West Kent Steamers

West Kent Steamers
City	Bouctouche, New Brunswick, Canada
League	Maritime Junior Hockey League
Division	Eastlink North
Founded	2004 (Halifax Wolverines)
Home arena	J.K. Iriving Centre
Colours
Owner(s)	Larry Creaser
General manager	Olivier Filion
Head coach	Olivier Filion
Franchise history
2004-2008	Halifax Wolverines
2008-2014	Bridgewater Lumberjacks
2014-2023	South Shore Lumberjacks
2023-present	West Kent Steamers

The West Kent Steamers are a Junior A Ice Hockey team from Bouctouche, New Brunswick. They play their home games at the 1,100 seat J.K. Irving Regional Centre in Bouctouche, New Brunswick. The team is a member of the Maritime Hockey League and play in the Eastlink North Division.

History

The Maritime Junior A Hockey League (MHL) had its origin in the Metro Valley Junior Hockey League, founded in 1967 as a Junior "B" level hockey league consisting of six teams, all of them based in Nova Scotia. In 1977, the Metro Valley League acquired Junior "A" status and in 1983 expanded to New Brunswick with the addition of the Moncton Hawks.

In 1991, two franchises from Prince Edward Island, based in Summerside and Charlottetown, joined the newly dubbed "Maritime Junior A Hockey League". The Summerside Western Capitals won the League's first ever National Title against South Surrey Eagles from British Columbia.

A tenth team, the Miramichi Timberwolves, was added for the 2000–2001 season. At the end of the 2001–02 season, the League approved the transfer of a team to Yarmouth. The Yarmouth Mariners began play in September 2002 and are now the biggest rival of the South Shore Lumberjacks . In early 2003, the league governors approved expansion into Woodstock, New Brunswick, with the Woodstock Slammers beginning play in the 2003–04 season.

The League got its second national Championship when the Halifax Oland Exports won the 2002 Royal Bank Cup on home ice. In the spring of 2004, the Weeks Hockey Organization bought the club, moved it to New Glasgow, and renamed it the Pictou County Weeks Crushers. On that same day, Halifax was granted an expansion franchise, the Halifax Wolverines.

In 2014 the League approved to add an expansion team in St. Stephen named the St. Stephen Aces. The League has hosted the Royal Bank Cup and Centennial Cup seven times, winning twice. MHL teams have also won seven Fred Page Cups as the Junior "A" Eastern Canadian Champions to earn the right to compete for the Royal Bank Cup.

The origin of the Lumberjacks goes back to April 15, 2008, when the owners of the Halifax Wolverines announced their plans to move to Bridgewater. Following a contest to come up with a name for the new team, the franchise was dubbed the "Bridgewater Lumberjacks." However, by 2014 the Lumberjacks were struggling, and in serious jeopardy of being dissolved or relocated. In November 2014, the MHL stepped in and temporarily took over the management of the team until a new owner was found. Larry Creaser, supported by an experienced group of hockey people and enthusiastic volunteers, assumed ownership and complete financial control of the Lumberjacks. The team was renamed the "South Shore Jr. A Lumberjacks" in an effort to expand the fan base of the team to nearby communities. Seats at the games were once again the "hottest ticket in town". The last home game of the season sold out with an attendance in excess of 1500 fans.

In 2023, the Maritime Hockey League Board of Governors approved the relocation of the team to Bouctouche New Brunswick, where they will begin play in the 2023-24 season.

In September 2024, the Steamers signed the first female player in franchise history, goaltender Rhyah Stewart.

Season-by-season record

Season	GP	W	L	T	OTL	GF	GA	P	Results	Playoffs
2004-05	56	14	38	2	2	148	254	32	12th MJAHL	DNQ
2005-06	56	16	34	0	6	192	255	38	11th MJAHL	DNQ
2006-07	58	34	19	0	5	247	210	73	6th MJAHL	Lost Division Final
2007-08	58	18	33	-	7	166	242	43	10th MJAHL
2008-09	53	18	26	-	9	164	202	45	9th MJAHL	Lost Division Mini Series
2009-10	50	21	23	-	6	179	213	48	7th MJAHL	Lost Division Semi-final
2010-11	52	24	26	-	2	219	237	50	8th MHL	Lost Division Semi-final
2011-12	52	15	36	-	1	166	258	31	10th MHL	DNQ
2012-13	52	10	39	-	0	144	255	23	9th MHL	Lost Division Mini Series
2013-14	52	5	40	-	7	123	269	17	11th MHL	DNQ
2014-15	48	16	29	-	3	144	169	35	10th MHL	DNQ
2015-16	48	24	21	2	1	138	142	51	4th of 6 South 9th of 12 MHL	Won Div. Semifinals 4-3 (Bearcats) Lost Div. Finals 1-4 (Crushers)
2016-17	50	17	30	1	2	171	122	37	5th of 6 South 10th of 12 MHL	DNQ
2017-18	50	31	15	2	2	193	132	66	2nd of 6 South 4th of 12 MHL	Won Div. Semifinals 4-3 (Ramblers) Lost Div. Finals 1-4 (Jr. Mariners)
2018-19	50	27	20	3	0	211	200	57	3rd of 6 South 6th of 12 MHL	Won Div. Semifinals 4-3 (Ramblers) Lost Div. Finals 2-4 (Jr. Mariners)
2019-20	52	26	22	3	1	211	200	56	5th of 6 South 9th of 12 MHL	DNQ
2020-21	34	6	26	0	2	79	142	14	7th of 7 South 12th of 12 MHL	DNQ
2021-22	39	7	28	2	2	79	142	18	6th of 6 South 12th of 12 MHL	DNQ
2022-23	52	10	39	2	1	130	250	23	6th of 6 South 12th of 12 MHL	DNQ
West Kent Steamers
2023-24	52	34	16	2	0	187	151	70	2nd of 6 North 3rd of 12 MHL	Lost Div. Semifinals 1-4 (Miramichi Timberwolves)

Franchise records

These are franchise records held by previous team rosters. Figures are updated after each completed MHL regular season.

Team Records for a single season
Statistic	Total	Season
Most Points	73	2006-07
Most Wins	34	2006-07
Most Goals For	247	2006-07
Fewest Goals For	123	2013-14
Fewest Goals Against	202	2008-09
Most Goals Against	269	2013-14

See also

• List of ice hockey teams in Nova Scotia

Sources

• "West Kent Steamers unveil team logo". themhl.ca. 2 June 2023. Retrieved 5 December 2024.