History
The Hemphill Pontiac Western Capitals began in the Island Junior Hockey League. Summerside is in the Western end of the province, & sometimes referred to as 'The Western Capital', thus the reference to 'western' in the original team name. The Capitals joined the MJAHL in 1991. They hosted the Centennial Cup 1989 on behalf of the IJHL. This team was coached by former NHL coach, General Manager, & Team President of the Columbus Blue Jackets, Doug MacLean, a Summerside native.
The 1996–97 Western Capitals created a come from behind, story book tale during the year. They were coached by current NHL coach and former Detroit Red Wings player, Gerard Gallant, and they dominated the MJAHL Roger Meek Division during the regular season. In the first round of the playoffs they routed the Restigouche River Rats in five games. They beat out the Charlottetown Abbies in the second round before going on to win the Callaghan Cup by clinching a seven-game league final in Dartmouth. Following the tough playoffs came a long bus trip to Brockville, Ont for the 1997 Fred Page Cup. The winner of that tournament advanced to the Royal Bank Cup, which the Capitals were hosting that year. They lost all 3 games in the round robin and were eliminated.
At the 1997 Royal Bank Cup in Summerside, the Western Capitals won the first game, 5–1 over the Rayside-Balfour Sabrecats. They then hit a stumbling block, losing their second and third games 7–5 and 8–2 to the Kanata Valley Lasers and the Weyburn Red Wings. They finished the round robin by losing 3–2 to the South Surrey Eagles in overtime. Because the Rayside-Balfour Sabrecats had already lost 4 games, the overtime loss game, the Capitals 3 points which was good enough for 4th place. After being shut out of the player awards, the Capitals had to come together as a team. In the regulation round, the Capitals did just that defeating the tournament's MVP and future NHLer, Mark Hartigan, and his Weyburn Red Wings 4–3 in a very exciting overtime. The Capitals used that win as a moral boost to defeat another Future NHLer, Scott Gomez, and his South Surrey Eagles by a very close score of 4–3. With that win the Summerside Western Capitals became the first team in Eastern Canada to win the national jr. A (Tier II) junior championship, Royal Bank Cup.
In 2001 the team made a run for the league championship. After sweeping the first two rounds without one of their top players, Denis White, the Antigonish Bulldogs took advantage of the Capitals beating them in five games to go on the Fred Page Cup. They did not make another significant run again until former Philadelphia Flyer, Forbes Kennedy, was hired as head coach in 2004–05. They were one of the leagues elite teams for the three years that he coached the team, going to the division final in 2005-06 but losing to the Woodstock Slammers in 7 games. In the 2006–07 season they won 15 games in a row to end the season and went on to win the Meek division title before losing in 6 games in the league final against the Truro Bearcats.
In the 2008–09 season, the Capitals finished first place in the Meek division, and later went on to defeat the Dieppe Commandos, and Miramichi Timberwolves in 4 game sweeps to advance to the league championship series, to take on the Truro Bearcats for the second time in 3 years. This time though, the Capitals defeated Truro in 5 games, and won their first league championship since 1997, on home ice. The Capitals entered the Fred Page Cup tournament, and after going 2–1 in the round robin portion, they defeated the Pembroke Lumber Kings 4–1 in the semifinal to move to the final against the Dieppe Commandos. The Caps won the game 3–2 in double overtime after Mike MacIsaac scored, to send the Caps to their first Royal Bank Cup since winning it in 1997 as the host team. The Capitals travelled to the Pacific coast to Victoria, BC to participate in their 2nd tournament. Summerside had a 0–4 record heading into their final game against the defending RBC champions Humboldt Broncos. Summerside won the game 5–0, but were already eliminated from the tournament and finished 5th. The players were angry and upset about the outcome and engaged in roughing up one of the hotel employees at the team's hotel. Their behaviour resulted in the Capitals losing the right to host the 2011 Royal Bank Cup. Summerside got their chance to host the tournament in 2014.
The Capitals named Gordie Dwyer as their Head Coach and Associate General Manager for the 2009–10 season. Dwyer led a rebuilding team to a regular-season record of 27–20–1–2 (won-lost-overtime losses-shootout losses). The Capitals finished third in the Roger Meek Division, and won a seven-game division semifinal series against second-place Miramichi. The Capitals were then eliminated by eventual league-champion Woodstock in a five-game division final. Dwyer returned for his second season in 2010–11 as head coach and Associate Director of Hockey Operations.
