Brantford Alexanders

The Hamilton Fincups were relocated in 1978 becoming the Brantford Alexanders. The OMJHL junior team took the name of the OHA senior team which had played for two years prior, which in themselves were named for Brantford's most famous former resident, telephone pioneer Alexander Graham Bell. After two years in the OMJHL, the league changed names to the OHL and the Alexanders played four more seasons in Brantford, before moving back to Hamilton as the Steelhawks.

The Alexanders made the playoffs for five straight years after missing out its first year in Brantford. The team narrowly missed out on winning its division in 1980–81 by a single point. Their playoff nemeses were the Windsor Spitfires and the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. Two years in a row they were eliminated by the Spitfires, followed by three years in a row at the hands of the Greyhounds.

In 1981, the Alexanders implemented country music into their image, when they began using the theme song, "Cowboys of the Ice" recorded by the band County Line.^[1][2]

In 1982–83 OHL season, forward Dave Gagner who graduated from North Park Collegiate and Vocational School, was awarded the Bobby Smith Trophy as the league's scholastic player of the year.^[3]

List of coaches:^[4]

• 1978–79: Dave Draper
• 1979–80: Ron Carroll
• 1980–81: Ron Carroll, Dave Draper, Ken Gratton
• 1981–82: Bep Guidolin, Dave Draper
• 1982–83: Dave Draper
• 1983–84: Dave Draper

There have been 29 alumni of the Alexanders to play in the National Hockey League (NHL):^[5]