The Gens turn 80
By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express
For analysts, hockey is a numbers game wrapped up in goals, shots, PIMs, and plays. Numbers make the game simpler, understandable, and almost controllable.
However, for the 80th anniversary of the Oshawa Generals, it’s one number that is not so easily broken down.
Fans’ memories will no doubt still be gilded by the recent 2015 hoisting of the Memorial Cup in Quebec City, or by having watched captain Josh Brown skate around the ice at the GM Centre with the J. Ross Robertson Cup, the 13th time an Oshawa captain has had the privilege.
Along with those glowing memories, older fans will know the history of this team is one that has seen its fair share of ups and downs.
After forming in 1936 and several successful years, which included a string of seven consecutive championships and three Memorial Cups. However, things weren’t bright forever.
In September 1953, tragedy would strike when the team’s home, Hambly Arena, burned to the ground.
What followed were several years of hiatus where the team operated under different names in different leagues, until it was reformed in the early 1960s.
Then, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, the team would go on to draft a young Bobby Orr in 1962 and find a new home at the Civic Auditorium in 1964.
Since then, the team has seen countless players evolve from rookies into NHL stars, from Eric Lindros and Marc Savard to John Tavares and Michael Del Zotto, and become the winningest active OHL team with five Memorial Cups and 13 league championships under their belt.
For current owners and management, it’s an honour to be a part of such a storied organization.
“It is something extremely special. This is an organization that is steeped in history,” says owner Rocco Tullio, who took the reigns in 2008. “The names that have come through here, you sit in awe sometimes. To be an owner and be part of it is something that we truly cherish.”
For years, the organization has been known for its family atmosphere, and fans are well aware of the “once a General, always a General” mantra that management preaches. When Tullio took over, that legacy was taken to a new level.
“I think it’s a great organization that’s run first-class,” says vice-president and general manager Roger Hunt. “It’s never been lost on me that it’s an honour and a privilege to be in this league and certainly to be in one of the marquee franchises that have ever been in the CHL. Everyday I walk in the doors, I’ve got a smile on my face.”
And Hunt will be doing a lot more smiling throughout this season, which promises to be an improvement on last year’s short playoff run. With a large contingent of returning players and core veterans, the depth of this year’s club will prove an asset throughout the long OHL season.
The team has also planned several events throughout the year to honour its 80-year history, starting with the unveiling of a throwback jersey, and the the upcoming retiring of Marc Savard’s #27, which will join Red Tilson, Bobby Orr, Eric Lindros and John Tavares in the rafters at General Motors Centre on Oct. 2.
“I’m speechless. Some of my fondest memories in my hockey career came as an Oshawa General. To have my jersey retired by one of the greatest junior hockey franchises of all time makes me feel so honored. It’s a night my family and I will never forget,” states Savard in a news release.
The Gens kick off their 80th season with a trio of away games Sept. 23 in Sudbury, Sept. 24 in Sault Ste. Marie and Sept. 28 in Peterborough before the club’s home opener on Sept. 30, once again against the Petes.