The Pembroke Lumber Kings (colloquially referred to as the Kings) are a Junior A ice hockey team based in Pembroke, Ontario. The Lumber Kings compete in the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) as a member of the West Division. The franchise is one of the ''Original Five'' teams of the league. Founded in 1964, the team folded in 1979, but came back in 1980. Since 1964, they play their home games at Pembroke Memorial Centre.
The Lumber Kings have won the most Bogart Cup championships of any CCHL franchise since its existence (14). The Kings played their home games at Pembroke Memorial Centre from 1964 until 1979, for 15 seasons. They got sold to a new ownership group, and came back for the 1980–81 season, and moved into Pembroke Memorial Centre once again. The Lumber Kings are one of the most popular and successful franchises in the CCHL; fans and sports commentators refer to the Pembroke area as "Hockeytown", which has been a registered trademark owned by the franchise since 1980.
Between the 2002–03 and 2018–19 seasons, the Lumber Kings missed the playoffs only four times. They struggled between the 2016–17 and 2018–19 seasons, with missing the playoffs for two seasons in a row. But other than that, Pembroke won a total of 14 Bogart Cup championships, including two in a row in 1983–84 and 1984–85, and five in a row between 2006–07 and 2010–11. Since 1980, it has consistently been listed as the league's busiest arena, usually receiving the highest attendance compared to any other arenas in the CCHL. In 2011, it was the fifth-busiest Junior A arena in Canada based on attendance numbers.
History
The Pembroke Lumber Kings are the oldest member of the CCHL, having begun operations in 1961. However, in 1979–80 the Lumber Kings were suspended for one season and replaced with the Pembroke Royals. The Pembroke Lumber Kings were approved to rejoin the league for 1980–81.
The Pembroke Lumber Kings won a total of 14 Art Bogart Cup league championships between 1973 and 2011. Six of those championships came in the 1980s when the Kings were coached by Jim Farelli. Farelli coached 420 games for the Kings, the most of any coach in Lumber Kings history. His teams advanced to the Art Bogart Cup championship series eight consecutive years, winning six titles. This included three consecutive championships from 1987 to 1989, tying the record for longest streak set by the Cornwall Royals (1966–1968).
The Kings had previously won three Art Bogart Cups in the 1970s. The 1972–73 team was coached by Mac MacLean and made it to the Centennial Cup Canadian Junior A Final, losing 4 games to 1 to the Portage la Prairie Terriers. Under coach Bryan Murray the Kings won consecutive titles in 1977 and 1978. The 1977 team made it to the Centennial Cup Final, losing to the Prince Albert Raiders. Murray was fired by the Lumber Kings after the 1978 season. Three years later he was starting a long NHL coaching/general manager career as coach of the Washington Capitals.
The Lumber Kings broke their own (shared) league record by winning five consecutive Art Bogart Cup championships from 2007 to 2011, appearing in five Fred Page Cup tournaments for the Eastern Canada Junior A championships (2006 as hosts), winning in 2007 and 2011, and finishing as finalists in 2006, 2008, and 2010. In 2011, the Pembroke Lumber Kings became only the second team since the 1976 Rockland Nationals to win the National Junior A championship. The team was led by owner, coach and general managerSheldon Keefe, who had purchased the Kings in June 2006.[1]
Keefe announced on May 29, 2013, that he had sold the Pembroke Lumber Kings to former Calgary Flames player (9 games) and Eganville native Dale McTavish.[2] With Keefe no longer in charge of ownership, general management and coaching duties, the Lumber Kings' success began to fade away, despite making the league finals in 2015, losing to Carleton Place; and failing to qualify for the playoffs for the first time in 13 years in 2017.
Dale McTavish (1988–89) played for the Calgary Flames in 1996–97 (9 games) and last played pro hockey for SaiPa and Blues of the Liiga from 1997 to 2000 and again in 2010–2011 season.
This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(October 2021)
Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, SOL = Shootout Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points
(*) denotes the removal of 9 points from Pembroke's totals by the CJHL for disciplinary reasons. The Lumber Kings lost their franchise prior to the start of the 1979-80 season for failing to remain in good standing with the league.[3]
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