Lakehead Thunderwolves men's ice hockey
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OUA West Division
Since 2018–19 season
Kari Rikkonen
| Lakehead Thunderwolves men's ice hockey | |
|---|---|
 | |
| University | Lakehead University |
| Conference | OUA OUA West Division |
| Head coach | Andrew Wilkins Since 2018–19 season |
| Assistant coaches | Jeremy Adduono Kari Rikkonen |
| Arena | Fort William Gardens Thunder Bay, Ontario |
| Colors | Blue, White, and Yellow |
| U Sports tournament appearances | |
| 1973, 2003, 2006, 2009, 2010 | |
| Conference tournament champions | |
| 2006 | |
| Conference regular season champions | |
| 1973, 2008 | |
The Lakehead Thunderwolves men's ice hockey team (formerly the Lakehead Nor'Westers) is an ice hockey program representing the Lakehead Thunderwolves athletic department of Lakehead University. The team has been continually active since returning to action in 2002, and is currently a member of the Ontario University Athletics conference under the authority of U Sports. The Thunderwolves play at the Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay, Ontario.[1]
Lakehead University was formed by the merger of Lakehead Technical Institute and Lakehead College of Arts, Science, and Technology in 1965.[2] That year, the college began its ice hockey team as a founding member of the International Collegiate Hockey Association (ICHA), an National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) conference composed mostly of American schools. The Nor'Westers shared a league championship in 1967. Lakehead reached the NAIA championship tournament in 1971, 1973 and 1975, finishing as runners-up twice.[3]
In 1972, the Western Canadian Intercollegiate Athletic Association (WCIAA) split into two divisions, Canada West and the Great Plains Athletic Association (GPAA). The primary reason that Lakehead had joined an American conference was the cost of travel. With the formation of the GPAA, the financial burdens were greatly reduced, giving the Nor'Westers the opportunity to play in their first native league. The team continued with the ICHA and Lakehead jointly played in both until 1977. During this time the Nor'Westers had the unique distinction of appearing in both an American and Canadian national tournament (in 1973), finishing as runners-up in the NAIA field and fifth in the University Cup.[4] In the early 1980s, Lakehead joined the Thunder Bay Hockey League for two seasons.[citation needed]
Lakehead finished near the bottom of the GPAC standings each year after 1978. The next season, Lakehead went winless in 26 games. After the worst season in program history, and with costs mounting, the school suspended the program.[citation needed]
Sixteen years passed before Lakehead returned to the ice.[5] In the interim, the school had joined Ontario University Athletics and changed its moniker to 'Thunderwolves'. After two season, the team received a bid to the University Cup. In the succeeding 10 years, Thunderwolves only produced winning seasons and finished as the national runners-up in 2006. However, since 2014, the program has declined and has only one winning record (as of 2024).[citation needed]
