1st row: (L-to-R) – Rocky Menard; Larry Folino (V.P.); Barry Hogan (C); Russ Poole (Manager); Dave Siciliano (Player/Coach); Albert Slivinski (GM); Brian DePiero; (Player/Assistant Coach); Murray Wing; Moe Trevin
2nd row: (L-to-R) – Les Hanbury (Treasurer); Gary Linquist; Jack Owchar; Tom Deacon; Russ Elliott; Jack Davies; Bill McDonald; Dave Bragnalo; Bob Stenbeck (Secretary)
3rd row: (L-to-R) – Gary Cook (Trainer); Brian Vescio; Jack Byerley; Chuck Kelner; Murray McLeod; Mike (Tinker) Mithrush; Dave Vaillant; Vic Fortes (Trainer)
4th row: (L-to-R) – Jack Masters (President); Darrell Clarke (Stick Boy); Dr. Doug Rathbone (Team Physician); Jack Yeo (Assistant GM)
FOR those of a certain era, the Thunder Bay Twins were it when it came to local hockey teams a half century ago.
Many fondly look back at senior hockey in its heyday and recognize just how important it was within the community.
In 1975, the Lakehead had gone three and a half decades without winning the Allan Cup, Canadian Sr. championship.
The last local side to do so prior to that was the 1939 Port Arthur Bearcats, who boasted the likes of future Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Edgar Laprade on that team.
However, the ‘75 Twins would put an end to that lengthy drought with a talent-laden local roster along with a couple of impressive standouts from outside the region.
In his first year as player-coach of that Thunder Bay contingent was Dave Siciliano, who fondly looks back on that national title-winning squad.
“This was a group of players who had experienced the Allan Cup trail for a few years previously without success, so they were looking for that key to win the championship,” stated Siciliano.
“This definitely put me, as their coach, in a good position.”
This was the club’s fifth campaign competing in the United States Hockey League which they joined in 1970 following the amalgamation of Port Arthur and Fort William.
In that 1974-75 USHL season, the Twins went 36-10-2 with only the Green Bay Bobcats having a better record at 38-8-2.
Taking on Green Bay in the league’s North Division Final, the Twins began the best-of-three series on the road.
Thunder Bay showed their mettle by sweeping the first place Bobcats by scores of 6-2 and 6-3.
Led by a two-goal night from Russ Elliott the Twins took the opener, with Murray Wing; Chuck Kelner; Brian DePiero and Murray McLeod supplying singles.
Goaltender Rocky Menard made 27 saves to pick-up up the win.
Finishing it off, Kelner and Wing both clicked twice while Elliott and DePiero also found the back of the net in a contest where Menard had 33 stops in the Game 2 triumph.
Next came a date with the Waterloo Black Hawks for the USHL title as Thunder Bay went in search of a fourth straight league championship.
Starting off at Waterloo’s McElroy Auditorium, in front of the USHL’s biggest crowd in a decade with over 4,700 patrons on hand, the visitors sent them home disappointed with a 4-2 triumph.
After falling behind early, the Twins countered with markers from Dave Vaillant and Elliot as part of a first period that ended 2-2.
Neither side would score in the middle stanza, before captain Barry Hogan picked up the game-winner with six minutes to play and Elliott iced it in the late going with an empty netter.
Responding in Game 2, the Hawks used a six-goal, second-period barrage to knot the best-of-five affair with a 7-2 decision. Hogan and Gary Linquist scored for the guests in the final frame.
Returning home, the Twins were all business in the third contest, skating to a 9-3 romp at the Fort William Gardens putting the Lakehead side up 2-1 in the best-of-five final.
Led by a five-point performance from Byerley, including notching a hat trick, Thunder Bay proved to be too much for their opponents.
Also connecting for the locals were Barry Hogan, twice, Dave Vaillant; Kelner; Elliot and Bill McDonald.
Capping off the crown on home ice, the Twins clipped the Hawks 5-1 to take the best-of-five affair in four games.
