Elliot Lake v. Blind River


By
February 4, 2017

They represent two gritty towns separated by less than 40 miles of highway. And at the rink, Blind River and Elliot Lake have had an on-and-off junior hockey rivalry that is one for the ages.

With a population of just over 11,000, Elliot Lake is noticeably larger than Blind River, which boasts about 3,500 hearty souls. But as hockey towns, Elliot Lake and Blind River share an equal passion for the junior game.

Back in the 1970s days of the erstwhile International Jr. B Hockey League, the two towns had an intense, heated rivalry. Elliot Lake’s team was called the Vikings back then and there was no love lost between them and the battling Beavers of Blind River.

To add fuel to the fire in those days, both teams had their games broadcast on sister radio stations — CKNR in Elliot Lake and CJNR in Blind River. Both stations were owned by CKCY of Sault Ste. Marie.

Along with legendary former CKNR, CJNR and CKCY sports director and play-by-play man Paul Leonard Sr., I got to experience the Elliot Lake-Blind River hockey rivalry first hand.

Not only did I do colour commentary alongside Leonard for a number of games in the old Jr. B league, I witnessed how the rivalry between the two teams was carried on by fans from both towns into local watering holes — tales of which will be told when I finish the book that I have just started to write. (In fact, one of the local beer halls, the venerable Riverside Tavern in Blind River, remains to this day one of my favourite bars in all of northern Ontario.)

At any rate, as Elliot Lake and Blind River are now members of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League — and with both teams being competitive — the rabid rivalry is being re-kindled this 2016-2017 season.

This is Elliot’s Lake third season back in the NOJHL while Blind River has been a league mainstay since 1999. But while the Wildcats have won 73 of 106 regular-season games and won two rounds of the playoffs over the past two years, the Beavers have been one of the worst teams in the league during that span with just 10 victories in 106 tries.

This season, though, Blind River is in second place in the West Division of the NOJHL, well above the .500 mark, while Elliot Lake has been one of the better teams in the league over the past month.

GAME ON

The Beavers will play host to the Wildcats tonight in a scheduled 7:30 p.m. match at the Blind River Community Centre.

Blind River enters play tonight with 55 points from a record of 26-17-3. Elliot Lake has 42 points from a record of 18-21-6.


What you think about “Elliot Lake v. Blind River”

  1. Was a good game with Beavers being the OT winners.
    Good to see you at the game Randy.
    Sorry I didn’t get to talk to you.

    1. Yes it was a good game, will be writing it up later this afternoon. Thanks, nice seeing so many familiar faces at the game.

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