The Thunder Bay Beavers 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 ...

Junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959 * ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009 * ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010 * ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019 Films * ''Junior'' (1994 ...

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

club from

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population ...

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 Ca ...

. The Canadians were members of the

Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League The Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League (TBJHL) was a Canadian junior ice hockey league that existed from c. 1920 to 1980. The TBJHL operated in Northwestern Ontario, primarily in the Thunder Bay region. The Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League wa ...

and were 1972 National

Centennial Cup The Centennial Cup is an annual ice hockey tournament organized by Hockey Canada and the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL), which determines the national champion of junior A ice hockey. It is a ten-team round robin featuring the winners of ...

quarter-finalists, losing to the eventual winner

Guelph CMC's The Guelph Platers were a junior ice hockey team based in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. The team played in the Ontario Hockey League, Ontario Junior Hockey League, and Southern Ontario Junior A Hockey League. They were originally known as the CMC's un ...

.Toronto Star, Sports section. April 15, 1972.

History

In 1971,

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

investors were brought into the

. The result was an expanded league and changing the league's name to the Thunder Bay-Minnesota League. The new teams were the Minnesota Jr. Stars and the

St. Paul, MN Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center o ...

-sponsored Thunder Bay Vulcans. The name "Vulcans" came from an organization in the St. Paul area, but the team played in

. In their first season, the Vulcans proved to be an instant powerhouse. With an undefeated 21-0-1 record in the TBMJHL regular season, the Vulcans also posted an overall record of 33-2-3 with combined regular season record and exhibition schedule versus the local

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

loop (including the Lakehead Nor'Westers) and the semi-pro

United States Hockey League The United States Hockey League (USHL) is the top junior ice hockey league sanctioned by USA Hockey. The league consists of 16 active teams located in the midwestern United States, for players between the ages of 16 and 21. The USHL is strictly ...

. The Vulcans easily won the league title and moved on to the

1972 Centennial Cup The 1972 Centennial Cup is the second Tier II Junior "A" 1972 ice hockey National Championship for the Canadian Junior A Hockey League. The Centennial Cup was competed for by the winners of the Western Canadian Champions and the Eastern Canadian ...

National playdowns. In the first round they drew the

Central Junior A Hockey League The Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) is a Canadian Junior "A" ice hockey league operating in eastern Ontario, Canada. The league is sanctioned by the Hockey Eastern Ontario and Hockey Canada and is a member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League ...

champion

Smiths Falls Bears The Smiths Falls Bears are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Smiths Falls, Ontario, Smiths Falls, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League. The team was an original member of the league, but then left Smiths Falls in ...

. The Vulcans masterfully defeated the Bears 4-games-to-1 and outscored them 36–19, including a 15-4 blowout win to clinch the series. In the National quarter-final, the Vulcans drew the

Southern Ontario Junior A Hockey League The Southern Ontario Junior A Hockey League was a Tier II Junior "A" ice hockey that lasted from the late 1960s until 1977 in Southern Ontario, Canada. The league was swallowed by what is now called the Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League ...

. Guelph edged out a pair of 5-4 victories to open the series. Game three was a 7–3 win for the Vulcans, and Game four was won 7–0. The CMC's rebounded in Game five with a 6–2 to take a 3–2 series lead. In Game six, the Vulcans defaulted the game only 1:42 into the first period. The coach of the Vulcans was unhappy about a series of calls the referee made and pulled the Vulcans off of the ice in front of 4,200 Guelph fans. The ref awarded the game to Guelph when it became clear that the Vulcans would not return. Guelph went on to easily win the

, leaving the boys on the Vulcans, who were far from down and out, wondering what could have been. In 1972, the TBJHL was renamed the Can-Am Junior Hockey League. Only the Vulcans, Jr. Stars and the

Westfort Hurricanes The Westfort Hurricanes were a Canadian Junior ice hockey club from Fort William, Ontario. The Herks were members of the Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League and were Abbott Cup finalists once. History In 1972, the Hurricanes broke away from the ...

went on with the league. The remaining teams dropped to Thunder Bay Jr. B. The Vulcans were sold by their St. Paul investors during the season and changed their names to the Thunder Bay Centennials. The newly renamed St. Paul Jr. Stars, later to be called

St. Paul Vulcans The St. Paul Vulcans are a defunct Junior A ice hockey franchise that was based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The franchise was a charter member of the United States Hockey League (USHL) that started play with the 1979-80 season. The franchise was ...

