Thunder Bay Twins
Encyclopedia
The Thunder Bay Twins were a Canadian
Amateur Senior and Professional ice hockey
team from Thunder Bay
, Ontario
, Canada
. The Twins won five Allan Cup
s as National Senior Champions from 1970 until 1991.
's Thunder Bay Senior A Hockey League. Very often, these two teams were the only actual teams in the league.
The Beavers dated back to at least the 1950s. In 1955, the Beavers travelled to Kitchener, Ontario
to challenge the Kitchener-Waterloo Dutchmen for the Allan Cup
. The Dutchmen won game one 3-2 and the Beavers evened the series in game two with a 6-4 win. From that point on the series was controlled by the Dutchmen as they took the next three straight with 6-2, 7-6, and 5-3 victories.
The Bearcats were the namesake of a team that once challenged for the Stanley Cup
and were founded in 1946. Prior to this, the Port Arthur Shipbuilders challenged for the 1944 Allan Cup. In Quebec City, Quebec, the Shipbuilders challenged the Quebec City Aces but were defeated three-games-straight by scores of 6-1, 15-4, and 9-6.
In 1970, the towns of Fort William
and Port Arthur
amalgamated
and became Thunder Bay
. The decision was made to merge the two senior teams as well, resulting in the folding of the Thunder Bay Senior A Hockey League and the creation of the Thunder Bay Twins.
United States Hockey League
in 1970. Now a Tier I Junior "A" league, the USHL was a Semi-Professional league in the 1970s.
After their final season with the USHL in 1975, the Twins challenged and won the Western Canadian Senior "A" Championship and earned a chance to play for the Allan Cup
. The Allan Cup is awarded to the National Senior Championship. The Eastern champion and their opponent was the Barrie Flyers of the OHA Senior A Hockey League. The Flyers got a foot up on the Twins in game one in Barrie, winning 8-5. In game two, the Twins evened the series 7-2, just to fall back a game in game three with a 7-4 loss—both in Barrie. The series then moved up to Thunder Bay and the Twins caught fire, winning the next three games at home 8-2, 5-2, and 8-4 respectively to win their first national championship.
In 1975, the Thunder Bay Twins decided to join the OHA Senior A Hockey League. The played in the OSAHL until 1979. In that time, the Twins won two regular season championships and one league playoff title.
, the Intermediate A Thunder Bay Blazers and the CIAU
Lakehead Nor'Westers
. The Twins were easily the top team in the 1980-81 season and swept the playoffs. The 1981-82 season had the other three teams give the Twins more trouble. The Twins were upset by the Nor'Westers in the semi-final, and the league was won by the Jr. A Kings.
, defeating them 8-3. In game two, they faced the Grand Falls Cataracts and defeated them 9-4. In the third and final game of the round robin, the Twins met the St. Boniface Mohawks and beat them 5-4 in overtime to clinch first place in the round robin. In the tournament semi-final, something went wrong for the twins. In their second straight game against the Mohawks, the Twins were shocked 4-3 and eliminated from the tournament despite a 3-1 record. The Petrolia Squires won the 1981 Allan Cup.
In 1984, the Twins were again Manitoba and Western Canadian champions. They played host to the Cambridge Hornets
at the Fort Williams Gardens in a best-of-seven series. The Twins opened the series squeezing out a 3-2 victory over the Hornets. Cambridge came back in game two and rocked the Twins 7-3. After this, the Twins battened down the hatches and fought through a pair of tight wins (5-3, 6-5) to clinch the series in game five with a convincing 6–1 win to clinch the team's second Allan Cup.
In 1985, the Twins repeated as Manitoba and Western champions and found themselves in a best-of-seven marathon with the Corner Brook Royals
in Corner Brook, Newfoundland
. So far from home, the Twins may have accomplished one of the greatest feats in amateur hockey history. The Corner Brook Royals crushed the jet-lagged Twins 9–5 in game one. Game two went a little better for the Twins, as they forced overtime but were overpowered by the Royals 3–2. Game three needed to be won by the Twins, but again they were embarrassed by the Eastern champions 9–5. With their back against the wall down 3-games-to-none, the Twins began their trek back. Game four ended with a 4–2 nail-biter of a win for the Twins. Game five saw the Twins embarrass a seemingly deflated Royals squad 8–3. The Twins took game six 2–0 and then finished the comeback with an unbearably close 5–4 victory. With their third Allan Cup victory, the Twins became the only team in Allan Cup history to come back from a 3–0 deficit to win the Allan Cup. As the tournament is now in a round robin format and a revert to best-of-sevens are very unlikely, the feat may never be repeated.
