Hawkesbury Hawks

Hawkesbury Hawks
City	Hawkesbury, Ontario, Canada
League	Central Canada Hockey League
Division	Robinson
Founded	1974
Home arena	Robert Hartley Sports Complex
Colours	Blue, Gold, Red and White
General manager	Ian Henderson
Head coach	Rick Dorval
Affiliate(s)	Alexandria Glens (CCHL2)

The Hawkesbury Hawks are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Hawkesbury, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL).

History

The Hawks were formed by a group of local businessmen in March 1974. From 1974 until 1976 the Hawks were a part of the Eastern Ontario Junior B Hockey League. After making the jump to the Central Junior A Hockey League in 1976, the Hawks found themselves in the basement of the league in their first season—although they quickly rose through the ranks in the seasons following. In 1979, the team won the CJHL Championship and moved on to the Centennial Cup where they lost the semi-finals to the Ontario Hockey Association's Guelph Platers—the eventual champion. The 1980 season saw them win the Bogart Cup as CJHL Champions again. This time they lost in the quarter-finals of the National Championship to Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League Champion Joliette Cyclones.

1990 saw the Hawks rise to glory once again as CJHL Champions, but an opening round loss in the national Championships to Quebec's Le Collège Français de Longueuil spelled the end of a National Championship run. In 1991, the team won the league again and then also hosted the Central Canadian Championship where they lost the semi-final to the Sudbury Junior Wolves of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League.

The 1999 playoffs were Hawkesbury's next taste of hockey gold, as they won the CJHL Championship. This led them to the Fred Page Cup, where they were rather successful, although they lost the final to the Charlottetown Abbies of the Maritime Junior A Hockey League.

The Hawks best year to date came in 2005. They won the Bogart Cup, and moved on to the Fred Page Cup again. They pulled off a few big games and won the Cup, advancing them to the Royal Bank Cup for the 2005 National Championships. The Royal Bank Cup was eventually won by the Weyburn Red Wings of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League.

The Hawks did repeat their Art Bogart Cup championship, when the Nepean Raiders sought redemption for the bad-experienced 2005 finals. The Hawks ended up winning the series 4 games 2 on home ice at the Robert Hartley Complex. The Fred Page Cup was eventually won by the Joliette Action.

The Hawks fell apart as players, who played in the championship years graduated. The Hawks hit rock-bottom in the standings with only 8 wins in 2008-09. Several players demanded trades, walked off the team, or went elsewhere to resume their junior "A" hockey careers.

The 2009-10 season saw the Hawks go under new ownership, management and coaching staff. The Hawks brought in rookie coach Martin Dagenais who is also acting as General Manager. Richard Morris stepped in as Assisitant Coach. Ian Henderson was brought on to the staff as Assistant GM and Director of Player Personnel. An entire new scouting staff was added as part of the new groups rebuilding plan for the franchise. By December the Hawks had already matched the win total from the previous season with one of the youngest teams in the CJHL.

Season-by-Season record

Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against

Championships

CJHL Bogart Cup Championships: 1979, 1980, 1990, 1991, 1999, 2005, 2006

Eastern Canadian Fred Page Cup Championships: 2005

CJAHL Royal Bank Cup Championships: None

Notable alumni

• Derek Armstrong
• Jesse Boulerice
• Jeff Brown
• Bruce Cassidy
• Jim Culhane
• Jim Kyte
• Denis Larocque
• Marquis Mathieu
• Sandy McCarthy
• Dan McGillis
• Ken McRae
• Gino Odjick
• Benoit Pouliot
• Bruce Racine
• Mike Rowe
• Martin St. Louis
• Martin St. Pierre

External links

• Hawkesbury Hawks Website