Wikipedia

Port Colborne Sailors

The Port Colborne Sailors (formerly the Thorold Blackhawks) are a Canadian junior ice hockey team based in Port Colborne, Ontario. They played in the Golden Horseshoe division of the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League.

Port Colborne
CityPort Colborne, Ontario, Canada
LeagueGreater Ontario Junior Hockey League
DivisionGolden Horseshoe
Founded1963
Owner(s)Scott Barnes[1] (2017-18)
General managerScott Barnes (2017-18)
Head coachScott Barnes (2017-18)
Franchise history
1963-1975Thorold Jaycees
1975-1979Thorold Paper Bees
1979-1982Thorold Paper C's
1982-1986Thorold Golden Eagles
1986-2023Thorold Blackhawks
2023 - presentPort Colborne Sailors

History

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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. In 1982, the Paper C's became the Blackhawks and joined Golden Horseshoe Junior B Hockey League. 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 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 American Hockey League, and the National Hockey League. Notable alumni include Nathan Horton, Sean Bentivoglio, John Scott, Zenon Konopka, Dwayne Roloson and Owen Nolan.

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. 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.

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In October 2013, a Facebook page called Is The Thorold Blackhawks Logo Offensive? was started,[2] which questioned the use of an aboriginal caricature as the team's logo.[3][4] The page garnered attention from local media and politicians and was brought to the attention of Thorold City Council.[5]

On August 4, 2016, Mayor Ted Luciani announced that the logo would be prohibited from the city's arenas from June 1, 2017.[6] 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."[7]

During a pre-game ceremony 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 [the] new logo with the blackbird theme a few years ago with a graphic design guy in Toronto [James Brandan Walker] and 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."[8][9]

2016-17 season

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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.[10]

Move to Port Colborne and Permanent Relocation

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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.[11] On May 5, 2023, the Blackhawks announced they would be making the move permanent and would be officially relocating to Port Colborne for the 2023–24 season, thus ending 60 years of Junior hockey in Thorold.[12]

Season-by-season results

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Season GP W L T OTL GF GA P Results Playoffs
1959-60 24 8 12 4 - 101 124 20 4th NDJBHL
1963-64 30 5 23 2 - 120 263 12 6th NDJBHL DNQ
1964-65 30 10 18 2 - 133 201 22 6th NDJBHL Lost semi-final
1965-66 30 11 16 3 - 162 220 25 6th NDJBHL Lost quarter-final
1966-67 - - - - - - - - 3rd NDJBHL
1967-68 30 12 13 5 - 148 161 29 4th NDJBHL
1968-69 36 7 22 7 - 167 238 21 6th NDJBHL
1969-70 36 13 20 3 - 163 208 29 5th NDJBHL
1970-71 36 13 17 6 - 177 221 32 5th NDJBHL
1971-72 35 14 17 4 - 185 195 32 6th NDJBHL
1972-73 35 11 24 0 - 129 212 22 7th NDJBHL
1973-74 35 3 29 3 - 107 228 9 8th NDJBHL
1974-75 35 8 22 5 - 121 181 21 5th NDJBHL
1975-76 40 23 10 7 - 158 126 53 3rd NDJBHL
1976-77 39 14 24 1 - 162 217 31 4th NDJBHL
1977-78 40 11 24 5 - 170 240 27 4th NDJBHL Lost semi-final
1978-79 40 5th NDJBHL DNQ
1979-80 35 17 15 5 - 224 199 37 3rd NJC-E
1980-81 40 26 14 0 - 247 213 52 2nd NJC-E Lost quarter-final
1981-82 Niagara-Can-Am Jr. C Statistics Not Available
1982-83 42 13 26 3 - 241 293 29 7th GHJHL
1983-84 42 9 28 5 - 178 252 23 8th GHJHL
1984-85 42 2 39 1 - 150 381 5 8th GHJHL
1985-86 40 19 18 3 - 184 215 41 6th GHJHL
1986-87 42 15 18 9 - 202 233 39 5th GHJHL
1987-88 42 17 21 4 - 209 270 38 5th GHJHL
1988-89 42 25 10 7 - 197 148 57 2nd GHJHL Lost final
1989-90 48 31 14 1 2 246 200 65 2nd GHJHL Lost final
1990-91 42 26 14 2 0 236 182 54 4th GHJHL
1991-92 42 15 26 1 0 189 219 31 6th GHJHL
1992-93 42 22 16 1 3 239 219 48 4th GHJHL
1993-94 40 25 12 1 2 270 178 53 2nd GHJHL Lost final
1994-95 42 19 21 2 1 188 220 41 4th GHJHL
1995-96 42 10 26 3 3 190 235 26 7th GHJHL
1996-97 42 14 22 5 1 181 181 34 6th GHJHL
1997-98 49 26 16 4 3 255 213 59 4th GHJHL
1998-99 47 17 24 5 1 167 180 40 5th GHJHL
1999-00 48 32 13 1 2 237 155 67 1st GHJHL Lost final
2000-01 48 31 10 7 0 220 126 69 2nd GHJHL Won League
2001-02 48 31 12 3 2 216 138 67 3rd GHJHL Lost final
2002-03 48 41 4 3 0 282 100 85 1st GHJHL Won League
2003-04 48 34 7 7 0 179 84 75 2nd GHJHL Won League
2004-05 48 37 6 5 0 185 85 79 1st GHJHL Won League, won Sutherland Cup
2005-06 49 29 18 2 0 192 125 60 3rd GHJHL Lost final
2006-07 49 30 16 2 1 226 169 63 4th GHJHL Lost semi-final
2007-08 49 30 12 6 1 227 144 67 1st GOJHL-GH Lost RR Semi-final
2008-09 52 31 18 - 3 217 197 65 3rd GOJHL-GH
2009-10 51 35 12 - 4 211 164 74 3rd GOJHL-GH Lost Conf. SF
2010-11 51 38 11 - 2 251 135 78 2nd GOJHL-GH Lost Conf. Final
2011-12 51 32 17 - 2 197 126 66 3rd GOJHL-GH
2012-13 51 28 19 - 4 192 174 60 5th GOJHL-GH Lost Conf. SF
2013-14 49 28 17 - 4 210 185 60 4th GOJHL-GH Lost Conf. SF
2014-15 49 14 31 - 4 117 203 32 7th GOJHL-GH Lost Conf. Quarter-finals, 1-4 (Falcons)
2015-16 50 21 25 1 3 152 172 46 6th of 8-GH
17th of 26-GOJHL		 Lost Conf. Quarter-finals, 0-4 (Avalanche)
2016-17 50 11 36 1 2 133 206 25 8th of 9-GH
25th of 27-GOJHL 		no playoffs
folded with 8 games remaining in season
2017-18 50 20 22 3 5 160 205 48 5th of 9-GH
16th of 26-GOJHL 		Lost Conf. Quarterfinals 0-4 (Canucks)
2018-19 48 20 23 3 2 149 167 48 5th of 8-GH
15th of 25-GOJHL 		Lost Conf. Quarterfinals 0-4 (Panthers)
2019-20 50 26 20 4 0 181 162 56 5th of 9-GH
15th of 25-GOJHL 		Lost Conf. Quarterfinals 0-4 (Kilty B's±)
2020–21 Season lost due to COVID-19
2021-22 48 15 32 0 1 89 155 31 6th of 8-GH
20th of 25-GOJHL 		Lost Conf. Quarterfinals 0-4 (Corvairs)
2022-23 50 24 24 2 0 168 155 50 5th of 8-GH
17th of 25-GOJHL 		Lost Conf. Quarterfinals 1-4 (Corvairs)
PORT COLBORNE SAILORS
2023-24 50 12 33 4 1 128 216 29 7th of 7-GH
20th of 23-GOJHL 		?? Conf. Quarterfinals 0-0 (Meteors)

