Division East Location Kirkland Lake, Canada Founded 2003 | General manager Marc Lafleur Affiliate Oshawa Generals | |
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City Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada League Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League Home arena Joe Mavrinac Community Complex Colours Blue, Light Blue, Yellow, and White Arena Joe Mavrinac Community Complex | ||
Kirkland lake gold miners vs soo thunderbirds nojhl finals 2013 2014 victory celebration
The Kirkland Lake Gold Miners are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League.
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Manitoulin
Founded in 2003 as the Manitoulin Wild, the franchise changed its name to the Manitoulin Islanders in 2005. They were eventually taken over by former NHLer Reggie Leach and the team started to split its time between Little Current, Ontario and the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve's Arena. Win totals dwindleed, debts added up, and by 2011 the team was set to move from the Island.
Kirkland Lake
After eight years on Manitoulin Island, the team had to either move or fold. In mid-May 2011, the NOJHL conditionally approved the move of the Manitoulin Islanders to Kirkland Lake, Ontario to become the Kirkland Lake Blue Devils. In their final four seasons in Little Current, the Islanders managed 17 wins in 200 games played.
The Blue Devils moniker was a long used traditional team name in Kirkland Lake, the most notable team to use the name was the Kirkland Lake Blue Devils who defeated the Calgary Stampeders 3-games-to-none to win the 1940 Allan Cup.
On September 9, 2011, the Blue Devils played their inaugural home game and regulation game in their history. The Blue Devils dropped a 9-2 decision to the North Bay Trappers. On October 12, 2011, the Blue Devils won their first game since relocation 3-2 in a shootout against the Sudbury Cubs. Two nights later, the Blue Devils scored their first ever home win, 5-4 in a shootout, against the Blind River Beavers.
On January 12, 2012, team owner, Robert Kasner, announced that he was folding the club mid-season. The folding of the team happened right after Kasner was suspended by the league for six months for multiple roster violations. Soon after the folding, the league announced that a new ownership group was to be brought in to run the team and keep hockey going in Kirkland Lake. The new ownership renamed the team to the Gold Miners. The Gold Miners won their first-ever NOJHL championship just 2 and a half years into the league as they defeated the Soo Thunderbirds. The Kirkland Lake Gold Miners traveled down to the Wellington, Ontario to participate in the Dudley Hewitt Cup where the Gold Miners failed to record a win and returned home disappointed. In 2014–15, the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners and the Soo Thunderbirds were fighting for first place all season, but Kirkland Lake finished 2nd and the Powassan Voodoos took the playoff series against Kirkland Lake.
The Kirkland Lake Gold Miners were awarded hosting duties for the 2016 Dudley Hewitt Cup in the spring of 2015.
Dudley Hewitt Cup
Central Canada Championships
Winners of the NOJHL, OJHL, SIJHL, and Host
Round robin play with 2nd vs 3rd in semifinal to advance against 1st in the finals.