WELL, here we are two and a half decades later, and this edition of Net Shots marks the conclusion of my 25th year of providing information on the exploits of the many hockey standouts from Thunder Bay and northwestern Ontario.
Be it star players, or the multitude of standout teams, along with a vast array of coaches, executives and officials, the names remain synonymous with the magnitude of exceptional talent the Lakehead has produced for over a century.
GREATEST PLAYER: The list is long and impressive.
Over 100 players from Thunder Bay have skated in the National Hockey League throughout its history.
Many have won the Stanley Cup and went on to achieve great success, while a vast array of others have shone brightly throughout other levels of the game.
One name though, Alex Delvecchio, certainly stands out as the greatest to ever come out of the Lakehead.
A member of the NHL’s Top 100 group, Delvecchio is an honoured member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, after having played his entire career with the Detroit Red Wings.
A three-time Stanley Cup winner out of Fort William, he captained the Red Wings for 12 seasons, while donning the famed ‘Winged Wheel’ of Detroit for 1,550 games and accumulating 1,281 points, which still places him 37th all-time in NHL offensive production.
His 825 assists and 75 game-winning goals also see him among the Top 50 in that department.
Of note, his 1,670 contests dressed between the regular season and playoffs are the most anyone has ever played for one NHL team.
His numbers go on and on as Delvecchio has rightfully earned his place as one of the game’s greats.
BEST TEAM: Take your pick. A plethora of title-winning clubs from nearly level have garnered national championship laurels over the past 100 years.
Be it hoisting the Memorial Cup, capturing Centennial Cups, national midget crowns, a trio of Colonial Cups, to winning a record 10 Allan Cups, symbolizing Canadian senior hockey supremacy, the feats achieved by local sides remain next to unparalleled.
Personally, three team feats stand out.
Firstly, I was lucky enough to be among the boisterous throng in a jam-packed Fort William Gardens on a May evening back in 1975 when the Thunder Bay Twins claimed their first-ever Allan Cup triumph in clipping the Barrie Flyers 8-4 in a sixth and deciding match-up.
Secondly, those same Twins roaring back from a three-games-to-none deficit 10 years later, to stun the Corner Brook Royals with four straight victories on the road in Newfoundland and become the first senior squad in 51 years to win back-to-back senior titles.
That array of skill, grit and determination under head coach Ron Busniuk, previously rallied from every other playoff series they played that year as well.
Thirdly, I was fortunate to play a slight role on the staff during the Thunder Bay Kings run to an Air Canada Cup Canadian midget championship in New Glasgow, N.S., back in 1997, guided by Rick Bragnalo and Doug Adams behind the bench, as well as manager, the late Cliff O’Brien.
Without question, the tremendous results and achievements put forth by our local talent over the year stands second to none.
Thunder Bay can rightfully boast being among the greatest hockey cities in the world and it has been a privilege writing about it over the course of my 1,300-plus weekly contributions, in that span.