LITTLE CITY COMES UP BIG
The CHL’s smallest market grabbed its biggest prize thanks to unparalleled depth and a blue-chip blueliner
MAJOR JUNIOR IS BIG business, with large cities such as Vancouver, Quebec and Calgary all boasting teams. So it was nice to see the little guy take home the Memorial Cup this season, as the Acadie-Bathurst Titan defeated the host Regina Pats to win the 100th edition of the junior classic. Bathurst, N.B., is literally the smallest market in the CHL, with a population of just 12,000. But there were 1,500 fans waiting at the airport for the victorious Titan, while the championship party had an even bigger turnout. “The parade was almost 5,000 people,” said GM Sylvain Couturier. “When you put that into perspective, it’s nearly half the town. They went through the tough times and stuck with us.” Indeed, only five years ago it looked as though the franchise was…
The Hockey News Archive, a searchable database of every issue since 1947, is for subscribers only. Subscribe today for less than $2.50 a month to gain access to this extraordinary resource.