Bonnyville Sr Pontiacs Open Their 70th Season

When the Bonnyville Sr Pontiacs hockey club opens their 2022-2023 season, it will mark their 70th season in existence.  The Pontiacs organization was founded in 1952 as the host organization for the Bonnyville Senior Hockey Club.  The club had previously been known as the Bonnyville Bruins, but in return for a new set of jerseys purchased by the local Pontiac car dealership, the team was renamed the Pontiacs.  The team played their first game on December 16, 1952. 

In 1959 the Senior Pontiacs won their first of four consecutive Craig Cups, emblematic of the North Eastern Alberta Hockey League Championship.  Back then senior hockey was the "big time" for most hockey players, and the NEAHL was considered one of the top leagues in the province.  Bonnyville imported and paid players as did most Senior Hockey teams.  They consistently drew 1500-2500 fans per game in the old Bonnyville Arena which had a capacity of 1200. The Pontiacs went on to become one of the most successful senior hockey teams in Alberta, racking up many Provincial championships at the Senior "B" and later the Senior "A" level as well as dominating the several leagues they played in over the years. The team lent it's name to the new AJHL team when they were established in 1991. Just before the team began it's 50th anniversary celebrations, the Bonnyville Minor Hockey Association announced they would be renaming all of their teams the Pontiacs to preserve the legacy of the name.

 The Pontiacs joined the NCHL for the 2015-2016 season along with the Daysland North Stars, Tofield Satellites and Big Valley Oil Kings when the Battle River League shut down.  The Pontiacs were the last Battle River League Champion.  The Pontiacs finished in 1st place in the North Division in 2016 and ended up losing in the finals for 2 years in a row to Daysland. Bonnyville won the Alberta Senior "AA" Provincial title in 2018 as the host team.

As mentioned, the Pontiacs played their first ever game way back on Dec 16, 1952 and to  commemorate that time in history, the Pontiacs will host the Devon Barons on Dec 16th, 2022. The club will be hosting an alumni get-together at the RJ Lalonde afterwards.

The NCHL would like to congratulate the entire Bonnyville Sr Pontiacs organization on this outstanding achievement. Here's to many more years of Sr Pontiac's hockey in Bonnyville. 

Excerpts courtesy of the NCHL's Fandom Page (Ice Hockey Wiki) and the Lakeland Connect.