North Bay Skyhawks
| Hearst Lumberjacks | |
|---|---|
| City | Hearst, Ontario, Canada |
| League | Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League |
| Founded | 1988 |
| Home arena | Claude Larose Recreation Centre |
| Colours | Orange, black, and white |
| Owner(s) | Jonathan Blier |
| General manager | Mark LaFleur (2017-18) |
| Head coach | Mark LaFleur (2017-18) |
| Website | Lumberjack Webpage |
| Franchise history | |
| 1988–1990 | Haileybury 54's |
| 1990–1991 | Powassan Passport |
| 1991–1994 | Powassan Hawks |
| 1994–2002 | Sturgeon Falls Lynx |
| 2002–2009 | North Bay Skyhawks |
| 2009–2014 | North Bay Trappers |
| 2014–2015 | Mattawa Blackhawks |
| 2015–2017 | Iroquois Falls Eskis |
| 2017–present | Hearst Lumberjacks |
The Hearst Lumberjacks are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Hearst, Ontario, Canada, under new ownership for the 2017–18 season. They are a part of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL). As the Powassan Hawks, the team won two Dudley Hewitt Cups (1992 and 1993).
In 2002, the year after the Ontario Hockey League's North Bay Centennials moved to Saginaw, Michigan, North Bay bought the Sturgeon Falls Lynx. The team was known as the North Bay Skyhawks from 2002 to 2009. In the summer of 2009, the team was renamed the Trappers in the memory of the NOJHA's North Bay Trappers (1962–1982).
The Powassan Hawks relocated to Sturgeon Falls, Ontario to be known as the Sturgeon Falls Lynx for the 1994–95 season. The Lynx were sponsored and affiliated by the North Bay Centennials. This meant, most of their equipment was from the Centennials. The Lynx were the third-best team in the NOJHL, behind the Rayside-Balfour Sabrecats and Parry Sound Shamrocks. Sturgeon Falls managed to make the finals in 1996 and 1997, but lost out to Rayside-Balfour on both occasions. In 1999, the Lynx were the considered the second-best team in the NOJHL after the departure of Parry Sound to the OPJHL. Despite the impressive 1999–00 second-place finish, the Lynx were no match for the unbeaten Rayside-Balfour Sabrecats in the league finals. In 2000–01 and 2001–02, the Sturgeon Falls Lynx finished fourth both seasons.
Shortly after the North Bay Centennials moved to Saginaw, Michigan, the Sturgeon Falls Lynx immediately left the Sturgeon Falls Arena and took up tenancy at the bigger North Bay Memorial Gardens in the summer of 2002 and became the North Bay Skyhawks. The Skyhawks became immediately dominant, and won three consecutive NOJHL championships from 2003 to 2005. The Skyhawks played host to the 2004 Dudley Hewitt Cup, finishing second. The Skyhawks franchise appeared in the league finals five times from 2003 to 2009.
...
Wikipedia