The Trail Smoke Eaters honoured their building’s 75th anniversary on Sunday afternoon, which was especially joyful following the Smokies 2-1 win in overtime over the Surrey Eagles.
The Cominco Arena hosted its first hockey game on Nov. 29, 1949. It was a senior game from the Western International Hockey League (WIHL) that saw the Trail Smoke Eaters defeat the Kimberley Dynamiters 9-3. Since that historic day, the arena has been a staple of the community and a place for the residents of the West Kootenay town to gather.
The Cominco, also sometimes referred to as Trail Memorial Centre, acted as the home of the senior Smoke Eaters for decades, all the way up until the WIHL folded in the late 1980s.
Wayne Florko was a member of the senior team from 1970 to 1987. A Manitoba native, he came to Trail as a bit of an outsider, but was immediately touched by how the community embraced him.
“It was very special for someone who is from out of town, coming to this community, to be welcomed and accepted,” he said.
“It was the only show in town. When I got involved, we were rebuilding. We rebuilt it and became competitive again. Everybody in town knew the players. You couldn’t walk down the street without being recognized.”
Although the senior team left, the community still had junior hockey. The Smokies were a Junior B team for well over two decades before the BCHL came to town in 1995, when the former Bellingham Ice Hawks moved north to the Kootenays.
Just like they used to do with the senior team, the community has continued to rally around the junior franchise, taking pride in seeing their alumni go on to great things, like current NHLer Kent Johnson and former NHL players Shawn Horcoff and Steve McCarthy, who is a Trail native.
Now the newest generation of Smokies is seeing first hand why the community is so special.
“It’s kind of a surreal experience,” said current captain Ridge Dawson, who gives back himself with a snow removal business to help senior citizens in town.
“That was one of the big reasons I decided to come play junior hockey in Trail, because of the fans, the rink and the history of this organization. It gets pretty crazy in there. We have some die-hard fans and it can really make the game sway in our favour.”
“The Smoke Eaters mean everything here,” said third-year Smokie and Trail resident Judah Makway.
“The community is really involved. No matter if it’s seniors or children, they all come to the games. They see us in the street and they say hi. They talk about the games or how the season is going. They’re super involved and that’s why it means so much to play here.”
“We have great fans,” said Owen McCarthy, who is also from Trail and grew up around the team as the stick boy when he was younger. He is now playing his rookie year with the Smoke Eaters.
“Our barn is usually packed. I remember when I was still a stick boy and Kent Johnson was here and we were playing Wenatchee, I’ve never seen the building so packed. It was sold out. Every seat was gone. I had to sit on the stairs to watch the game. It was a really cool experience.”
A big part of the longevity of the Cominco is due to the Smoke Eaters current ownership. Rich and Annie Murphy purchased the team in 2016 and since then have committed significant resources into renovating the building, to the benefit of the organization, as well as the community as a whole.
Since taking over, they have added a team gym and revamped dressing rooms, among many other improvements. Most recently, they committed $1 million USD towards significant structural upgrades to the rink.
“The Cominco Arena is the heart of Trail,” said Rich Murphy. “We invested in the facility because we want to do our part as a major user of the building, to ensure its longevity and to modernize as necessary, without compromising the history and legacy of this community staple. We couldn’t ask for a better home for the Smoke Eaters and we look forward to continuing to support the arena as it enters its 75th year and beyond.”
In a city with as rich a hockey history as Trail, it is no surprise that they will roll out the red carpet for some special guests on Sunday for a pre-game ceremony. The former version of the Trail Smoke Eaters won two World Ice Hockey Championships in 1939 and 1961, an accomplishment that is still celebrated to this day. For more recent alumni, Sunday will be a chance to catch up with old friends and celebrate the community that embraced them.
Wayne Florko is a key member of that alumni group. He organizes a reunion every year for different generations of team alumni. This year’s reunion will take place on Sunday, before the celebration.
“Trail has been such a sports town,” said Florko. “They call it the home of champions. I had the luxury of meeting some of the ‘39s and pretty much all of the ’61 Smoke Eaters, and even got to play with some of them. What ambassadors they’ve been for the community all these years.”
“There’s an old saying, ‘once you’re a Smoke Eater, you’re always a Smoke Eater.’ That holds true to this day.”
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