Port Colborne Sailors
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The Port Colborne Sailors (formerly the Thorold Blackhawks) are a
Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Aircraft * Ekolot JK-05L Junior, a Polish ultralight aircraft * PZL-112 Junior, a Polish training aircraft * SZD-51 Junior, a Polish-made training and club glider Arts and entertainment Characters * Bowser Jr., ...
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...
team based in
Port Colborne Port Colborne is a city in Ontario, Canada that is located on Lake Erie, at the southern end of the Welland Canal, in the Niagara Region of Southern Ontario. The original settlement, known as Gravelly Bay, dates from 1832 and was renamed after ...
,
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
. They played in the Golden Horseshoe division of the
Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League The Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League (GOJHL) is a Canadian junior ice hockey league based in Southern Ontario, Canada. The league is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Association, Ontario Hockey Federation, and Hockey Canada. The league is c ...
.


History

The Thorold Jaycees joined the Niagara District Junior B Hockey League in 1963, three seasons after the folding of the Thorold Mountaineers. The Jaycees became the Paper Bees in 1975 and stayed with the league until 1979 when it folded. From 1979 until 1982, the team was known as the Thorold Paper C's and played in the local
Niagara & District Junior C Hockey League The Niagara & District Junior C Hockey League is a former Junior "C" ice hockey league in Ontario, Canada, sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Association. The Champion of the Niagara competed for the All-Ontario Championship and the Clarence Schm ...
. In 1982, the Paper C's became the Blackhawks and joined
Golden Horseshoe Junior B Hockey League The Golden Horseshoe Junior Hockey League (GHL) was a junior ice hockey league in Ontario, Canada, sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Association from 1974 until 2007. In 2007, the league became a division of the newly formed Greater Ontario Junio ...
. The Blackhawks stayed members of the GHJHL until 2007 when it merged into the GOJHL. The team consists of mostly local players between the ages of 16 and 21. The Blackhawks were League Champions in 2001, 2003, 2004, and 2005. In 2005, the team went on to capture the
Sutherland Cup The Sutherland Cup is the ice hockey Ontario Junior "B" Provincial Championship trophy. The trophy was first awarded in 1934, and named in honour of former OHA and CAHA president, James T. Sutherland. The Sutherland Cup is now the championshi ...
as the best Jr. B team in Ontario. Many players that started their careers in Thorold went on to play in the
Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...
, the
American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...
, and the
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
. Notable alumni include
Nathan Horton Nathan Russell Horton (born May 29, 1985) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. During his career, Horton played for the Florida Panthers, Boston Bruins and Columbus Blue Jackets. He was drafted third overall by the Panthers in the ...
,
Sean Bentivoglio Sean Bentivoglio (born October 16, 1985) is a Canadian-Italian professional ice hockey forward (ice hockey), forward who is currently playing with the Dundas Real McCoys in the ACH (Allan Cup Hockey) League. Playing career Bentivoglio was born i ...
, John Scott,
Zenon Konopka Zenon Konopka (born January 2, 1981) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Also known as "Zenon the Destroyer", Konopka played for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, Columbus Blue Jackets, Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Islanders, Ottawa ...
,
Dwayne Roloson Albert Dwayne Roloson (born October 12, 1969) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender and former goaltending coach of the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is currently the Goaltending Coach and Director of Pla ...
and
Owen Nolan Owen Liam Nolan (born 12 February 1972) is a Northern Irish-born Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He was drafted first overall by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft. During his 18-year NHL career, he played for the ...
. The Blackhawks played the longest game in club history on March 26, 2006, in a quadruple-overtime thriller of game 6 of their GHL Semi-final series against their arch-rival, the
St. Catharines Falcons St. Catharines Falcons may refer to one of these junior hockey teams: * St. Catharines Falcons (1943–1947) * St. Catharines Falcons (1968) {{disambiguation ...
. The Blackhawks moved onto the GHL finals with this victory. The final score of this contest was 2-1 after Steve Zmudcynski beat St. Catharines' netminder Sean Hall with 5:06 left in the 4th overtime period. Zmudczynski received a long pass from Steve Chappell that set up the winning marker. The game lasted a little over four and a half hours and ended after midnight. An interesting side note from this game is that if there would have been a game seven it would have been played on March 27, the same day Game 6 ended.


