A little history
Kenora Thistles
The Kenora Thistles, officially the Thistles Hockey Club, were a Canadian ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario. Founded in 1894, they were originally known as the Rat Portage Thistles. The team competed for the Stanley Cup, the ice hockey championship of Canada, five times between 1903 and 1907. The Thistles won the Cup in January 1907 and defended it once before losing it that March in a challenge series. Composed almost entirely of local players, the team comes from the least populated city to have won the Stanley Cup. Nine players—four of them homegrown—have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, and the Stanley Cup champion team was inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame.
Though Kenora is in Ontario, the Thistles competed in Manitoba-based leagues throughout their existence, owing to the city's proximity to that province. The team joined the Manitoba Hockey Association (MHA) in 1902, winning the league championship in three of their six seasons. They were idealized "as a team of hometown boys who used to play shinny together on the streets of Rat Portage". The Thistles were unable to cope with the advent of professionalism in ice hockey during the early 1900s. This combined with an economic downturn in 1907, and being unable to sustain their success, the team disbanded in 1908. The name "Thistles" has been used since for several senior, minor, and junior Kenora teams.
January 1907
As the 1906 champions of the Manitoba league, Kenora earned the right to challenge for the Stanley Cup, which was held by the Montreal Wanderers, but the season ended too late for the series to be held that year. It was postponed until January 1907, during the league's regular season play.
The Thistles left for Montreal and the Cup challenge on January 12, 1907. Taking advantage of the new professionalism of their league, the club hired Art Ross, and Joe Hall from Brandon, considered two of the best players in the Manitoba league. It is unclear how much they were paid for the series, but ice hockey historian Eric Zweig has speculated the amount was substantial (though Hall did not play any games for the Thistles). This marked the first time the Thistles had paid players on the team and confirmed their status as a professional club. The Wanderers, by contrast, had five professional players and four amateurs on their roster. The Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association (ECAHA), the Wanderers' league, allowed professionals beginning in the 1906–07 season as long as each players' status was defined by the team.
Though the Thistles hired two professional players, the media again emphasized the team consisted mainly of local amateurs, and noted the Wanderers had hired multiple professional players, most notably Hod Stuart, who had played previously for the Pittsburgh Professionals. Even so, the consensus was that the Thistles were the favourites to win the Cup. The first game of the two-game, total-goal series was held on January 17 in Montreal. Tommy Phillips scored all four Kenora goals in a 4–2 victory. The second game, on January 21, saw him record a further three goals, as Kenora won 8–6, giving them a 12–8 series win and the Stanley Cup. Following tradition, the Thistles had their name engraved on the Cup. Unlike previous winners who wrote on the side of the bowl, the Thistles had "Thistles of Kenora 12 Wanderers 8 / Montreal Jan 17th & 21st 1907" engraved inside it.
On their return to Kenora later in January, the Thistles were warmly received; a reception at the Opera House saw each player given a commemorative cup by the city, among other gifts. The team's dire financial situation meant that an admission was charged for the celebratory banquet, unusual for similar events at the time. There were signs of improved finances, though. The owners of the Victoria Rink where the team played, stated their intention to build a 4,000 to 5,000-seat replacement rink. This would have made it the largest rink west of Ontario and dwarf the 1,000-seat Victoria Rink. This was suggested as a solution to the team's financial issues since they would earn a portion of each ticket sold.
1907 Stanley Cup Roster
William George "Billy" McGimsie
Rocque Francis "Roxy" Beaudro
Thomas Neil "Tommy" Phillips
Edward Joseph "Eddie" Giroux
Charles Thomas "Tom" Hooper
Silas Seth "Sox" Griffis
Arthur Howey "Art" Ross
Joseph Henry "Bad Joe" Hall
Russell Frederick Phillips
Coach - James Arthur Link
Manager - Frederick A Hudson
President - Lowrey Johnson
Secretary / Treasurer - John F. MacGillivray