Continuing to click offensively, Elliot; Byerley; Kelner; DePiero and Mike (Tinker) Mithrush all scored to close it out in a game that saw Thunder Bay bombard Waterloo goaltender Bud Heaney with 55 shots while Menard faced only 20 attempts in the victory.
For four years the Twins were solid in the senior hockey ranks, putting up impressive numbers in the USHL.
However, the Twins main objective was that elusive Allan Cup crown.
That next step advancing along the Allan Cup trail was were the Twins previously could not get over the next hurdle.
“Because of the past experiences, there was one goal; winning the Allan Cup,” offered Siciliano, the then first-year bench boss.
“The commitment to it was exceptional. They were disciplined in all facets of our game and over the USHL season became more confident in our direction.”
Heading into the Allan Cup playdowns, Siciliano along with the efforts team president Jack Masters; V.P. Larry Folino; general manager Albert Silvinski; assistant GM Jack Yeo and manager Russ Poole had put together a solid squad.
“We built a team on speed, skill, hockey sense and team play. Our ability to create plays and score goals was a major strength.”
Led by veteran forward and team captain Hogan along with leading scorers DePiero; Byerley; Linquist as well as the likes of Bragnalo, McLeod, Tom Deacon, Kelner, Brian Vescio, McDonald; Mithrush and newcomer Elliot, who proved to be a force both offensively and physically, the Twins boasted plenty of skill and tenacity up front.
Add in the likes of point-per-game defenceman Wing along with Vaillant, Owchar and Jack Davies patrolling the blueline, Thunder Bay was solid there too.
In net, they had brought in goaltender Rocky Menard, who only a year earlier was a member of the Smiths Falls Bears who had stymied a Siciliano-coached Thunder Bay Hurricanes junior team that fell in seven games in the Centennial Cup Eastern Final.
Menard would prove pivotal between the pipes with Moe Trewin also seeing time in goal.
Initially, the quest for the Canadian senior crown was at risk, due to an disagreement with the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association over playing dates, since the Twins had the USHL playoffs to deal with while their upcoming opponent, the St. Boniface Mohawks had only played 20 exhibitions games leading into the series.
Eventually the clubs and the CAHA settled on having a best-of-five affair.
Commencing in Winnipeg, Thunder Bay opened with a 6-3 win.
A Kelner hat trick, along with a helper, set the tone for the Twins, who also saw Wing strike twice from the point and receive another from Elliott.
Levelling the proceedings in Game 2, the Mohawks responded with a trio of tallies in the third period to collect a 5-3 victory on home ice.
Scoring for the Twins in the setback were Elliot; Bragnalo and Kelner.
Regaining the series lead, the squad won again in the Manitoba capital as they skated to a 5-3 result in Game 3.
Two from Elliott and markers from Byerley; DePeiro and the game-winner off the stick of Tom Deacon wrapped up the result.
Thunder Bay then trimmed St. Boniface 5-2 in Game 4 to punch their ticket to the western Canadian Final versus the Spokane Flyers.
Hosting the Flyers, the Twins went on to soar past them in three straight to claim the Patton Cup.
A pair of one-sided triumphs resulted in victories of 7-2 and 6-1, which got the team off to a solid start.
Striking twice in the Game 1 win was Bragnalo, with Deacon; DePiero; McDonald; Linquist and Byerley also scoring.
In Game 2, they never trailed as Vaillant and DePiero put them up 2-1 after one and McLeod extended their cushion after 40 minutes.
Two by Elliot then capped off the victory on a night where DePiero dished out three assists.
Trailing most of the evening in the clincher, the club scored four times in the third period to pull out a 5-4 result, highlighted by a DePiero decider with only six seconds remaining in regulation.
Also connecting in the comeback were Byerley; Linquist; Vescio and McLeod.
Advancing to the Allan Cup Final, a formidable foe awaited in the defending national champion Barrie Flyers.
“We still had to beat the OHA rep, the Barrie Flyers,” recalled Siciliano.
“Over the past years this proved to be the major hurdle the team was never quite able to accomplish. I thought we were well prepared physically, but were we prepared mentally for the challenge was my concern?”
A number of those concerns were played out early as the final opened up in Barrie where the first three contests were held.
