delay to sweep up the glass and put in a replacement panel might have worked in favour of Ottawa, though. The 67's had been on the defensive for much of their first game at TD Place (formerly Ottawa Civic Centre) since April 2012. In the third, it scored three times for a 4-3 win.

Niagara, incidentally, won the last game at the arena before it closed for renovations. It also won the final game of Brian Kilrea's coaching career in 2009, although the Hockey Hall of Famer is coming out of retirement on Oct. 17 to coach one game in honour of his 80th birthday.

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet.