Yarmouth Mariners The Yarmouth Mariners is a Tier - II Junior " A " team based out of Yarmouth , Nova Scotia . They play in the Maritime Junior A Hockey League . All home games are played out of the 1750 seat Mariners Centre . The season usually runs from mid - September to early March every year . History . It may surprise some to know that the Yarmouth Jr . A Mariners has a history that goes all the way back to 1976 . Of course , the team wasn ’ t the Mariners back then and the team was not located anywhere near Yarmouth or the Mariners Centre . Nonetheless , the franchise that would eventually become the Mariners saw it ’ s first year of action in 76 ’ as the Cole Harbour Colts . The team would remain as the Colts until 1997 , where the club would turn hands and become none other than the East Hants Penguins . In 2000 , the Penguins were purchased by Paul Currie , moved to Dartmouth and named the Dartmouth DQ Blizzard . Currie ran the franchise for two seasons in Dartmouth . Although the club faired reasonably well in the standings , attendance was poor and sponsorship support was thin as the team competed heavily with Major Junior and University hockey for attention . Currie quickly made a decision to relocate the team . Although it was not the only location considered , Yarmouth quickly became the front - runner and in 2002 Currie secured league approval and moved his team to Southwestern Nova Scotia where they would become the Yarmouth MotorMart Mariners . In their first season , the team managed to place third in the Bent and enjoyed immense fan and community support . The 2003 / 2004 season was a memorable one for the team . The Mariners had a strong club and managed to plow through the playoffs with scoring from the likes of Jason Hedges , Steve Yetman , Grant Kenney , Matt Oxtoby and Justin d ’ Entremont . It was an exciting time for the team and their fans . However , the Mariners faced a very well coached Campbellton Tigers in the league final . Yarmouth split the first two games at home with the Tigers , but lost two in Campbellton . Returning to Yarmouth , the Mariners surrendered the championship to Campbellton . But even with the loss , fans stayed loyal and were delighted with the hockey they were treated to over that great season . 2004 / 2005 was the year Yarmouth hosted the Fred Page Cup . The Mariners dominated that season , ending up with 38 wins and just 14 losses , good for first overall in the league . The plan ? Take a league title and carry the momentum into the Fred Page Cup . Unfortunately , it wasn ’ t to be . In a strange turn of events , the Mariners were hit by a number of injuries at the worst time . In the first round of the playoffs , star goalie Matt Anthony was ousted from play with a knee injury . Soon after , his backup , Matt Bracegirdle would injure his groin . Losing both goalies , coupled with other injuries to key forwards , would prove too difficult to overcome as the Mariners fell to a strong Truro Bearcats in round two . Truro would go on to take the league title that season from defending Champions the Campbellton Tigers . With a month to rest , heal and re - organize Yarmouth was ready for the Fred Page Cup . After defeating the Hawkesbury Hawks in their first game , Yarmouth went 3 - 0 in round - robin play much to the delight of their fans . A key component to the three wins was the return of both Matt Anthony and Matt Bracegirdle . But in the Championship game , Yarmouth came up short one goal and the Hawks would leave town with the Fred Page Cup . In 2005 - 2006 , long - time Assistant Coach Laurie Barron would take on the Head Coaching duties . Many key veterans had moved on from the previous year and the Mariners would find that they were to face a stronger Bent division than in previous seasons . Although the club had plenty of highs during the year , they would finish in 5th place , resulting in a 3 game mini - series with Truro . The Mariners managed to edge the Bearcats and move on , but fell to Amherst in the next round . During the 2006 - 2007 season , the Mariners had a dismal season , mired in last place in the MJAHL ' s Bent Division basement . Paul Currie stepped down from the head coach / GM position in January , but continued behind the scenes work until the team was turned over in April . Before the trade deadline , Currie made some questionable moves , moving the teams best players for cash , considerations , or players of a lesser caliber . Finally , On April 3 , 2007 the sale of the Mariners to East Hants Penguins ( NSJHL ) owner Jack Ross was completed and a new era of Mariners hockey would begin . Following the sale of the team , the new organization quickly began to demonstrate its eagerness to return to winning form and its dedication to bringing quality Junior A Hockey back to Yarmouth and its loyal fans and sponsors . The new Mariners quickly unveiled a brand new logo and jersey and announced , to the surprise and extreme delight of many , that NHL legend Steve Kasper would take on the job of Head Coach with the very popular Laurie Barron as his Assistant . But they didn ’ t stop there . Over the spring and summer months , General Manager Jack Ross made numerous player movements , determined to bring in high - caliber players and instill a new belief that Yarmouth will again find itself at the top of Junior A hockey , not just in the Maritimes , but across Canada . During the 2007 - 2008 season , the Mariners had many name players on the squad , which led to a very strong team . At the trading deadline in January , the Mariners only got stronger by acquiring league - leading scorer Itan Chavira , a pick - up which paid tremendous dividends for them . On February 24 , 2008 , with a 6 - 3 victory over the Halifax Wolverines on home ice , the Mariners clinched 1st overall in the MJAHL , and completed their worst - to - first turnaround in one season . In the opening round of the playoffs , the Mariners defeated the rival Amherst Ramblers 4 games to 1 . In round 2 , the Mariners defeated the Weeks Crushers , who hosted the 2008 Fred Page Cup , 4 games to 1 , to win the Bent Division Championship . On a roll , the Mariners faced stiff opposition in the Championship Finals versus the Woodstock Slammers . After a huge 4 - 0 win on home ice April 15 , the Mariners traveled to Woodstock for Game 6 on April 17 , defeating them 3 - 1 and winning the series 4 games to 2 , in the process clinching the Mariners first MJAHL Championship , the Kent Cup . At the 2008 Fred Page Cup , two losses on consecutive nights to eventual Champion Weeks Crushers ended the season for the club , its most successful to date . The team is also known to draw some of the largest crowds in the Maritime Junior A Hockey League .