Whitby Dunlops

The current Whitby Dunlops are a team in Major League Hockey. Two previous teams have played as the Whitby Dunlops. The first was an OHA Senior team from 1954 to 1960. The second was a junior team from 1962 to 1963.

The "Dunnies" were revived in 2004, on the 50th anniversary of the founding of the original senior Dunlops team. The Dunlops play home games at the Whitby Iroquois Park arena complex, on pad #1, in Whitby, Ontario.

Original Dunlops

The original Whitby Dunlops were founded from the remnants of the former Oshawa Generals team of 1952–53. After the Hambly Arena fire destroyed the Generals home ice, the team was disbanded and some of the older players on the team along with coach and manager Wren Blair, became the Oshawa Truckmen and operated from Bowmanville, ON for the 1953–54 season.

In 1954, the Oshawa Truckmen were relocated to Whitby and were temporarily known as the Whitby Seniors, playing out of the now-demolished Whitby Community Arena. The team was soon sponsored by the Dunlop Rubber Company, and renamed the Whitby Dunlops. The team started as a Senior B team, winning its division the first year. The following year the Dunlops moved up to the OHA Senior A League.

The Senior A team would go on to win two Allan Cups in 1957 and 1959 and a gold medal at the Ice Hockey World Championships in 1958. Notable members of the team are, former Whitby mayor Bob Attersley, former Toronto Maple Leafs captain Sid Smith and Boston Bruins president Harry Sinden. Harry Sinden was captain of the 1958 Dunlops, while former Leaf captain Sid Smith was a playing coach. The Town of Whitby honoured this great team for their incredible achievements with their induction into the Whitby Sports Hall of Fame.

The Dunlops were Canada's representative to the 1958 World Championships, as the defending Allan Cup champions. The team took an ocean liner to the championships in Norway because team manager Wren Blair was terrified of flying. Everyone was sick for six days because of the rough waters but the chance to restore Canada's pride was worth it. After a 14 game exhibition tour of Europe the Dunlops competed at the World Championships in Oslo, Norway.

eason-by-season results

NHL alumni

Listed in chronological order from first season played, with dates in parentheses.

*Harry Sinden (54–55, 55–56, 56–57, 57–58, 58–59, 59–60)
*John Henderson (55–56, 56–57, 57–58, 58–59, 59–60)
*Charlie Burns (56–57, 57–58)
*Connie Broden (57–58)
*Roy Edwards (57–58)
*Wally Maxwell (57–58)
*Sid Smith (57–58, 58–59)
*Pete Babando (58–59, 59–60)
*Bob Hassard (58–59, 59–60)

*Brent Grieve (2004–05, 2005–06)

External links

* [http://www.whitbydunlops.com/ www.whitbydunlops.com] – Official team web site
* [http://www.iroquoispark.com/ www.iroquoispark.com] – Iroquois Park web site
* [http://www.whitby.ca/index.php www.whitby.ca] – City of Whitby web site