The Tottenham Railers are a Canadian junior ice hockey team based in Tottenham, Ontario. They play in the Greater Metro Junior A Hockey League (GMHL). The team was known as the Tottenham Steam for its first six seasons and the Tottenham Thunder for the following three seasons.
| Tottenham Railers | |
|---|---|
| City | Tottenham, Ontario, Canada |
| League | Greater Metro Junior A Hockey League |
| Division | South |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Home arena | Tottenham Community and Fitness Centre |
| Colours | White, navy, red |
| Owner(s) | Micheal Prock |
| General manager | Micheal Prock (2023–present) |
| Head coach | Jessie Gatt (2024–25) |
| Franchise history | |
| 2014–2020 | Tottenham Steam |
| 2020–2023 | Tottenham Thunder |
| 2023–present | Tottenham Railers |
History
editThe Tottenham Steam joined the Greater Metro Junior A Hockey League (GMHL) in 2014. Their first general manager and head coach was Ryan Wood.[1] The Steam played their first game, at home, on September 6, 2014.[2] Hosting the Russell Cup champions Bradford Bulls, winning 7–5. The first goal in team history was scored by Brian Rupp after 3:44 into the first period.[3]
Shortly after winning their first Russell Cup championship in 2016, the Tottenham Steam gained new owners in the DaSilva family. Cup-winning coach Ryan Wood left the team to take the same positions with the New Tecumseth Civics. The DaSilva's initially brought in Johan Moell as general manager and Jim Aldred as head coach for the 2016–17 season[4] but would instead hire former NHL All-Star Dennis Maruk as head coach. However, Maruk had to take a leave of absence midseason and was replaced by Brandon Billie.[5] For the 2017–18 season, the Steam brought in Matt Hamilton as head coach and general manager after previously coaching the Bradford Rattlers.
The 2018–19 season saw the Steam add Robert Babiak as general manager, coming off a season with the Port Huron Prowlers. Babiak would depart the team in January, with the team then trading away many of its key players.[6][7] Following the 2018–19 season, the DaSilva's sold the team to new ownership, which retained Hamilton as general manager and head coach.[8]
Following the 2019–20 season, Matt Hamilton becoming the sole owner of the team. The team briefly rebranded as the Tottenham Express for a fresh start in April 2020. Derek Robinson became head coach with Matt Hamilton acting as general manager and president.[9] The 2020–21 season was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions and the team rebranded again as the Tottenham Thunder in November 2020.[citation needed]
For the 2023–24 season, ownership transitioned to Micheal Prock and Beth Prock and the team was branded as the Tottenham Railers, paying tribute to the former Steam name as well as Tottenham's railroading history.[citation needed] Vito Scaringi was named the first Railers coach in May 2023.
Season-by-season standings
edit| Season | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts | Regular Season Finish | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–15 | 42 | 37 | 5 | — | 0 | 332 | 129 | 74 | 1st South-Central Div. 1st GMHL |
Won Div. Round, 3–2 (Coyotes) Lost quarter-finals, 2–3 (Ravens) |
| 2015–16 | 42 | 41 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 351 | 81 | 82 | 1st Central Div. 1st GMHL |
Won Div. Quarter-finals, 3–0 (Chiefs) Won Div. Semi-finals, 3–0 (Knights) Won Div. Final, 4–0 (Coyotes) 2nd in Round Robin (2–2) Won Play-in Game, 7–2 (Spartans) Won Russell Cup Final, 4–3 (Kings) |
| 2016–17 | 42 | 11 | 28 | 0 | 3 | 161 | 303 | 25 | 9th of 11, South Div. 19th of 21, GMHL |
Won 1st Rd. Qualifier game, 5–3 (Stars) Lost 8th Place Qualifier game, 0–8 (Riverkings) |
| 2017–18 | 42 | 13 | 27 | 0 | 2 | 184 | 267 | 28 | 11th of 12, South Div. 19th of 21, GMHL |
Lost 1st Rd. Qualifier game, 2–8 (Hurricanes) |
| 2018–19 | 42 | 14 | 23 | 0 | 5 | 164 | 229 | 33 | 10th of 12, South Div. 18th of 22, GMHL |
Won 1st Rd. Qualifier game, 5–3 (Predators) Won 2nd Rd. Qualifier game, 3–2 (Stars) Won 8th Pl. Qualifying game, 4–3 (Riverkings) Lost div. quarter-finals, 0–2 (Ravens) |
| 2019–20 | 42 | 9 | 30 | 0 | 3 | 135 | 278 | 21 | 9th of 10, South Div. 22nd of 23, GMHL |
Lost 1st Rd. Qualifier game (Predators) |
| Tottenham Thunder | ||||||||||
| 2020–21 | Season lost due to COVID-19 pandemic | |||||||||
| 2021–22 | 37 | 3 | 33 | 0 | 1 | 87 | 275 | 7 | 9th of 9, South Div. 19th of 19, GMHL |
Won 1st Rd. Qualifier game (Aces) Lost div. quarter-finals, 0-2 (Roadrunners) |
| 2022–23 | 42 | 14 | 27 | 0 | 1 | 152 | 241 | 29 | 7th of 9, South Div. 12th of 16, GMHL |
Lost div. quarter-final, 0-2 (Roadrunners) |
| Tottenham Railers | ||||||||||
| 2023–24 | 42 | 19 | 21 | 0 | 2 | 162 | 183 | 40 | 5th of 8, South Div. 10th of 15, GMHL |
Lost div. quarter-final, 1-2 (Ravens) |
Team captains
edit- Braedan Foote 2014–15
- Kevin Walker 2015–16
- Hayden Way 2016–17
- Alexander Andrews 2021-22
- Alex Fornari 22 end of season
- Alexander Andrews 22-23
References
edit- ^ Arsalides, Mike (June 11, 2014). "Bulls coach leaves champion team for new challenge in Tottenham". Barrie.
- ^ Pritchard, Brian (4 September 2014). "Tottenham Steam hit the ice Saturday". www.simcoe.com. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
- ^ "Scoresheet".
- ^ "TTottenham Steam going strong". New Tecumseth Times. 18 May 2016.
- ^ "Tottenham Steam announce new coaching staff". New Tecumseth Times. 25 January 2017.
- ^ "Robert Babiak at eliteprospects.com". www.eliteprospects.com.
- ^ "Windsor Aces GMHL". www.facebook.com.
- ^ "Tottenham Steam Under New Ownership". GMHL. 6 May 2019.
- ^ "Post". Mysite 2.