, went on to win the league and compete in the 1973 Centennial Cup playdowns. The Centennials made it clear at the end of the season that they would not play another year in the increasingly American league. The Thunder Bay Junior A League was resurrected in 1973 and the team took on the traditional name Thunder Bay Beavers after the Fort William Beavers of senior hockey fame. The St. Paul Vulcans went on to form a new league called the

Midwest Junior Hockey League The Midwest Junior Hockey League (MWJHL) was an American junior ice hockey league. The MWJHL were members of the United Hockey Union and sanctioned by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU). On March 10, 2015, the league announced it would be joining ...

. The later merger between the MWJHL and the USHL would revolutionize American junior hockey. In 1978 the Beavers and all other Thunder Bay-area teams were forced to downsize and most of them ceased to exist. The last known season of the Beavers ended in 1978.

Season-by-Season Standings

Playoffs

*1972 ''Won League, Lost

Dudley Hewitt Cup The Dudley-Hewitt Cup is a championship ice hockey trophy awarded to the Central Canadian Junior A champion. The trophy is currently decided by round robin tournament format, at the conclusion of the playoffs of the Ontario Junior Hockey League, ...

semi-final'' :Thunder Bay Vulcans defeated Minnesota Jr. Stars ''4-games-to-none'' TBMJHL CHAMPIONS :Thunder Bay Vulcans defeated

( CJHL) ''4-games-to-1'' :

( SOJHL) defeated Thunder Bay Vulcans ''4-games-to-2'' *1973 ''Lost Final/TBAHA Jack Adams Trophy final'' :Thunder Bay Centennials defeated

''4-games-to-2'' :Thunder Bay Centennials defeated

Fort William Canadians The Fort William Canadians were a junior ice hockey team based in Fort William, Ontario, Canada. The Canadians were members of the Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League and were Abbott Cup finalists three times. For a while, the ''Fort William Can ...

(

TBJHL The Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League (TBJHL) was a Canadian junior ice hockey league that existed from c. 1920 to 1980. The TBJHL operated in Northwestern Ontario, primarily in the Thunder Bay region. The Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League wa ...

) ''2-games-to-none'' : St. Paul Jr. Stars defeated Thunder Bay Centennials ''4-games-to-none'' *1974 ''Lost TBJHL final/Lost TBAHA semi-final'' :

defeated Thunder Bay Beavers ''3-games-to-2'' *1975 ''Lost Semi-final'' :

Thunder Bay Hurricanes The Westfort Hurricanes were a Canadian Junior ice hockey club from Fort William, Ontario. The Herks were members of the Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League and were Abbott Cup finalists once. History In 1972, the Hurricanes broke away from the ...

defeated Thunder Bay Beavers ''4-games-to-2'' *1976 ''Lost Final'' :Thunder Bay Beavers defeated

''4-games-to-2'' :

Thunder Bay Eagles The Port Arthur Marrs were a junior ice hockey team that played in Port Arthur, Ontario (now part of the city of Thunder Bay). They were named for trucking company and sponsor W.H. Marr, Ltd., and contested the 1967 Memorial Cup, which they lost ...

defeated Thunder Bay Beavers ''4-games-to-none'' *1977 ''Lost Semi-final'' :

Degagne Hurricanes The Westfort Hurricanes were a Canadian Junior ice hockey club from Fort William, Ontario. The Herks were members of the Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League and were Abbott Cup finalists once. History In 1972, the Hurricanes broke away from the ...

defeated Thunder Bay Beavers ''3-games-to-none and 1 tie'' *1978 ''Lost Semi-final'' :

defeated Thunder Bay Beavers ''3-games-to-none''

Championships

Champions'': :1972

Notable alumni

Danny Gruen Daniel Patrick Gruen (born June 26, 1952) is a retired professional ice hockey player who played 49 games in the National Hockey League and 181 games in the World Hockey Association. He played with the Colorado Rockies, Detroit Red Wings, Michi ...

References

{{Reflist Sport in Thunder Bay