Calgary has its Stampeders, New Westminster its Salmon Bellies, New York its Yankees, Brandon its Wheat Kings, Toronto its Argonauts and Flin Flon has its "Bombers". How did the name originate with us and what has happened to make it famous in Canadian sport circles?

Practically every town who has a team taking part in intertown or provincial play has a nickname for its team. In the early days, when competition was pretty well restricted to Cranberry Portage, Island Falls, Sherridon and The Pas, Flin Flon's teams were known as the Gold-Diggers, Kopper Kings and Flyers. With the opening of the Arena in early 1935 it was decided to go into hockey in a somewhat bigger manner and in the fall of that year, a permanent new name and crest for the team was sought that would carry our colors in outside competition.

Gordon Cross, who was the President of the team at that time, offered a prize to the person turning in the name that would be chosen. Joe Pieper, a well known Flin Flon citizen of that era, had his choice "Bombers" picked as the best submitted and what a good choice it would be was never dreamed of at that time. A Crest that would go with the name was the next project and here Canadian Industries Ltd., who supplied the powder that blows the Flin Flon ore to pieces got into the picture. They designed and donated the first crests that give you the idea the name is exploding - a first class crest that has remained almost the same since 1936.

The team that really started the Bomber name on a national roll of fame was the 1937-38 edition of the Senior Bombers. THis team won the Saskatchewan title and then lost out in the Western Allan Cup Semi-Finals to the Trail Smoke Eaters, who easily went on to win the Allan Cup. The following fall, the Smoke Eaters played a two game seriers here in Flin Flon and we beat them both games. Later on that season, the Trail team set a record by winning 51 consecutive games. A few of the better known players on our 1937-38 team were Sid and George Abel, Jimmy Skinner, Buddy Simpson, Sid Brown, Butch Stahan, Wally Warnick, Freddy Bowman, Slim Holdaway, Phil Andrejkew and Harry Moroz. Odie Lowe was the Coach.

A few of the local gentlemen who had been promoting hockey in a big way around this time were Bill Hughes, Gordon Martin, Larry Johnson and Jack McDonald.

Senior Bomber teams that followed this one never quite made sports fans forget the team that Jimmy Skinner and Sid Abel played on but they were outstanding in hockey ability and sportsmanship and the name was becoming better known through radio and newspaper publicity.

Down through the 1940's, the Bomber name continued on with Senior B, Intermediate, Juvenile, Midget and finally with the formation of the Northern Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League in 1948, the Bomber name again became a big name in hockey circles.

It is usually the winning team that gets the lion's share of publicity and in this category, our Bombers don't have to take a back seat to anyone. In 13 years of competition they had won their league title 7 times and in 1957 produced another team that brought us more publicity than our 1937-38 team. This team played a total of 88 games during the season, losing only 14 of them. The most important of this season was the 7th of a series against the supposedly unbeatable Ottawa Hull Canadians, in which we beat them 3 - 2 to win the coveted Memorial Cup, the emblem of Junior Hockey supremacy in Canada. A few of the great players on this team were Teddy Hampson, George Konik, Ron Hutchinson, Cliff Lennartz, Mel Pearson, Carl Forster, Patty Ginnell, George Wood and as replacements Orland Kurtenbach and Jean Gauthier. Bob Kirk was the coach of this team.

The Bombers moved to the Manitoba Junior Hockey League for 1966-67, winning the league title. The very next year, Flin Flon moved to the highly competitive Western Canada Hockey League. Led by local star, Bobby Clarke, and colorful coach Patty Ginnell, the Bombers had great success, rarely losing especially in the confines of the Whitney Forum. The team won the league in 1969 and captured the James Piggott Trophy as the Canadian Dominion Champions that year. The Bombers, with Reg Leach as the key player won the league again in 1970. Clarke and Leach went on to figure very prominently two Stanley Cups for the Philadelphia Flyers.

The high cost of travel and other expenses led to the Bombers leaving the WCHL after 1977-78. After a successful stint in the NorMan Junior Hockey League, the Bombers moved to the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League in 1984. The team had some tough years through the 1980's, but the persistence of Bomber executives, fans and businesses to keep a franchise alive was rewarded in 1993. The Whitney Forum was once again packed for every game in the Bombers exciting S.J.H.L. Championship series against the Melville Millionaires. After winning the series in 7 games, the Bombers took on the Manitoba Junior Champions, the Dauphin Kings. The Bombers went on to win that series as well, in front of standing room only crowds, and advanced to the Centennial Cup in Amherst, Nova Scotia. Although the Bombers did not win the Centennial Cup, the name "Flin Flon Bombers" was back on the minds of hockey fans.

Flin Flon played host to the S.J.H.L. All-Star weekend February 1st & 2nd, 1992. Just before the start of the game, and following player introductions, the Bombers retired sweaters of two of its stars of the past. Bobby Clarke's #11 and Reggie Leach's #9 now hang from the rafters in the south end of the Whitney forum. At the same time, 24 first class new pennants were unveiled along the west side of the Forum. The pennants show all the Bomber championship teams from the late 20's to present. Three more pennants were added a year later, when the Bombers went all the way to the Centennial Cup. Bombers who have gone on to play in the National Hockey League or World Hockey Association are featured on the Bombers "Wall of Fame" at the Whitney Forum. There are currently 70 photographs on the Wall of Fame. If you plan on visiting the historic Whitney Forum, come early and take your time looking at the pictures of past teams. The Historical Committee has attempted to locate team photos from every year 1927 to present. In 1996, a special trophy case was built and mounted in the lobby area. Some of the items housed here are old programs, sweaters, a goalie mask, various ticket stubs, Bomber pucks, autographed sticks, as well as the James Piggot Trophy (1969) and the NorMan Junior Hockey League Trophy, which the Bombers won the last year the league operated.

In the years that our team has played under the "Bomber" crest, we'd say that they have travelled close to 400,000 kilometres and played well over 2,000 games. How many times the name has been mentioned on the radio and how many newspaper columns have been written about the "Bombers" could not even be closely guessed at but we can tell you it has been plenty. We have always prided ourselves in having a well dressed, well mannered, hockey wise team, worthy of the "Bomber" name -- may it continue to make good news and publicity for Flin Flon and be a credit to all of its many supporters.

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