Logo

In October 2013, a Facebook page called ''Is The Thorold Blackhawks Logo Offensive?'' was started, which questioned the use of an aboriginal caricature as the team's logo. The page garnered attention from local media and politicians and was brought to the attention of Thorold City Council. On August 4, 2016, Mayor Ted Luciani announced that the logo would be prohibited from the city's arenas from June 1, 2017. The prohibition would apply to jerseys, signage and marketing materials. Luciani said that the city council had been working with the club since 2013 "to resolve the logo issue amicably" and that the club had been given "more than reasonable opportunity to address the issue." As a result, he said, "The City of Thorold will no longer permit the continued use of a logo that has been deemed offensive." During a
pre-game ceremony A pre-game ceremony or pre-match ceremony is an on-field ceremony occurring before a sporting event. Such ceremonies may celebrate a past event, honour a retiring athlete, commemorate a deceased athlete, or promote a cause. Celebrating past event ...
at Frank Dougherty Arena on November 3, 2016, the team unveiled their replacement logo, a stylized head of a black bird of prey. Co-owner Tony Gigliotti – who had inherited the controversial logo when he bought the team in 2013 – said: "I understand how the old logo could offend people and that is something we never wanted to be part of. I created henew logo with the blackbird theme a few years ago with a graphic design guy in Toronto ames Brandan Walkerand we have tweaked it since then. I actually love the new logo and it is easily identifiable for young children and all our fans so we think it will be part of a good marketing plan in the future."


2016-17 season

On February 14, 2017, the Blackhawks announced they were ceasing operations for the remainder of the season due to inability to sustain a full roster. Citing concerns for player safety, the team elected to cease operations with 8 games remaining in the season, which will be recorded as 5-0 forfeit wins for their opponent.


Move to Port Colborne and Permanent Relocation

Due to ongoing renovations to the Thorold Community Arena, the Blackhawks announced on July 19, 2022, that they would be playing the upcoming 2022–23 season out of the Vale Centre in nearby
Port Colborne Port Colborne is a city in Ontario, Canada that is located on Lake Erie, at the southern end of the Welland Canal, in the Niagara Region of Southern Ontario. The original settlement, known as Gravelly Bay, dates from 1832 and was renamed after ...
. On May 5, 2023, the Blackhawks announced they would be making the move permanent and would be officially relocating to
Port Colborne Port Colborne is a city in Ontario, Canada that is located on Lake Erie, at the southern end of the Welland Canal, in the Niagara Region of Southern Ontario. The original settlement, known as Gravelly Bay, dates from 1832 and was renamed after ...
for the 2023–24 season, thus ending 60 years of Junior hockey in
Thorold Thorold is a city in Ontario, Canada, located on the Niagara Escarpment. It is also the seat of the Regional Municipality of Niagara. The Welland Canal passes through the city, featuring lock 7 and the Twin Flight Locks. History The first surv ...
.


Season-by-season results


Sutherland Cup appearances

:''2001'':
Elmira Sugar Kings The Elmira Sugar Kings are a junior hockey, junior ice hockey team based in Elmira, Ontario, Elmira, Ontario, Canada. They play in the Mid-Western division of the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League. History The Elmira Juniors played at the Juni ...
defeated Thorold Blackhawks 4-games-to-2 :''2003'':
Stratford Cullitons The Stratford Warriors are a junior hockey, junior ice hockey team based in Stratford, Ontario, Stratford, Ontario, Canada. They play in the Mid-Western division of the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League. The team was originally named the Warrio ...
defeated Thorold Blackhawks 4-games-to-3 :''2004'': Stratford Cullitons defeated Thorold Blackhawks 4-games-to-none :''2005'': Thorold Blackhawks defeated
Chatham Maroons The Chatham Maroons are a junior hockey, junior ice hockey team based in Chatham, Ontario, Chatham, Ontario, Canada. They play in the Western division of the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League (GOJHL). The Maroons were the 1970 Western Ontari ...
4-games-to-1


Professional alumni

*
Vince Dunn Vince Dunn (born October 29, 1996) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League (NHL). A native of Mississauga, Ontario, Dunn began his minor hockey career with the Central Ontario Wolv ...
* John Scott *
Conor Timmins Conor Timmins (born September 18, 1998) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Colorado Avalanche, 32nd overall, in the 2017 NHL entry draft. Play ...
*
Sean Bentivoglio Sean Bentivoglio (born October 16, 1985) is a Canadian-Italian professional ice hockey forward (ice hockey), forward who is currently playing with the Dundas Real McCoys in the ACH (Allan Cup Hockey) League. Playing career Bentivoglio was born i ...
*
Dwayne Roloson Albert Dwayne Roloson (born October 12, 1969) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender and former goaltending coach of the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is currently the Goaltending Coach and Director of Pla ...
*
Nathan Horton Nathan Russell Horton (born May 29, 1985) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. During his career, Horton played for the Florida Panthers, Boston Bruins and Columbus Blue Jackets. He was drafted third overall by the Panthers in the ...
*
Joey Martin (ice hockey) Joey Martin (born July 29, 1988) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player for UK Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) side Cardiff Devils. He has previously played for IceHL side Graz 99ers and the Stavanger Oilers in Norway's GET-ligaen. Early l ...


References


External links


Blackhawks WebpageGOJHL Webpage
{{GOJHL Golden Horseshoe Junior B Hockey League teams Thorold Ice hockey teams in Ontario Ice hockey clubs established in 1963 1963 establishments in Ontario