Soo Eagles The Soo Eagles are a Junior " A " ice hockey team from Sault Ste . Marie , Michigan . They are a part of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League . History . Eagles era ( s ) . The Eagles existed four different times . From 1962 until 1971 , Espanola joined the NOJHL as it was formed and stayed until a year before it folded due to lack of enough competition . They joined the local NOHA Junior " B " league . In 1972 , the Sault Ste . Marie Greyhounds and Sudbury Wolves walked away from the league to join the Ontario Hockey League . They reemerged in 1978 and stayed until 1988 . They came back from 1991 until 1995 . Their last stint in the league lasted from 1998 until 2003 . Espanola , a very small Northern town , always struggled to keep the team viable and competitive . They were never an overly successful team , but they did win the 1963 McNamara Trophy as league champions . In their last season ( 2002 - 03 ) , they won only 5 games the whole season . Their last win was against the Sudbury Northern Wolves . At the end of that season , the Screaming Eagles were bought and were relocated to Sault Ste . Marie , Michigan . Most players did not follow , and moved on to other teams . Black Bears era . As the Northern Michigan Black Bears , the franchise celebrated some of its most successful hockey in years . After 3 winning seasons and a trip to the league finals in 2004 - 05 , the ownership group decided to sell the financially unstable team . Indians era . In late summer of 2006 , New York Land developer Charles Perdicaro bought and renamed the black bears the Soo Indians . Perdicaro hired Jim Capy to coach the Indians . The Indians are made up of players from all over the United States , including players from Minnesota , Michigan , New York , Illinois . Over Christmas break Perdicaro fired Capy and his staff due to " philosophical differences " and hired Kevin Cain to take over . The Soo Indians went on to win the NOJHL ' s McNamara Trophy as 2007 playoff champions but were not successful at the Dudley Hewitt Cup . In Spring 2007 , Perdicaro put the Indians up for sale . Perdicaro failed to find a buyer and did not ice a team for the 2007 - 08 season . Eagles era . The Indians were sold in early 2008 , and changed their name to the Soo Eagles . They began play in 2008 – 09 . Capping the 2010 – 11 season , the Soo Eagles finished with a 37 - 10 - 3 record , 2nd in the West Division behind the Soo Thunderbirds ; 2nd overall in the NOJHL . Brian Depp , a native of Fenton , Michigan , led the Eagles in scoring with 73 points , tied for 3rd in the NOJHL . The Eagles began the 2010 – 11 playoffs with a match - up against the Blind River Beavers . The Eagles disposed of the Beavers in five games , gliding to the West Division Final against their rivals , the Soo Thunderbirds . The Eagles upset the regular season champion Thunderbirds winning in six games in a hard fought series . The Eagles faced off in a best - of - seven playoff series against the Sudbury Jr . Wolves for the 2010 – 11 NOJHL title . They won the title in six games . This win put them into the Dudley Hewitt Cup Championship , finishing third . On March 2 , 2012 , the Soo Eagles announced that they were leaving the NOJHL for the Tier II junior North American Hockey League . The Eagles bought the franchise rights of the Traverse City North Stars to make the move possible . On March 24 , 2012 , the Eagles played their final NOJHL game , a 4 - 2 loss to the Soo Thunderbirds in front of a hometown crowd in Pullar Stadium . The loss completed a 4 - game sweep of the Eagles in their semifinal series with the Thunderbirds . Following the 2014 – 15 season the Michigan Warriors were displaced by the Flint Firebirds of the higher class OHL . With the loss of Flint and previous departures of teams from Port Huron , Detroit ( twice ) , Kalamazoo , Alpena , Traverse City and Marquette , the Soo Eagles became isolated and it was determined to be financially impossible to continue in the NAHL . With the NAHL adding more teams to the East , the Eagles ownership took the opportunity to sell their NAHL franchise to Middletown Township , New Jersey and join with the existing New Jersey Junior Titans organization ( which had formerly fielded Tier III teams ) and the Soo Eagles team was granted re - admission to the NOJHL .