. After one lackluster season for the Twins, the league folded and the Twins returned to the Manitoba Senior A Hockey League.
The 1987-88 season had the Twins win the Manitoba and Western titles and find themselves in the Allan Cup final again. Playing at home in the Gardens, the Twins found themselves against a starkly lesser opponent. The Eastern champions in 1988 were the Charlottetown Islanders. The Twins easily swept the Islanders by scores of 7-4, 10-2, 9-3, and 7-1 respectively to win their fourth ever Allan Cup.
The 1989 Allan Cup brought a significant challenge to the Twins. League champions again, the Twins found themselves in an Allan Cup round robin with three other teams. In game one of the round robin, the Twins met an old rival in the St. Boniface Mohawks and lost 5-3. In game two, the Twins met the Montreal Team Chomedey and defeated them 6-3. In the final game of the round robin, the Twins met the Bassano Hawks and defeated soundly 7-1 to clinch second place. Thunder Bay found themselves in a sudden death semi-final against Montreal for the right to play in the final. The Twins beat Chomedey 6-3. The final was set up as a best-of-three games set and was against St. Boniface. The Twins avenged the 1981 Allan Cup semi-final loss to the Mohawks by defeating them 2-0 and then 4-2 to win their fifth Allan Cup championship.
After winning the 1990-91 Manitoba title and the Western Canadian championship, the Twins found themselves yet again in the Allan Cup final. The Eastern champion was the Charlottetown Islanders, a team that the Twins had embarrassed in 1988 in a lopsided four-game-sweep. This time the Islanders came out to return the favour in their own home rink in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. The Islanders won four straight games (5-3, 5-2, 5-4, and 5-4 in overtime) to kill the Twins dream of a sixth Allan Cup.
many years later.
The 1974-75 Thunder Bay Twins were inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 1987.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Amateur Senior and Professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team from Thunder Bay
Thunder Bay
-In Canada:Thunder Bay is the name of three places in the province of Ontario, Canada along Lake Superior:*Thunder Bay District, Ontario, a district in Northwestern Ontario*Thunder Bay, a city in Thunder Bay District*Thunder Bay, Unorganized, Ontario...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The Twins won five Allan Cup
Allan Cup
The Allan Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the national senior amateur men’s ice hockey champions of Canada. It has been competed for since 1909. The current champion is the Clarenville Caribous hockey club of Newfoundland and Labrador.-History:...
s as National Senior Champions from 1970 until 1991.
Merger
The Port Arthur Bearcats and the Fort William Beavers were a pair of Senior "A" teams in Northwestern OntarioNorthwestern Ontario
Northwestern Ontario is the region within the Canadian province of Ontario which lies north and west of Lake Superior, and west of Hudson Bay and James Bay. It includes most of subarctic Ontario. Its western boundary is the Canadian province of Manitoba, which disputed Ontario's claim to the...
's Thunder Bay Senior A Hockey League. Very often, these two teams were the only actual teams in the league.
The Beavers dated back to at least the 1950s. In 1955, the Beavers travelled to Kitchener, Ontario
Kitchener, Ontario
The City of Kitchener is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It was the Town of Berlin from 1854 until 1912 and the City of Berlin from 1912 until 1916. The city had a population of 204,668 in the Canada 2006 Census...
to challenge the Kitchener-Waterloo Dutchmen for the Allan Cup
Allan Cup
The Allan Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the national senior amateur men’s ice hockey champions of Canada. It has been competed for since 1909. The current champion is the Clarenville Caribous hockey club of Newfoundland and Labrador.-History:...
. The Dutchmen won game one 3-2 and the Beavers evened the series in game two with a 6-4 win. From that point on the series was controlled by the Dutchmen as they took the next three straight with 6-2, 7-6, and 5-3 victories.