Sutherland Cup appearances

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2001: Elmira Sugar Kings defeated Thorold Blackhawks 4-games-to-2
2003: Stratford Cullitons defeated Thorold Blackhawks 4-games-to-3
2004: Stratford Cullitons defeated Thorold Blackhawks 4-games-to-none
2005: Thorold Blackhawks defeated Chatham Maroons 4-games-to-1

Professional alumni

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References

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  1. ^ "Same name, new owner | St. Catharines Standard". Archived from the original on 2017-07-11. Retrieved 2017-07-18.
  2. ^ Blay, Jeff (October 11, 2013). "Thorold resident takes to Facebook to spark debate on Blackhawks logo". St. Catharines Standard. St. Catharines. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  3. ^ MtPleasant, Jen (December 18, 2013). "Concerns growing over Thorold Blackhawks logo". Two Row Times. Hagersville. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  4. ^ Mangelsen, Melissa (November 28, 2013). "Thorold needs to decide what kind of city it wants to be, says Baird". The Tribune. St. Catharines. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  5. ^ Fraser, Don (December 9, 2013). "Logo discussions fail to find solution". St. Catharines Standard. St. Catharines. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  6. ^ Clinton, Jared (August 23, 2016). "ONTARIO JUNIOR TEAM THOROLD BLACKHAWKS HAVE DEADLINE TO CHANGE 'DISCRIMINATORY' LOGO". The Hockey News. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  7. ^ Walter, Karena (August 18, 2016). "Thorold says Blackhawks logo has to go". St. Catharines Standard. St. Catharines. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  8. ^ Cassidy, Joseph (November 10, 2016). "New-look Blackhawks dig out from under Avalanche". St. Catharines Standard. St. Catharines. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  9. ^ "Thorold Blackhawks Jr. B". James Brandan Walker. 2016. Retrieved November 20, 2016.
  10. ^ "Thorold Ceases Operations for 2016-17". Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League. February 14, 2017. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  11. ^ "New Nest For The 2022/23 Season". www.thoroldjrbblackhawks.com/. Thorold Blackhawks. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
  12. ^ Lansbergen, Bernard (10 May 2023). "Why the Blackhawks decided to leave Thorold for good". ThoroldToday. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  13. ^ "Ex-Thorold Blackhawk has MVP All-Star moment | St. Catharines Standard". www.stcatharinesstandard.ca. Archived from the original on 2016-02-02.
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