WITH a local junior title secured, the 1951-52 version of the Fort William Hurricanes began charting a course along the western portion of the Memorial Cup trail.
Knowing full well the brand of hockey out on the prairies was a physical one, the Herks geared themselves up for a few bumps and bruises along the way.
Adding Port Arthur pickups, forward Gord (Junior) Wilson and defenceman Arnott Whitney, along with Eddie Kachur from the Columbus Canadiens, a date was set with the Winnipeg Monarchs.
With those additions mixed in with regulars like Alex (Moe) Irving, Don Poile, Frank Richardson and Joe Malo up front, the Herks players could contribute offensively.
Of note, three of those skaters combined to score the first-ever goal at the Fort William Gardens as Poile connected with assistance from Richardson and Malo in a match-up versus the rival Columbus Canadiens on opening night of the venue, back on March 6, 1951.
After being bounced 6-1 in the Manitoba capital in the opener, a goaltender gaffe helped turn Fort William’s fortunes around in Game 2.
Trailing 1-0 in the second period, Kachur fired a shot along the ice from outside the blueline that the Monarchs’ netminder attempted to bat away, but fanned on it as it swerved at the last moment and slid untouched into the goal in what finished as a 1-1 draw.
From there, the Hurricanes rallied for an 8-6 triumph in the next outing, that required extra time, and returned home deadlocked.
The following match-up was another tightly contested affair with Irving and Norm Berglund scoring in an eventual 2-2 tie.
A scrappy Game 5 saw Poile dish out four assists while Malo tallied twice, and Whitney, Irving and Larry Cahan supplied singles as Fort William crowned the Monarchs 5-1.
The Hurricanes then punched their ticket to the Abbott Cup Western Canadian final when Malo banged in his own rebound 6:42 of OT in Game 6, much to the delight of the record-setting throng of 5,698 that was stuffed into the Gardens.
Wilson notched the other two markers for the club in the 3-2 win, which set up a date another mighty adversary, the Regina Pats.
Sporting their orange and green sweaters, the Hurricanes saw another capacity crowd jammed into the Gardens as the series began against Regina.
Much to the delight of the hometown faithful, the Herks notched a trio of power play markers, with Poile potting a pair and setting up Irving for another, in a 3-1 victory.
Next, despite the brilliant goaltending of Dave Gatherum, the Pats prevailed 3-2 in Game 2.
Showing their mettle, the Hurricanes trailed by one late into Game 3, but saw Kachur and Bergland both convert deep into the proceedings to pull out a 2-1 win.
Things would get much tougher for Fort William from there however as the teams headed to Saskatchewan to wrap things up.
In Game 4, Regina struck for trio of third period tallies to earn a 5-2 victory.
Another final frame letdown put the Hurricanes on the brink of elimination after that as they dropped a 6-1 decision.
In the end, the Pats proved to be too much for a battered and bruised Fort William club.
Next to unbeatable at home ice, the Herks gave Regina all they could handle in the finale, but ultimately fell 2-1, despite a terrific 46-save effort by goaltender Gatherum.
Pats captain and future NHLer Eddie Litzenberger had both his side’s tallies to wrap-up the series.
Regina went on to get swept by the Guelph Biltmores in a Memorial Cup final played entirely in southern Ontario.
As for the 1951-52 Fort William Hurricanes, even in defeat, they earned praise from opponents and fans alike in being described as a hard-working, tenacious and resilient team, which has been a staple of many teams from the Lakehead over the years.
Hurricanes went to 1952 western Jr. final