“We started in Barrie and my concerns proved out. We lost the first one 8-5, but during the game we noticed something Barrie was doing that we felt we could exploit,” surmised the Twins coach.
The defending Allan Cup champion Flyers were looking to become the first repeat winner of the Canadian senior crown in 50 years, taking the high-scoring affair in Game 1.
Siciliano; McLeod; Deacon; McDonald and Bragnalo all found the back of the net in the loss.
“We made some line changes that shook up some of the guys and with the changes made, we dominated Game 2, winning 7-2, and never looked back.”
Down by a goal after the first period, Thunder Bay scored three times in each of the final two frames to win going away.
The Twins’ marksmen in the triumph were Deacon, who notched a pair; Vescio; Kelner; DePiero; Bragnalo and Jack Owchar.
While Barrie rebounded to take Game 3 by a 7-4 count, the alterations to the game plan and line-up shuffling had taken root as the Twins returned home for the completion of the series.
Connecting for the squad in that setback were Vaillant; DePiero; Deacon and Hogan.
Returning home to the Fort William Gardens for the duration of the 1975 Allan Cup Final, the Dave Siciliano-led Twins were on the verge of national senior hockey glory.
Making a statement in Game 4, Thunder Bay showed just how strong they were on home ice, blasting Barrie 8-2.
A well-balanced offensive attack featured eight different goal scorers as Elliot; Bragnalo; Byerley; Wing; McDonald; Hogan; Deacon and Vescio all provided markers.
As he had been for much of the playoffs, Menard was stellar between the pipes for the Twins.
Much to the delight of the throng of spectators stuffed into the Gardens, it was more Thunder Bay in Game 5 as they moved to within a victory of a Canadian championship with a convincing 5-2 triumph in Game 5.
Continuing to get contributions throughout the line-up, Hogan; Bragnalo and Byerley scored once each while McLeod chipped in with a pair of markers.
Then heading into the eventual sixth and final game of the series, in front of a jam-packed throng at the Gardens, the Twins had an answer for everything the defending Allan Cup champs from Barrie threw at them as the home side proved to be too much in what would be an eventual 8-4 victory and the organization’s first-ever national senior title.
Tacking on a trio of tallies off the sticks Vaillant; Bragnalo and Deacon, the home side were up by three within the first six minutes and six seconds of the contest.
While Barrie got back to within one by the first intermission, goals by Byerley and Deacon, with the eventual game-winner, in the middle stanza, the Twins would not be caught.
Deacon; Bragnalo and McLeod put the contest out of reach in the final frame on a night that saw Linquist dish out four assists and Menard do his part in net, much to the delight of the 5,000-plus fans on hand, who raised the roof in celebration as the series came to a close.
Looking back at the achievement 50 years later, Siciliano reflected on the balance of skill, desire and commitment the squad boasted.
“The team confidence reached a new high down in Barrie, especially since we were going home to complete the series,” stated the then first-year player coach.
“The over-flowing home crowds motivated the team to out-skate Barrie and win the final three games.”
Siciliano knew a lot of things went right for the Twins back then as well which coincided nicely with the talent level the club boasted.
“Looking back, I guess I can say all the stars lined up for our success,” reflected Siciliano.
“Even though we had an experienced group, there was that mental hurdle of competing against and beating the OHA rep that needed to be over come to reach our final goal.”
“When this crossroad came our internal leadership stepped up and performed at another level. That proved to give the team the confidence that Barrie can be beat. Everyone followed and raised their level of play.”
The Thunder Bay bench boss also knew the work ethic of his charges was second to none.
“The team was a hard-working group. We practiced often and with a purpose. Their commitment was 100 percent especially considering everyone worked and was raising a family.”
Having guided teams to championships at many levels over the years, Siciliano still looks back proudly of the success this team had.
“Obviously in my coaching career this was one of the most satisfying years I had. The staff and player support was outstanding and the board of directors were fully engaged to winning as well.”
In the end, the Lakehead’s 35-year drought of having a Canadian senior hockey champion once again had come to a close as the Thunder Bay Twins captured the 1975 Allan Cup; their first of five national titles.
