The Fort Frances Thunderhawks were a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

Senior ice hockey club from Fort Frances,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

. They were eligible to compete for the

Allan Cup The Allan Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the national senior amateur men's ice hockey champions of Canada. It was donated by Sir Montagu Allan of Ravenscrag, Montreal, and has been competed for since 1909. The current champions are the ...

History

The Thunderhawks were founded in 2009 and are the namesake of the Fort Frances Borderland Thunder, a former local team that played in the Superior International Junior Hockey League. The expansion of the Thunderhawks into the Northwestern Ontario region puts them in direct competition with the already established

Kenora Thistles The Kenora Thistles, officially the Thistles Hockey Club, were a Canadian ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario. Founded in 1894, they were originally known as the Rat Portage Thistles. The team competed for the Stanley Cup, the ice hock ...

and the 2005 Allan Cup Champion Thunder Bay K&A Twins. Additionally, a third team in the region allows for the potential for the first senior league in the region since the 1980s. On November 10, 2009, the Thunderhawks played their first ever game. In Fort Frances, the Thunderhawks dropped a 7-6 decision in a shootout to the

. At the event they honoured local Senior history with an opening ceremony celebrating the

1952 Allan Cup The 1952 Allan Cup was the Canadian senior ice hockey championship for the 1951–52 senior "A" season. The event was hosted by the Fort Frances Canadians and Fort Frances, Ontario. The 1952 playoff marked the 44th time that the Allan Cup h ...

victory by the

Fort Frances Canadians The Fort Frances Canadians were a Canadian senior ice hockey team in the Northern Amateur League, from Fort Frances, Ontario. The team was organized following World War II, and led by player-coach Pat Wilson. Local radio station CKFI-AM broadcas ...

. On December 4, 2009, the Thunderhawks celebrated their first ever win by defeating the Thunder Bay K&A Twins 6-5 at home. The Thunderhawks entered the 2010 HNO Gary Cook Cup tournament on March 11, 2010 for the regional senior championship. In their first game they tied the

3-3. The next night the Thunderhawks trailed the Thunder Bay K&A Twins 5-0 in the third period, only to rally and tie the Twins 5-5. It looked as if the Thunderhawks (0-0-2) would be a surprise berth into the tournament final, but at the last minute the Twins filed a protest over a Thunderhawks player. The protest was upheld by the HNO who overturned both of Fort Frances's results, despite the issue seeming to be a clerical error done by the HNO itself, which eliminated the Thunderhawks from the tournament. Despite losing in the semi-final of the

2011 Allan Cup The 2011 Allan Cup was the Canadian championship of senior ice hockey. This was the 103rd year the Allan Cup was awarded. The 2011 Allan Cup was contended in Kenora, Ontario, hosted by the Kenora Thistles of Hockey Northwestern Ontario from ...

, the Thunderhawks were informed in June 2011 that

Hockey Northwestern Ontario Hockey Northwestern Ontario (HNO) is the governing body of all ice hockey in Northern Ontario, Canada. Hockey Northwestern Ontario is a branch of Hockey Canada. Jurisdiction Empowered by Hockey Canada, Hockey Northwestern Ontario has control ...

had awarded them the Gary Cook Cup as branch champions because of their win over Kenora in the tournament quarter-final. Also, the Thunderhawks were awarded the Renwick Cup as Ontario Senior hockey champions over the

Dundas Real McCoys The Dundas Real McCoys are a Canadian senior ice hockey team based in Dundas, Ontario. They play in the Ontario Hockey Association's Major League Hockey. The Real McCoys have won two National Championships, winning the 1986 Hardy Cup as Cana ...

for advancing further in the tournament. In 2011-12, the Thunderhawks could not get enough player commitment and folded just before their final regular season game against Kenora. The team was believed to be sold to a retirement community in South Florida for the start of the 2012-13 season according to veteran player/coach Reg Dunlop.

Season-by-season standings

References

External links

Official WebsiteOfficial Allan Cup Website
{{OHA Senior Senior ice hockey teams Ice hockey teams in Ontario Sport in Northern Ontario Fort Frances 2009 establishments in Ontario Ice hockey clubs established in 2009 2012 disestablishments in Ontario Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 2012 Hockey Northwestern Ontario

History

Season-by-season standings

See also

References

External links