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Hockey HistoryThe 1946 OHA Playoffs – The Final Chapter
The Hamilton Tigers did not win the 1946 Allan Cup, succumbing to the Calgary Stampeders four games to one in the final playoffs, but that did not stop the hometown crowd from welcoming its heroes when they go off the train from their western series. Hamilton Mayor Sam Lawrence, part of the large crowd that turned out to welcome the team, spoke for the entire city when he said “You did a fine job. All Hamilton is proud of you.” A little tired from about 12,000 miles back and forth across the country in the past few weeks, the Tigers stepped off the train at the TH&B station to many dignitaries, fans who flocked the station and surrounding streets, and a brass band. The team signed autographs and shook hands at the station before being packed into automobiles and down James Street to Hamilton City Hall. There Mayor Lawrence officially welcomed the squad home in the City Hall’s Council Chambers. Ivan Miller, Spectator Sports Editor, had traveled with the Tigers throughout their quest for the Allan Cup, and his last report on the team’s travels was quite complimentary: “Hockey enthusiasts mingled with folks who probably know no more about hockey than they do about the interior of China. Wives and relatives of the players rubbed shoulders with strangers who jammed the TH&B station, James Street and the area in front of the City Hall. “The Hamiltonians lost the series,” he continued, “but they lost nothing in the esteem of untold thousands in Western Canada, and so their welcome home last night was fully deserved. “They would have been great in victory. They were truly great in defeat.” It was the third time Hamilton had been to the Allan Cup. The first time, in 1919, the team was victorious. In 1931 Hamilton lost to Winnipeg, and for 1946, the Tigers lost to another Western club. And since 1946, a team from Hamilton has yet to represent the city for the trophy, started in 1907.
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