Thunder Bay Fighting Walleye

The Thunder Bay Fighting Walleye are a Canadian junior B ice hockey team based in Thunder Bay, Ontario. They play in the Lakehead Junior Hockey League and are eligible to compete for the Keystone Cup, Junior B Championship of Western Canada.

Thunder Bay Fighting Walleye
City	Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada
League	Lakehead Junior Hockey League
Founded	2009
Home arena	Thunder Bay Tournament Centre
Colors	Black, Orange, and White
Owner(s)	Derek Geddes (2017)
General manager	Derek Geddes (2017)
Head coach	Bryan Smeltzer (2018–present)
Franchise history
2009–2017	Thunder Bay Stars
2017–present	Thunder Bay Fighting Walleye

History

The Thunder Bay Stars joined the Thunder Bay Junior B Hockey League in 2009. The team was formed after the K&A Wolverines accepted an invitation to play Junior A in the Superior International Junior Hockey League.

In both 2010 and 2011, the Stars finished third in the regular season, but managed to upset the second place Nipigon Elks in the league semi-finals to earn entrance into the league finals. In both cases, the Stars were defeated by the Thunder Bay Northern Hawks.

At the end of the 2016–17 season, long-time Stars owners Dave and Scott Simpson sold the franchise to Derek Geddes. The team was rebranded as the Thunder Bay Fighting Walleye.

For the 2018 season British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan elected not to participate in the Keystone Cup. As a result, the tournament was reorganized to feature the LJHL and KJHL champion and runner-up. Although the Thunder Bay Northern Hawks won the LJHL championship, the new format allowed the Fighting Walleye make their first Keystone Cup tournament. They returned to the Keystone Cup the following season as well, and then were awarded hosting duties for the 2020 tournament.[1] However, the 2020 tournament would be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Team owner Derek Geddes also added a Junior A team called the Kam River Fighting Walleye to the Superior International Junior Hockey League in 2020–21.[2]

Season-by-season standings

Season	GP	W	L	T	Pts	GF	GA	Results	Playoffs
2009-10	30	6	24	0	12	123	222	3rd of 3 TBJBHL	Won Semi-final, 3-1 (Elks) Lost Finals, 0-4 (Northern Hawks)
2010-11	30	9	17	4	22	123	161	3rd of 4 TBJBHL	Won Semi-final, 3-1 (Elks) Lost Finals, 0-4 (Northern Hawks)
2011-12	32	15	17	0	30	149	171	3rd of 5 TBJBHL	Lost Semi-final, 2-3 (Elks)
2012-13	32	14	17	1	29	140	143	3rd of 5 TBJBHL	Lost Semi-final, 3-4 (Elks)
2013-14	30	16	12	2	34	123	104	2nd of 4 TBJBHL	Won Semi-final, 4-1 (Elks) Lost Final, 1-4 (Northern Hawks)
2014-15	30	15	15	0	30	149	132	2nd of 4 TBJBHL	Won Semi-final, 4-1 (Elks) Lost Final, 0-4 (Northern Hawks)
2015-16	32	27	5	0	54	210	81	1st of 5 TBJBHL	Won Semi-final, 4-0 (Falcons) Lost Final, 2-4 (Northern Hawks)
2016-17	30	4	22	4	12	114	231	3rd of 4 LJHL	Lost Semi-final, 1-4 (Elks)
2017-18	28	16	8	4	36	212	109	1st of 4 LJHL	Won Semi-final, 4-0 (Falcons) Lost Final, 1-4 (Northern Hawks) (advance as LJHL representative Northern Hawks are Hosts)
2018–19	30	17	10	4	38	187	96	2nd of 4 LJHL	Won Semi-final, 4-0 (Elks) Lost Final, 1-4 (Northern Hawks) (advance to Keystone Cup as LJHL league finalist)

Keystone Cup history

Western Canadian Jr. B Championships (Northern Ontario to British Columbia)
Six teams in round robin play.

Year	Round-robin	Record	Standing	Bronze medal game	Gold medal game
2018[lower-alpha 1]	W, 7–2 vs. Peguis Juniors L, 1–3 vs. St. Malo Warriors L, 3–9 vs. Thunder Bay Northern Hawks	1–2–0	3rd of 4	L, 3–6 vs. Peguis Juniors Bronze Medalist	Did not advance
2019[lower-alpha 1]	L, 3–4 vs. Thunder Bay Northern Hawks W, 6–2 vs. Cross Lake Islanders W, 6–0 vs. Peguis Juniors	2–1–0	2nd of 4	—	L, 2–4 vs. Thunder Bay Northern Hawks Runners-up

1. British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan did not send teams to Keystone Cup

References

1. "Fighting Walleye to host Keystone Cup 2020". Keystone Cup. August 22, 2019.
2. "SIJHL ANNOUNCES ADDITION OF 7TH FRANCHISE FOR 2020-21". SIJHL. February 13, 2020.

External links

• Thunder Bay Fighting Walleye