The Oldtimers Hockey Story
The Winter of 1969-70 saw the first use of the arena for hockey. the first winter the ice plant had not been installed yet, so all it had been natural ice.
The Atikokan arena was built with lot of volunteers donating their time and skills to get the job done.
The Township of Atikokan donated the use of men and equipment they had to assist in the construction.
Most of the business community donated money, building materials and any other thing that was needed to get the arena built.
There were many groups who held bake sales, raffles and such to raise money to help fund the ice plant.
A group of older ex-hockey players Invited the Thunder Bay oldTimers and Fort Frances oldtimers, to come an play exhibition games to raise money to help pay for the ice plant.
In order to get in shape for these exhibition games, two teams were organized, most of the players had not played in many years.
Some of the players who played in the exhibition games did not play again in later years.
Two teams were formed to get in shape for the upcoming games with Thunder Bay and Fort Frances.
( some had played and won the Allen cup in the fifties with the Fort Frances Canadians)
Lou Graham coached and managed the team called Graham’s Wafers and Dale Lind managed and coached Lind’s Lunker’s.
The only game recorded by the Atikokan Progress, was played in february of 1970,
Graham’s Wafer’s Defeated Lind’s Lunker’s by a score of 6 to 5.
Scoring for the wafer’s were Jim Koroscil with 2 goals and Doug Tribe, Pat Pierce, Leo Lamarche, Keith Norman with one each. Jack Lewis, Jack Pierce, Jerry Zayac and Francis Milley were also on this team.
Goal scorers for Lind’s Lunker’s were Ralph Finch, Bob Prime, Finn Warren, George Roy and Omer Sampson. Al Triege, Dale Lind and Richard Kolton also played on this team.
Don Bruce refereed that first game and handed out one penalty, to Bill Hrychuk. This resulted in a penalty shot By Omer Sampson, he did not waste the opportunity and scored.
This was the first penalty shot scored in the new arena.
these two teams played a second game but I could not find any record of it.
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