He was born on July 3, 1903 and passed away on Christmas Day 1991.
Frank Finnigan was supposed to drop the puck on opening night in 1992 but he never got the chance. His son Frank Jr. did the honours instead.
That night, Frank Finnigan’s Number 8 was raised to the rafters at the Civic Centre. It hangs above the Canadian Tire Centre ice surface to this day.
Over the years, he’s been joined by the best player in franchise history and the team’s all-time leader in games played but Finnigan will always be the first.
Born in Shawville, Quebec, Finnigan, aka The Shawville Express, (there’s a street there named after him too), got his start playing at the old Shawville Arena.
As a 5’9 right winger, Finnigan’s NHL numbers never really jumped off the page. He played 366 games in Ottawa colours.
You’ll have to use your imagination on the “Ottawa colours” part by the way. Finnigan put up 97 goals, 62 assists and 159 points.
But it was in the 1926-1927 season that Finnigan earned his place in Ottawa hockey history. He scored 15 goals in 36 games that year and was a key piece of the Stanley Cup winning Ottawa Senators.
There was a parade in Ottawa and members of the team walked away with 18–carat gold rings in the shape of an ‘O’.
Ottawa Senators. Stanley Cup Champions.
The glory didn’t last long for Finnigan’s Senators though.
“Despite their success, the Senators struggled to be profitable. The market in Ottawa was just too small and the team was hemorrhaging funds. They eventually had to request financial help from the league. At first, the NHL allowed the team to play some home games in larger cities like nearby Detroit, but it wasn’t enough. The Senators were forced to sell any player with value just to make ends meet.“
Huh.
The Senators were in rough shape. Finnigan left for year but then returned to Ottawa the following season. Yet the team continued to struggle, financially and on the ice.
On March 15, 1934, just past the one minute mark of the second period, Finnigan scored an unassisted goal. It would be the last goal scored by the original Ottawa Senators. The following season, they moved to St. Louis.
Finnigan would go on to play a year in St. Louis, before finishing his career with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Nobody’s perfect.
Long after his playing career came to an end, Finnigan again returned to Ottawa, this time taking on a leading role in the “Bring Back the Senators” campaign.
Ottawa’s bid was considered to be pretty far fetched. With more than 40 other cities competing for spots, a tiny market like Ottawa was considered a long-shot at best. But Ottawa’s deep hockey roots and the proud history of the game in this city, dating all the way back to Frank Finnigan’s days, gave them an edge.
Finnigan played an active role in Ottawa’s bid, frequently appearing at events as part of the campaign.
He was there when the Bruce Firestone-led group made their official pitch to the National Hockey League.
He never did get to drop the puck on Opening Night but 55 years after his playing career ended, his number 8 was raised to the rafters in Ottawa.