From 2001 to 2013, the Capitals were owned by a private ownership group consisting of local individuals. In 2013, the Caps were sold to a new private local group.
Gordon Rick Dwyer is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger who played five seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Rangers and Montreal Canadiens. He is the head coach and General Manager of the Acadie–Bathurst Titan of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL).
The Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) is a Junior A ice hockey league in Ontario, Canada. It is under the supervision of the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) and the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL).
The Maritime Junior Hockey League (MHL) is a Junior A ice hockey league under Hockey Canada, a part of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. It consists of six teams from New Brunswick, which make up the EastLink North Division, five teams from Nova Scotia, and one team from Prince Edward Island which make up the Eastlink South Division. The winner of the MHL playoffs competes for the Centennial Cup against the winners of the 8 other tier 2 junior A leagues across Canada. Prior to the pandemic the MHL champions would participate in the Fred Page Cup. This tournament involved the Bogart Cup champions from the CCHL(Ontario), the Kent Cup champions from the MHL(Maritimes) and the winner of the La Coupe Napa of the QJHL(Québec) as well as a pre determined host. The winner would move on to compete for the Canadian National Junior A Championship. However with the departure of the BCHL whom ended affiliation with the CJHL in March 2021 as well as Hockey Canada in June 2023 becoming an independent league. No Centennial Cup qualifying tournaments such as the Kent Cup have been played since 2022 and instead all the league champions have directly advanced to the Centennial Cup.
The Truro Bearcats are a Junior "A" ice hockey team based out of Truro, Nova Scotia. The Bearcats are one of six Nova Scotia teams in the Maritime Junior Hockey League.
The Surrey Eagles are a junior "A" ice hockey team based in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Mainland Division of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). They play their home games at South Surrey Arena.
The Woodstock Slammers were a junior "A" hockey team based in Woodstock, New Brunswick. They played as part of the Maritime Junior Hockey League (MHL). The team played their home games at the Carleton Civic Centre, formally known to fans as "Slammerland" or "Slammertown, Canada". The Slammers were a relatively successful team in their 18 year history, winning a NB Junior B League title and Don Johnson Cup (2000), three Kent Cups, one Fred Page Cup (2012) and a silver medal at the RBC Cup (2012). In 2018, the franchise relocated to Grand Falls, New Brunswick, changing their name to the Grand Falls Rapids.
The 2002 Royal Bank Cup is the 32nd Junior "A" 2002 ice hockey National Championship for the Canadian Junior A Hockey League.
The 2000 Royal Bank Cup was the 30th Junior "A" 2000 ice hockey National Championship for the Canadian Junior A Hockey League.
The 1997 Royal Bank Cup was the 27th Junior "A" 1997 ice hockey national championship for the Canadian Junior A Hockey League.
The 1989 Centennial Cup is the 19th Junior "A" 1989 ice hockey National Championship for the Canadian Junior A Hockey League.
The 2009 Royal Bank Cup is the 39th Junior "A" 2009 ice hockey National Championship for the Canadian Junior Hockey League. 2009 marked the 14th year the Royal Bank Cup has been awarded and the 39th year of modern Junior "A" hockey.
The 2000–01 OPJHL season is the eighth season of the Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League (OPJHL). The thirty-seven teams of the North, South, East, and West divisions competed in a 49-game schedule.
The 1998–99 OPJHL season is the sixth season of the Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League (OPJHL). The thirty-seven teams of the Central, East, and West divisions competed in a 51-game schedule. The top eight of each division made the Buckland Cup playoffs.
The 1997–98 OPJHL season is the fifth season of the Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League (OPJHL). The twenty-two teams of the MacKenzie, MacKinnon, Phillips, and Ruddock Divisions competed in a 51-game schedule. The top 4 teams of each division make the playoffs.
The 1995–96 OPJHL season is the third season of the Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League (OPJHL). The twenty-two teams of the MacKenzie, MacKinnon, Phillips, and Ruddock Divisions competed in a 50-game schedule. The top 4 teams of each division make the playoffs.
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 2012 Royal Bank Cup was the 42nd Junior "A" 2012 ice hockey National Championship for the Canadian Junior Hockey League. The 2012 Royal Bank Cup marked the 42nd consecutive year a national championship had been awarded to this skill level since the breakaway of Major Junior hockey in 1970.
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 2012–13 Maritime Junior Hockey League season was the 46th season in league history. The season consisted of 52 games played by each MHL team.
The 2014–15 Maritime Junior Hockey League season was the 48th season in league history. The season consisted of 48 games played by each MHL team.