The Bearcats were the namesake of a team that once challenged for the Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
and were founded in 1946. Prior to this, the Port Arthur Shipbuilders challenged for the 1944 Allan Cup. In Quebec City, Quebec, the Shipbuilders challenged the Quebec City Aces but were defeated three-games-straight by scores of 6-1, 15-4, and 9-6.
In 1970, the towns of Fort William
Fort William, Ontario
Fort William was a city in Northern Ontario, located on the Kaministiquia River, at its entrance to Lake Superior. It amalgamated with Port Arthur and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form the city of Thunder Bay in January 1970. Ever since then it has been the largest city in Northwestern...
and Port Arthur
Port Arthur, Ontario
Port Arthur was a city in Northern Ontario which amalgamated with Fort William and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form the city of Thunder Bay in January 1970. Port Arthur was the district seat of Thunder Bay District.- History :...
amalgamated
Amalgamation (politics)
A merger or amalgamation in a political or administrative sense is the combination of two or more political or administrative entities such as municipalities , counties, districts, etc. into a single entity. This term is used when the process occurs within a sovereign entity...
and became Thunder Bay
Thunder Bay
-In Canada:Thunder Bay is the name of three places in the province of Ontario, Canada along Lake Superior:*Thunder Bay District, Ontario, a district in Northwestern Ontario*Thunder Bay, a city in Thunder Bay District*Thunder Bay, Unorganized, Ontario...
. The decision was made to merge the two senior teams as well, resulting in the folding of the Thunder Bay Senior A Hockey League and the creation of the Thunder Bay Twins.
USHL and the OHA
The newly created Thunder Bay Twins started in the AmericanUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
United States Hockey League
United States Hockey League
The United States Hockey League is the top junior ice hockey league in the United States. The USHL has 16 member teams located in the Midwestern United States, consisting of players who are 20 years of age and younger...
in 1970. Now a Tier I Junior "A" league, the USHL was a Semi-Professional league in the 1970s.
After their final season with the USHL in 1975, the Twins challenged and won the Western Canadian Senior "A" Championship and earned a chance to play for the Allan Cup
Allan Cup
The Allan Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the national senior amateur men’s ice hockey champions of Canada. It has been competed for since 1909. The current champion is the Clarenville Caribous hockey club of Newfoundland and Labrador.-History:...
. The Allan Cup is awarded to the National Senior Championship. The Eastern champion and their opponent was the Barrie Flyers of the OHA Senior A Hockey League. The Flyers got a foot up on the Twins in game one in Barrie, winning 8-5. In game two, the Twins evened the series 7-2, just to fall back a game in game three with a 7-4 loss—both in Barrie. The series then moved up to Thunder Bay and the Twins caught fire, winning the next three games at home 8-2, 5-2, and 8-4 respectively to win their first national championship.
In 1975, the Thunder Bay Twins decided to join the OHA Senior A Hockey League. The played in the OSAHL until 1979. In that time, the Twins won two regular season championships and one league playoff title.
Thunder Bay Hockey League
From at least 1980 until 1982, the Twins competed in the Thunder Bay Hockey League. This all-city super-league consisted of four teams. With the Twins were the Tier II Junior "A" Thunder Bay KingsThunder Bay Flyers
The Thunder Bay Flyers were a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada.-History:On July 6, 1980, the Degagne Buccaneers and Thunder Bay North Stars were informed by the TBAHA that they would not be permitted to field teams in the 1980-81 City League...
, the Intermediate A Thunder Bay Blazers and the CIAU
CIAU
The letters CIAU may mean any of the following:* CIAU-FM 103.1, a radio station in Radisson, Quebec* An acronym for "Canadian Interuniversity Athletics Union", now known as Canadian Interuniversity Sport...
Lakehead Nor'Westers
Lakehead Thunderwolves
The Lakehead Thunderwolves are the varsity athletic teams that represent Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada in Canadian Interuniversity Sport...
. The Twins were easily the top team in the 1980-81 season and swept the playoffs. The 1981-82 season had the other three teams give the Twins more trouble. The Twins were upset by the Nor'Westers in the semi-final, and the league was won by the Jr. A Kings.
Central Sr. A
From 1982 until 1986, the Twins played in the Manitoba's Central Senior A Hockey League. In 1981, the Twins hosted a round robin tournament to determine an Allan Cup champion. The Twins started off the tournament against the Petrolia SquiresPetrolia Squires
The Petrolia Squires are a Canadian Senior ice hockey team based in Petrolia, Ontario, Canada. They play in the Western Ontario Athletic Association Senior Hockey League and are two-time Allan Cup National Champions.-History:...
