Monday 17 January 2011

Canes' to Honour 1951 Lethbridge Maple Leafs

At a special media gathering Tuesday morning at the Galt Museum the Lethbridge Hurricanes were very proud to unveil a special jersey to be worn for their game on January 25th, 2010 against the Brandon Wheat Kings. The jersey is being worn to honour the 1951 Lethbridge Maple Leafs who 60 years ago – Represented Canada and were victorious in the 1951 World Amateur Hockey Championships in Paris, France. (Mitch Maxwell and Neil Tarnasky pictured on the left)

“The sweaters are great, they are an exact duplicate of the sweaters we wore in 1951.” said former Maple Leaf Tom Wood “I think they make a wonderful souvenir of that special event in the history of sport in the City of Lethbridge.”

After being selected as Canada’s representatives - the Canadian team from Lethbridge dominated play in Europe - outscoring the competition with 62 goals for and only 6 against while facing teams that included Finland (11-1), Norway (8-0), England (17-1), the United States (16-2), Switzerland (5-1) and Sweden in the championship game (5-1) Dubbed after their victory as “The Greatest team ever to show in Europe”, the Maple Leafs followed this remarkable achievement by winning the Winston Churchill Ice Hockey Series tournament in England. They accomplished this by downing the United States team 5-0 and the English All-Star team 4-3.

The Maple Leafs played in front of 400,000 people and travelled 30,000 miles through 14 countries in their four-month long adventure before heading home to be welcomed like heroes. Thousands celebrated the players by hosting a special banquet and holding a parade in their honor. The Hurricanes players representing Lethbridge Hockey today are very proud to wear these replica jerseys in honor of the players who represented Lethbridge on the world stage 60 years ago.


"I am very honoured that the Hurricanes are wearing an exact replica of our jersey's from 1951.” said former Maple Leaf Nap Milroy “We never would have guessed that our winning the World Cup Championship in 1951 would have had such a long lasting effect - It is a very proud and humble moment as we celebrate the 60th Anniversary of our win." (Mitch Maxwell, Neil Tarnasky, and Dylan Tait along with Nap Milroy pictured on the right)

Hurricanes Mitch Maxwell, Dylan Tait and Neal Tarnasky were on hand for the special event today to help showcase the limited edition jerseys which will go on sale via online auction starting today at: http://www.hurricanesauction.com/ - Auctions will then conclude on Monday, January 31st following the January 25th game with proceeds going towards the Lethbridge Hurricanes Onside Committee.

“It’s a beautiful jersey and carries with it such a great storyline - it’s rich in history and tradition and we know our players will be proud to wear them” said Hurricanes Business Manager Jim Bradley “The historical significance of this team to hockey in Lethbridge and to the sport as a whole cannot be over emphasized and they would make a great souvenir for any fan of the game.” The on-line auction closes at Noon on January 29th.

For more information on the 1951 Lethbridge Maple Leafs be sure to log on to www.lethbridgemapleleafs.com

(From Ryan Ohashi, Hurricanes Media Relations. Photos by Pat Siedlecki)

Thanks,
Pat

This blog post is brought to you by http://www.clearlylethbridge.com/.

9 comments:

  1. Another fabulous idea by the Canes to go with the Family Day idea, Rememberance Day sweaters, and a lounge at the newly renovated facility.
    GDC

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  2. Every time I do the radio show, I marvel at how good Siedlecki is at hosting things. I could never do radio.
    -- Dylan

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  3. Dylan,

    If your nose was any further up Siedlecki's ass it would be a crime!

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  4. Dylan lost a bet and had to post that. Why else would a person write something like that? Pat can you confirm what the bet was?

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  5. Haha! No bet was ever made. Although I do find this amusing! That Dylan Purcell. Funny guy!

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  6. Hey Anonymous...sticking up for Pat and Dylan who you thought lost a bet....sounds like you must have your nose just as deep in Pat's ass and Dylans! Great Job! :-)

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  7. Firstly, I keep my nose away from rears. Secondly, at the end of the show, I threw the panel a curveball and Pat didn't miss a beat. Meanwhile, I stutter and stammer through each of those shows. I've done improv theatre, and I find radio a lot tougher. The compliment does mean its Pat's turn to buy doughnuts.
    -- Dylan

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  8. Thanks Dylan! And for the coffee too. The compliment is much appreciated. Always nice to have you on the show.

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  9. I realize that the Hitmen have not exactly overachieved this year, but they are NOT as bad as their record would suggest either, and we lost 2 of 3 against them in this most recent series.

    Exactly how much of a SCHELLACKING are we in for tonight in the Hat??? If we took 5 penalties in the Saddledome,.. how many penalties are the weak minded stripes going to call against the Canes in that barn of infamous drunken whining inbreeds?

    Gotta, gotta, GOTTA roll 4 lines in this one, or we may be in for another 7-0 experience. - Richie.

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