Soo Thunderbirds

For the defunct EPHL team, see Sault Thunderbirds.

Soo Thunderbirds

City	Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada
League	Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League
Division	Western
Founded	1999
Home arena	John Rhodes Community Centre
Colours	Black, Red, and White
Owner(s)	Albert Giommi
General manager	Jamie Henderson (2015-16)
Head coach	Jordan Smith
Affiliates	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
Franchise history
1999–2002	Soo Thunderbirds
2002–2003	Sault Ste. Marie Jr. Greyhounds
2003–Present	Soo Thunderbirds

The Soo Thunderbirds are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League.

History

Soo Thunderbirds first came into being as a junior hockey program in the late 1970s through a group started by the late Zoltan Kovacs Sr.

Zoltan, who emigrated to Canada from Hungary in 1956, started the Thunderbirds of the former International Jr. B Hockey League to keep more young hockey players at home.

Abbie Carricato coached the Thunderbirds during Zoltan's ownership period (1978-1982). The Thunderbirds won three IJHL championships during Zoltan's ownership. The IJHL later folded.

2012 was a Championship year for the Soo Thunderbirds. They won the NOJHL League Championship as well as the coveted Dudley Hewitt Cup. They went on to play at the Royal Bank Cup in Humboldt, Saskatchewan.

Team Captains: Mike Hull, Matt Wallace, Nick Oho, Dave Cara, Matt Wallace, Ryan Maunu, Adam Kauppi, Tyler Gendron, Nick Minardi, Kevin Smith, Jerry Petingalo, Micky Sartoretto.

Soo Jr. Greyhounds

The Soo Thunderbirds announced they were becoming the Soo Jr. Greyhounds for 2002-03 to establish closer relations with the OHL's Greyhounds. This only lasted one season, and for the 2003-04 season, the Jr. Greyhounds became the Soo Thunderbirds once again.

Season-by-Season results

Season	GP	W	L	T	OTL	GF	GA	P	Results	Playoffs
Soo Thunderbirds
1999-00	40	22	15	3	-	184	145	47	3rd NOJHL
2000-01	40	33	4	1	2	240	95	69	2nd NOJHL	Lost Final
2001-02	42	35	5	0	2	347	122	72	2nd NOJHL	Lost Final
Sault Ste. Marie Jr. Greyhounds
2002-03	48	35	11	2	-	305	161	72	2nd NOJHL	Lost Final
Soo Thunderbirds
2003-04	48	31	9	7	1	266	155	70	2nd NOJHL	Lost Final
2004-05	48	26	17	2	3	206	175	57	5th NOJHL	Lost Semi-final
2005-06	48	31	16	0	1	220	165	63	2nd NOJHL	Lost Semi-final
2006-07	48	22	22	0	4	170	184	48	5th NOJHL	Lost Semi-final
2007-08	50	33	9	-	8	206	145	101	1st NOJHL	Lost Final
2008-09	50	35	14	-	1	244	153	71	2nd NOJHL	Won League
2009-10	50	33	14	-	3	253	154	69	3rd NOJHL	Lost Final
2010-11	50	38	9	-	3	244	144	79	1st NOJHL	Lost Semi-final
2011-12	50	38	7	1	6	245	156	83	1st NOJHL	Won League, Won DHC
2012-13	48	33	9	3	3	223	123	72	2nd NOJHL	Lost Final
2013-14	56	48	5	1	2	245	102	99	1st NOJHL	Lost Final
2014-15	52	48	7	1	6	271	130	83	1st of 4 West 1st of 9 NOJHL	Won Div. Semi-final, 4-0 (Beavers) Won Div. Finals, 4-1 (Wildcats) Won League Finals, 4-1 (Crunch) LEAGUE CHAMPIONS

Dudley Hewitt Cup

Central Canada Championships
NOJHL - OJHL - SIJHL - Host
Round robin play with 2nd vs 3rd in semi-final to advance against 1st in the finals.

Year	Round Robin	Record	Standing	SemiFinal	Gold Medal Game
2015	W, Dryden Ice Dogs 8-1 W, Fort Frances Lakers 6-3 OTL, Toronto Lakeshore Patriots 3-4	2-0-1	1st of 4	n/a	W, Fort Frances Lakers 6-3 Dudley Hewitt Cup Champions
2012	OTW, Wisconsin Wilderness 4-3 W, Thunder Bay North Stars 4-3 L, Stouffville Spirit 2-10	2-1-0	2nd of 4	W Thunder Bay North Stars 8-5	W, Stouffville Spirit 5-3 Dudley Hewitt Cup Champions
2009	L, Fort William North Stars 0-2 L, Schreiber Diesels 0-2 L, Kingston Voyageurs 0-3	0-0-3	4th of 4	n/a	n/a

Royal Bank Cup

CANADIAN NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Dudley Hewitt Champion - Central & Fred Page Champion - Eastern & Western Canada Cup - Western & Western Canada Cup - Runner Up & Host
Round robin play with top 4 in semi-final and winners to finals.

Year	Round Robin	Record	Standing	SemiFinal	Gold Medal Game
2015	L, Carleton Place Canadians 0-4 L, Melfort Mustangs 3-5 L, Portage Terriers 2-7 L, Penticton Vees 2-5	0-4-0	5th of 5	n/a	n/a
2012	W, Penticton Vees 2-1 2OTL, Portage Terriers 3-4 L, Humboldt Broncos 0-3 W, Woodstock Slammers 7-4	2-2	2nd of 5	L Penticton Vees 0-3	n/a

External links

Thunderbirds Webpage

Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League

Current Teams

Former Teams

History

IJBHL
NOJHA

NOHA Junior A
Seasons

NOJHA	1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72

NOJHL	1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15

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