Sault Ste. Marie is a city in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Chippewa County and is the only city within the county. With a population of 13,337 at the 2020 census, it is the second-most populated city in the Upper Peninsula, behind Marquette. It is the primary city of the Sault Ste. Marie, MI Micropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Chippewa County and had a population of 36,785 at the 2020 census. Sault Ste. Marie was settled by mostly French colonists in 1668, making it the oldest city in Michigan.
Lake Linden is a village in Houghton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,007 at the 2010 census. The village is mostly within Schoolcraft Township, though a tiny portion lies in Torch Lake Township.
The Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds are a major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. The Greyhounds play home games at the GFL Memorial Gardens. The present team was founded in 1962 as a team in the Northern Ontario Hockey Association. The Greyhounds name has been used by several ice hockey teams based in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, since 1919.
Joseph George Didier "Cannonball" Pitre was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Nicknamed "Cannonball," he was renowned for having one of the hardest shots during his playing career. One of the first players to join the Montreal Canadiens, Pitre and his teammates' French-Canadian heritage led to the team being nicknamed The Flying Frenchmen. His teammates on the Canadiens included Jack Laviolette and Newsy Lalonde.
The Soo Eagles are an American junior ice hockey team from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan that plays in the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL). In 2012, the Eagles bought the North American Hockey League franchise rights of the Traverse City North Stars and transferred to the NAHL. In 2015, the Eagles sold their franchise rights and rejoined the NOJHL.
The Northern Elite League (NEL) was created in 1992, as a way of giving Northern Ontario baseball players a competitive league of their own. This task was spearheaded by North Bay's Peter Topolie, past president of Baseball Ontario.
The International Professional Hockey League (IPHL) was the first fully professional ice hockey league, operating from 1904 to 1907. It was formed by Jack "Doc" Gibson, a dentist who played hockey throughout Ontario before settling in Houghton, Michigan. The IPHL was a five team circuit which included Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, Calumet, Michigan and Houghton. The IPHL was instrumental in changing the nature of top-level senior men's ice hockey from amateur to professional.
The Sault Ste. Marie Marlboros, also known as the Canadian Soo and Soo Algonquins, was a professional ice hockey team from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. It was the lone Canadian entry in the International Hockey League of 1904–1907, and one of the first, if not the first, openly professional hockey teams in Canada.
Professional ice hockey (hockey) is the competition of ice hockey in which participants are paid to play. Professional competition began in North America in the United States—in Pennsylvania and Michigan—and in Canada around 1900. Professional ice hockey expanded across Canada and the United States and eventually to many other countries. There are major leagues around the world, including the National Hockey League in North America, the Kontinental Hockey League in Europe and Asia, and the Swedish Hockey League in Europe, as well as minor leagues such as the American Hockey League and ECHL in North America, and the Ligue Nord-Américaine de Hockey in Canada. High-level professional hockey is also present in Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Finland and Switzerland; professional hockey is also played in many other countries, as diverse as Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Austria, Australia and Japan. The major professional women's league is the Professional Women's Hockey League, which began play in 2024.
The Northern Ontario Junior Hockey Association (NOJHA) was a Junior A ice hockey league based in Northeastern Ontario, Canada. The league lasted from 1962 until 1972 and competed for the Memorial Cup from 1962 until 1970 and the Manitoba Centennial Trophy from 1970 until 1972.
The Pittsburgh Professional Hockey Club, also referred to as the Pittsburgh Professionals and Pittsburgh Pros, were a professional ice hockey team that participated in the International Professional Hockey League (IPHL) from 1904 until 1907. The team was based in the Duquesne Garden and was the first inter-city professional hockey team in the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Pros' line-ups included several important early professional hockey players, the most notable being Hod Stuart, who was considered, in certain hockey circles, to be the "greatest hockey player in the world."
Sault Ste. Marie is a city in Ontario, Canada. The third-largest city in Northern Ontario after Sudbury and Thunder Bay, it is located on the St. Mary's River on the Canada–US border. To the southwest, across the river, is the United States and the Michigan city of the same name. The two cities are joined by the Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge, which connects Interstate 75 on the Michigan side to Huron Street on the Ontario side. Shipping traffic in the Great Lakes system bypasses the Saint Mary's Rapids via the American Soo Locks, the world's busiest canal in terms of tonnage that passes through it, while smaller recreational and tour boats use the Canadian Sault Ste. Marie Canal.
The Copper Country Soo League was a minor league baseball league which operated in four Michigan cities in 1905. The league had four teams in their lone season. Three Major League Baseball players, Donie Bush, Fred Luderus, and Pat Paige, are known to have played in the league.
The Michigan Soo Indians, also known as the American Soo Indians, was a professional ice hockey team from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States. The team played for three seasons in the International Professional Hockey League, the first fully professional hockey league in North America, from 1904 to 1907. The league was formed in November 1904 and consisted of five teams; three from Michigan, one from Pennsylvania and one from Ontario in Canada.
The Northern-Copper Country League (NCCL) was a Minor League Baseball league in operation for two seasons, 1906 and 1907. The league featured clubs representing cities in Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Manitoba. On March 18, 1906, the Copper Country Soo League and Northern League merged to form the NCCL. The league was Class C in 1906 and Class D in 1907. The Grand Forks and Hancock clubs disbanded midway through the first season on July 29, 1906, and the entire league folded on September 2, 1907. The Northern League was reestablished in some of the former territory in 1908.
The Copper Country Limited was a passenger train operated by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad and the Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic Railway (DSS&A) between Chicago, Illinois and Calumet, Michigan, in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It operated from 1907 to 1968.
The Houghton Giants were a minor league baseball team based in Houghton, Michigan. In 1906 and 1907, the "Giants" played as members of the Northern-Copper Country League. The Giants were preceded in minor league play by the "Houghton" team that played as members of the independent Upper Peninsula League in 1890 and 1891, winning the 1890 league championship. Houghton first hosted home minor league games at the East Houghton Grounds and then at Ripley Sands Park.
The Calumet Aristocrats were a minor league baseball team based in Laurium, Michigan. The city was called "Calumet" in the era. The Calumet Red Jackets preceded the Aristocrats, playing in 1890 and 1891 as members of the Upper Peninsula League in 1890 and 1891. The Aristocrats were members of Copper Country Soo League in 1904 and 1905 and Northern-Copper Country League in 1906 and 1907. Calumet hosting minor league home games at Larium Park and Athletic Park. Calumet teams won league championships in 1891 and 1906.
The Hancock Infants was the only moniker of the minor league baseball teams based in Hancock, Michigan. Between 1890 and 1906, Hancock teams played as members of the 1890 Upper Peninsula League, 1905 Copper Country Soo League and 1906 Northern-Copper Country League. The Hancock Infants hosted home minor league games at Sack's Park.
The Lake Linden Lakers were a minor league baseball team based in Lake Linden, Michigan. The 1904 and 1905 Lakers were followed by the 1906 Lake Linden "Sandy Cities," as the Lake Linden teams played as members of the 1904 Copper Country League, 1905 Copper Country Soo League and 1906 Northern-Copper Country League, winning the 1905 league championship. Lake Linden hosted home games at the Lake Linden Ball Park.