, defeating them 8-3. In game two, they faced the Grand Falls Cataracts and defeated them 9-4. In the third and final game of the round robin, the Twins met the St. Boniface Mohawks and beat them 5-4 in overtime to clinch first place in the round robin. In the tournament semi-final, something went wrong for the twins. In their second straight game against the Mohawks, the Twins were shocked 4-3 and eliminated from the tournament despite a 3-1 record. The Petrolia Squires won the 1981 Allan Cup.
In 1984, the Twins were again Manitoba and Western Canadian champions. They played host to the Cambridge Hornets
Cambridge Hornets
The Cambridge Hornets were a Senior "AAA" ice hockey team based out of Cambridge, Ontario. They played in the Ontario Hockey Association's Major League Hockey. The new Cambridge Hornets were brought into Southwestern Senior A Hockey League in 1999...
at the Fort Williams Gardens in a best-of-seven series. The Twins opened the series squeezing out a 3-2 victory over the Hornets. Cambridge came back in game two and rocked the Twins 7-3. After this, the Twins battened down the hatches and fought through a pair of tight wins (5-3, 6-5) to clinch the series in game five with a convincing 6–1 win to clinch the team's second Allan Cup.
In 1985, the Twins repeated as Manitoba and Western champions and found themselves in a best-of-seven marathon with the Corner Brook Royals
Corner Brook Royals
The Corner Brook Royals are a senior ice hockey team based in Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador as part of the Newfoundland West Coast Senior Hockey League, and previously, the Province-wide 'Newfoundland Senior Hockey League'....
in Corner Brook, Newfoundland
Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador
Corner Brook is a city located on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada....
. So far from home, the Twins may have accomplished one of the greatest feats in amateur hockey history. The Corner Brook Royals crushed the jet-lagged Twins 9–5 in game one. Game two went a little better for the Twins, as they forced overtime but were overpowered by the Royals 3–2. Game three needed to be won by the Twins, but again they were embarrassed by the Eastern champions 9–5. With their back against the wall down 3-games-to-none, the Twins began their trek back. Game four ended with a 4–2 nail-biter of a win for the Twins. Game five saw the Twins embarrass a seemingly deflated Royals squad 8–3. The Twins took game six 2–0 and then finished the comeback with an unbearably close 5–4 victory. With their third Allan Cup victory, the Twins became the only team in Allan Cup history to come back from a 3–0 deficit to win the Allan Cup. As the tournament is now in a round robin format and a revert to best-of-sevens are very unlikely, the feat may never be repeated.
OHA and back to Manitoba
In 1986, the Twins moved to the four-team OHA Senior A Hockey LeagueOHA Senior A Hockey League
The OHA Senior A Hockey League was a top tier Canadian Senior ice hockey league in Ontario from 1975 until 1987. The league was sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Association and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association and competed for the Allan Cup.-History:...
. After one lackluster season for the Twins, the league folded and the Twins returned to the Manitoba Senior A Hockey League.
The 1987-88 season had the Twins win the Manitoba and Western titles and find themselves in the Allan Cup final again. Playing at home in the Gardens, the Twins found themselves against a starkly lesser opponent. The Eastern champions in 1988 were the Charlottetown Islanders. The Twins easily swept the Islanders by scores of 7-4, 10-2, 9-3, and 7-1 respectively to win their fourth ever Allan Cup.
The 1989 Allan Cup brought a significant challenge to the Twins. League champions again, the Twins found themselves in an Allan Cup round robin with three other teams. In game one of the round robin, the Twins met an old rival in the St. Boniface Mohawks and lost 5-3. In game two, the Twins met the Montreal Team Chomedey and defeated them 6-3. In the final game of the round robin, the Twins met the Bassano Hawks and defeated soundly 7-1 to clinch second place. Thunder Bay found themselves in a sudden death semi-final against Montreal for the right to play in the final. The Twins beat Chomedey 6-3. The final was set up as a best-of-three games set and was against St. Boniface. The Twins avenged the 1981 Allan Cup semi-final loss to the Mohawks by defeating them 2-0 and then 4-2 to win their fifth Allan Cup championship.
