Sudbury Wolves

Sudbury has had a hockey team known as the Wolves or Club Wolves nearly every year since World War I. A Sudbury Cub Wolves junior team began play in the 1920s as a member of the Nickel Belt Hockey League, and then in the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League. Under the management of Max Silverman, this team won the George Richardson Memorial Trophy in 1932 and 1935, as Eastern Canadian champions. They won the Memorial Cup in 1932 and were runners-up in 1935. The senior Wolves represented Team Canada at the 1938 and 1949 World Championships, winning gold in 1938.

The second incarnation of the Wolves was the 1962 entry into the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey Association. The Wolves won the McNamara Trophy as NOJHL Champions in 1969 and 1971.

The Ontario Hockey Association arrived in Sudbury in the fall of 1972 when the owner of the NOJHL's Sudbury Wolves, Ken Burgess, bought the Niagara Falls Flyers franchise and merged the two teams.

Sam McMaster was named OHL Executive of the Year in 1989–90 as the general manager, helping his team to its first winning season in 10 years. Sudbury celebrated their 35th anniversary in 2006–07, also reaching the OHL championship series the same year.

In August 2012, the Wolves were sent to represent Canada at the 2012 Junior Club World Cup, a 10-team tournament that would feature some of the best junior clubs in the World. They opened up the tournament with a 9–1 win over Finnish Nuorten SM-liiga champion HIFK. The next day, the Wolves tied Latvian HK Rīga of the Minor Hockey League 1-1. Two days later, the Wolves clinched a semi-final berth with a 7–2 win over Denmark's National Junior Team. They then played the Swedish J20 SuperElit champion Linköpings HC and won the game 6–3. Finishing second in their pool, the Wolves drew the other pool's top seed Belorussian Dinamo-Shinnik of the Minor Hockey League. The Wolves would earn a trip to the finals with a 5–2 win. In the finals, the Wolves met the United States Hockey League's finalist Waterloo Black Hawks. The Black Hawks and Wolves were scoreless until almost halfway through the third, when the Wolves' Josh Leivo scored on a partial breakaway. Thirty-five seconds later Frank Corrado made it 2–0 on the powerplay. The Wolves would hold on to the 2–0 spread to win the Cup. Joel Vienneau picked up the win and the shutout for the Wolves, Michael Kantor was named top forward, and Leivo won the top scorer award.[4]

In July 2016, the Burgess and Edwards families, owners of the Wolves for over 30 years, sold the team to Sudbury businessman Dario Zulich.[5] At the time of the sale, the Burgess and Edwards families were the longest standing ownership in the OHL.

Sudbury Wolves make an entrance on home ice

The current OHL Sudbury Wolves have never won the OHL championship, and have never participated in the Memorial Cup. Theirs is currently the third-longest championship drought in the Canadian Hockey League, and is now the longest in the OHL since the London Knights broke their 40-year drought in 2005.

In 1976, the Wolves finished first overall in the OHA with 102 points, winning the Hamilton Spectator Trophy, and the Leyden Trophy for the Leyden Division. That year Sudbury reached the OHA finals, losing to the eventual Memorial Cup champion Hamilton Fincups in 5 games. The Wolves returned to the OHL finals 31 seasons later in 2006–07, where they were they fell just short in 6 games by the Plymouth Whalers. Sudbury won 7 of 8 playoff games in overtime before losing 2 straight overtime matches to Plymouth. The Wolves also won was the 2000–2001 Emms Trophy as the regular season Central Division champions.

Jerry Toppazzini was awarded the Matt Leyden Trophy as the OHA coach of the year in 1976, leading his team to a first-place finish in the regular season.

List of Sudbury Wolves coaches with multiple years in parentheses.

Sudbury Wolves against the Ottawa 67's in Ottawa

The Sudbury Wolves have retired five players' numbers, and have sent 77 players onto the NHL.

From 1972 to 1988 the Sudbury Wolves' colours were green, white and gold, using the logo displayed on the right. The home jerseys featured white background with green and gold trim. The away jerseys had a green background with white and gold trim.

Since the 1988–89 season, the Sudbury Wolves' colours have been blue, white and silver, with the current logo at the top of the article. The home jerseys have a white background with blue and silver trim. The away jerseys have a blue background with white and silver trim.

The Sudbury Wolves have also had special logo designed and worn as patches on the jersey for their 25th and 30th anniversaries.

Jake Cardwell of the Wolves wearing the 2009 version of the away jersey

Sudbury wore a black third jersey briefly in the 1995/96-1996/97 seasons. The next third jersey was first worn October 13, 2006. The jersey has a silver background, with blue and white trim, and the name "Sudbury" on the front diagonally from upper left to lower right and lasted the 2006/07-2008/09 seasons. The current third jersey is black with a grey and white wolf's head, with white piping, and a wolf's paw as the shoulder patch and has been worn starting with the 2010 season.

Before the 2017 season it was announced the Sudbury Wolves would be wearing a redesigned jersey.[6] "The jersey change is a symbol of what this edition Wolves organization believes – respect for the past, our history and tradition but a firm grasp of a fresh clean and bright future,”[6] said Andrew Dale, VP Marketing + Development.

The Sudbury Wolves play their home games at the Sudbury Community Arena, which was constructed in 1951 and is located in the downtown core. The arena holds approx. 5,100 spectators - 4,600 seats and 500 standing room, and has an ice size of 200' x 85'. Every time the Wolves score a goal, a taxidermic wolf rolls out on a pulley system to howl at the opposing team's bench. The City of Greater Sudbury and the hockey club have recently upgraded the facility. The 1.5 million dollar expansion included 12 new suites, 990 club seats, a new lounge as well as improved lounge and washroom facilities.

In the 2009-10 hockey season, Wolves games were broadcast on CJTK-FM in Sudbury.[7] As of 2018, Wolves games are broadcast on CKLU-FM.[8]

• List of ice hockey teams in Ontario

• Sudbury Wolves
• www.sudburymuseums.ca History of hockey in Sudbury
• Sudbury Wolves fan site