History
The origins of the Smiths Falls Bears trace back to when the Central Junior Hockey League was formed in 1961 under the direction of the Montreal Canadiens. The Bears are one of the oldest franchises in Canadian Junior A hockey, despite a 9-year leave of absence from 1976 to 1985. From 2000 to 2002 the team was known as the Lanark Thunder and played out of Perth, Ontario before the franchise was suspended. As a result, the Smiths Falls Bears were re-admitted to the league as an expansion team for 2002-03 and held an expansion draft.
The Bears inaugural season saw members wear maroon and white - identical colours of the American Hockey League's Hershey Bears. In 1985, the Bears returned to the league wearing the colours black, gold, and white - identical to the Pittsburgh Penguins uniforms in the 1980s. In the early 1990s, the Bears went back to their original colours of maroon and white, but with grey. In 1998, the Bears changed their colours to teal and black, which being such a departure from earlier styles, confused CJHL supporters around the league.
The Bears won their first Art Bogart Cup in 1965 as Central Junior Hockey League champions. The Bears won back-to-back CJHL championships in 1974 and 1975. In 1976, the Bears took a leave of absence from the league, returning in 1985.
In February 2000, a dressing room fire at the Smiths Falls Memorial Centre destroyed almost all of the team's equipment. The equipment was replaced through donations and charities and Bears were able to finish the 1999-00 season. The following summer, the Bears announced their relocation to nearby Lanark, Ontario. Assuming the name of the Lanark Thunder, the owner promised to draw attendance at the Perth Community Arena for the 2000-01 season. While the inaugural season of the Thunder drew satisfactory attendance, it dropped dramatically during the following season and nearly being unable to participate in the playoffs at the conclusion of the 2001-02 season and having to give up their playoff spot to the second-last team (Brockville). The Thunder played the Nepean Raiders in the first round and lost the series 4-0. Immediately afterwards, the team was suspended allowing the original franchise to be re-admitted as an expansion team.
The Smiths Falls Bears missed the playoffs in their first three years returning from Lanark. In December 2004, a new head coach Bill Bowker was assigned to turn the team around. The Bears had won just a single game before January 2005, which resulted in heavy criticism by fans and media alike. But the coaching change paid off as the Bears made the playoffs for the next four years. Their best post-Lanark Thunder season was 2007-08, when the Bears appeared in the CJHL finals after knocking off arch-rivals Brockville Braves in 6 games to compete against arch-rivals Pembroke Lumber Kings. The Lumber Kings won the finals in 5 games. In July 2008, three Bears were chosen in the NHL Draft. Mike Bergin (by the Dallas Stars); Nicholas Tremblay (by the Boston Bruins); and Mark Borowiecki (by the Ottawa Senators). They became the first trio of players from the same CJHL club to be chosen in the NHL Draft. Mark Borowiecki left Clarkson University after the 2010-11 season as he signed a 2-year minor league contract with the Ottawa Senators minor league affiliate the Binghamton Senators.
On February 27, 2010, the Smiths Falls Bears played their final game at the Smiths Falls Memorial Centre. During the off-season, the arena was torn down and replaced with a new one on exactly the same premises. After the 2010-11 season the Bears released their longtime head coach and manager Bill Bowker. Bowker was replaced with Ottawa 67's former assistant coach (and assistant coach of the Bears during the 2010-11 season) Mark Grady.
In 2016, the Smiths Falls Bears and the Town of Smiths Falls was awarded the 2018 Fred Page Cup. The Bears have the newest and most-suitable facility in the league.
The Cornwall Royals were a junior ice hockey team based in Cornwall, Ontario, Canada. The team played in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 1969 to 1981, and the Ontario Hockey League from 1981 to 1992. This team shared its name with other Cornwall Royals teams that played in the QSHL, MMJHL, or OHA-B.
The Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) is a Canadian Junior "A" ice hockey league operating in eastern Ontario, Canada. The league is sanctioned by Hockey Eastern Ontario and Hockey Canada and is a member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. The winner of the CCHL playoffs competes for the Fred Page Cup — the Eastern Region championship of the Canadian Junior Hockey League — with the winners of the Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League and the Maritime Junior A Hockey League. The winner of the Fred Page Cup then moves on to compete for the national Centennial Cup.
The Fred Page Cup was a championship ice hockey trophy, won by a tournament conducted by the Canadian Junior Hockey League. The award was given to the winner of a round-robin and playoff between the Bogart Cup champions of the Central Canada Hockey League, the Kent Cup champions of the Maritime Junior Hockey League, La Coupe NAPA Champions of the Quebec Junior Hockey League, and a pre-determined host team. The winner of the Fred Page Cup moves on to the Centennial Cup, the national Junior A championship. The trophy was donated by the then-called Quebec Provincial Junior Hockey League in 1994–95.
The Hawkesbury Hawks are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Hawkesbury, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL).
The Brockville Braves are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Brockville, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League. Such NHLers as Larry Robinson and current player Wayne Simmonds of the Toronto Maple Leafs, amongst other famous players, have all played for the Braves.
The Kanata Lasers were a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Ottawa, Ontario, in Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League. The Lasers played their home games at The Tom Flood Arena located inside the Kanata Rec Complex in Kanata, Ontario.
The Nepean Raiders are a Junior ice hockey team from Nepean, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League. The town of Nepean was granted expansion after the Cornwall Royals and the Hull Hawks left the CJHL for the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The Raiders started their operations in the Valley division of the Junior "B" League in 1966, switching over to the Central Junior Hockey League in 1972.
The Pembroke Lumber Kings are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Pembroke, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League and are the winningest team in CCHL history as well as 2011 Royal Bank Cup National Junior A Champions.
Les Braves de Valleyfield are a Junior ice hockey team from Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec, Canada. They were a part of the Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League for 25 seasons. Another franchise relocated and took over their market and former moniker in 2014.
The Carleton Place Canadians are a junior ice hockey team based in Carleton Place, Ontario, Canada. The Canadians are members of the Central Canada Hockey League and Canadian Junior Hockey League, and as such are eligible for the Eastern Canadian Fred Page Cup championship and Royal Bank Cup National championship.
The Navan Grads are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Navan, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League.
The 1985–86 OJHL season is the 14th season of the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL). The six teams of the league played a 50-game season. The top four teams made the playoffs.
The 2009–10 CJHL season was the 49th season of the Central Junior Hockey League (CJHL). The twelve teams of the CJHL played 62-game schedules.
The 2008–09 CJHL season is the 48th season of the Central Junior A Hockey League (CJHL). The eleven teams of the CJHL played 60-game schedules.
The 2007–08 CJHL season was the 47th season of the Central Junior A Hockey League (CJHL). The eleven teams of the CJHL played 60-game schedules.
The 2012–13 CCHL season was the 52nd season of the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL). The twelve teams of the CCHL played 62-game schedules.
The 2014–15 CCHL season is the 54th season of the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL). The twelve teams of the CCHL played 62-game schedules.
The Rockland Nationals are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Rockland, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League. The Rockland Nationals began play in 2017–18, after the Gloucester Rangers relocated to Rockland after nearly 50 years in Gloucester.
The 2022 Centennial Cup, presented by Tim Hortons was the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) championship for the 2021–22 season and the 50th Canadian junior A ice hockey national championship, played at Affinity Place in Estevan, Saskatchewan from May 18 to 29, 2022. It was the first year the event has been played since 2019 and also the first since its name reverted to the Centennial Cup. The Brooks Bandits defeated the Pickering Panthers in the championship game to win the national title.
The 2023 Centennial Cup is the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) championship for the 2022–23 season and the 51st Canadian junior A ice hockey national championship. It will be played at Stride Place in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba from May 11 to 21, 2023. For the second straight season, all nine CJHL league champions and the host team will participate in the tournament.