After winning the 1990-91 Manitoba title and the Western Canadian championship, the Twins found themselves yet again in the Allan Cup final. The Eastern champion was the Charlottetown Islanders, a team that the Twins had embarrassed in 1988 in a lopsided four-game-sweep. This time the Islanders came out to return the favour in their own home rink in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. The Islanders won four straight games (5-3, 5-2, 5-4, and 5-4 in overtime) to kill the Twins dream of a sixth Allan Cup.
The end
That summer, the Colonial Hockey League announced plans to expand to the city of Thunder Bay. The Twins made way for the Semi-Professional Thunder Bay Thunder Hawks who began play in the 1991-92 season. Senior glory would not return to the city of Thunder Bay until the creation of the Thunder Bay BombersThunder Bay Bombers
The Thunder Bay Twins are a Canadian Senior ice hockey team from Thunder Bay, Ontario. They play an independent schedule under the supervision of Hockey Northwestern Ontario...
many years later.
The 1974-75 Thunder Bay Twins were inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 1987.
Season-by-Season results
| Season | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | P | Results | Playoffs | |
| 1970-71 | 40 | 19 | 20 | 1 | |||||||
| 222 | 194 | 39 | 2nd USHL | ||||||||
| 1971-72 | 32 | 15 | 17 | 0 | |||||||
| 158 | 141 | 30 | 2nd USHL | ||||||||
| 1972-73 | 45 | 37 | 7 | 1 | |||||||
| 312 | 131 | 69 | 1st USHL | ||||||||
| 1973-74 | 48 | 35 | 12 | 1 | |||||||
| 285 | 153 | 71 | 1st USHL | ||||||||
| 1974-75 | 48 | 36 | 10 | 2 | |||||||
| 315 | 159 | 74 | 2nd USHL | Won Allan Cup Allan Cup The Allan Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the national senior amateur men’s ice hockey champions of Canada. It has been competed for since 1909. The current champion is the Clarenville Caribous hockey club of Newfoundland and Labrador.-History:... |
|||||||
| 1975-76 | 24 | 20 | 3 | 1 | |||||||
| 145 | 60 | 74 | 2nd OHA Sr. A | ||||||||
| 1976-77 | 34 | 23 | 10 | 1 | |||||||
| 212 | 128 | 47 | 1st OHA Sr. A | ||||||||
| 1977-78 | 40 | 20 | 17 | 3 | |||||||
| 196 | 158 | 43 | 4th OHA Sr. A | ||||||||
| 1978-79 | 38 | 27 | 10 | 1 | |||||||
| 189 | 114 | 55 | 1st OHA Sr. A | Won League | |||||||
| 1979-80 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 0 | |||||||
| 18 | N/A CASHL | ||||||||||
| 1980-81 | 24 | 21 | 3 | 0 | |||||||
| 190 | 96 | 42 | 1st TBHL | Won League | |||||||
| 1981-82 | 23 | 16 | 7 | 0 | |||||||
| 172 | 114 | 32 | 1st TBHL | Lost Semi-final | |||||||
| 1982-83 | 32 | 22 | 10 | 0 | |||||||
| 194 | 134 | 44 | 1st CASHL | DNP | |||||||
| 1983-84 | 34 | 25 | 8 | 1 | |||||||
| 226 | 143 | 57 | 1st CASHL | Won League | |||||||
| 1984-85 | Manitoba Sr. A Statistics Not Available | ||||||||||
| 1985-86 | 36 | 30 | 5 | 1 | |||||||
| 257 | 136 | 61 | 1st CASHL | Lost Final | |||||||
| 1986-87 | 35 | 15 | 19 | 1 | |||||||
| 145 | 184 | 32 | 3rd OHA Sr. A | ||||||||
| 1987-88 | 36 | 28 | 6 | 2 | |||||||
| 260 | 130 | 58 | 1st CASHL | Won League | |||||||
| 1988-89 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 0 | |||||||
| 166 | 77 | 64 | 1st CASHL | Lost Final | |||||||
| 1989-90 | 32 | 27 | 4 | 2 | |||||||
| 216 | 110 | 56 | 1st CASHL | ||||||||
| 1990-91 | Manitoba Sr. A Statistics Not Available | ||||||||||