The 2014-2015 Champion Tillsonburg Thunder are a

Senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

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

Tillsonburg Tillsonburg is a town in Oxford County, Ontario, Canada with a population of 18,615 located about 50 kilometres southeast of London, on Highway 3 at the junction of Highway 19. History Prior to European settlement, the present site of Tillso ...

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 ...

, Canada. They play in the Western Ontario Super Hockey League.

History

The Tillsonburg Vipers were founded in 2001 as a Senior "AAA" team in the

Ontario Hockey Association The Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) is the governing body for the majority of junior and senior level ice hockey teams in the province of Ontario. Founded in 1890, the OHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation along with the Northern ...

's Major League Hockey. In the 2003–04 season, the Vipers reached the J. Ross Robertson Cup finals, but lost to the Aylmer Blues 4-games-to-2. Tillsonburg's improved on their 2003-04 record in the 2005-06 season. After finishing the regular season in second place with 17 wins in 30 games, the Vipers knocked off the Cambridge Hornets 4-games-to-3 to make the league finals. In the league final, the Vipers fell to the Dundas Real McCoys 4-games-to-3. The MLH fell apart in 2008, just after the Brantford Blast won the league's first ever

Allan Cup The Allan Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the senior ice hockey champions of Canada. It was donated by Sir Montagu Allan of Ravenscrag, Montreal, and has been competed for since 1909. It was most recently won by the Wentworth Gryphins ...

. The team filled the gap when the disgruntled Cambridge Hornets left the MLH, the collegiate Windsor St. Clair Saints, walked away from the league. The Vipers decided it was their time to leave as well and applied to join the

Western Ontario Athletic Association Senior Hockey League The Ontario Elite Hockey League is a Canadian senior ice hockey league governed by the Ontario Hockey Association and Hockey Canada. The league operates in Southwestern Ontario. As of the 2024–25 season, the champion of the OEHL will be elig ...

. The WOAA is an independent league with no connections to the

. It classifies itself as Senior "AA", and allows for both a Senior "AA" and Senior "A" championship come playoff time. On May 14, 2008, the WOAA granted expansion to the Tillsonburg Vipers. The first ever Tillsonburg WOAA game took place on October 4, 2008, as the Thunder defeated the

Goderich Pirates The Goderich Pirates were a senior hockey team based out of Goderich, Ontario, Canada. They played in the Western Ontario Athletic Association Senior Hockey League. After the 2013–14 season, the club relocated to Seaforth, Ontario Onta ...

6-5 in overtime in Tillsonburg. The Thunder had a successful first season in the WOAA, earning a record of 11-7-2, registering 24 points, and fifth place in the South Division. Tillsonburg would lose to the Clinton Radars in the "AA" qualifying round, being sent to the "A" playoffs. In the "A" quarter-finals, the Thunder were upset by the Exeter Mohawks in six games, ending their season.

Season-by-season standings

References

External links

Tillsonburg Thunder
{{OHA Senior Ice hockey teams in Ontario Senior ice hockey teams Tillsonburg Ice hockey clubs established in 2001 2001 establishments in Ontario