Oshawa Civic Auditorium

The Oshawa Civic Auditorium is a 3,625–seat (4,025 standing) multi-purpose arena in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada.This recreational complex was built and paid by donations from CAW (Canadian Auto Workers) Members. It opened in 1964, and was home to the Oshawa Generals ice hockey team of the Ontario Hockey League from December 1964 to October 2006. The arena is part of a larger recreational complex still in use, although the arena itself is no longer used for ice hockey. The complex is located at 99 Thornton Road South in the city's west end, with close proximity to Highway 401.
==History==
The arena was built as a replacement home for the Oshawa Generals, when the Hambly Arena burned down on September 15, 1953. The Generals resumed play in 1962-63 as part of the Metro Junior A League playing out of Maple Leaf Gardens, then returned to the Ontario Hockey League for the 1963–64 season sponsored by the Boston Bruins. The team played in nearby Bowmanville, Ontario for one season until construction on the new arena was finished. The Generals also won the first game played at the Civic on December 15, 1964, a 6-4 win over the St. Catharines Black Hawks. Bobby Orr, aged 16 at the time, scored in that first game.
The Civic hosted the 1987 Memorial Cup tournament for the Canadian Hockey League championship. Oshawa competed against the Longueuil Chevaliers and the Memorial Cup champions the Medicine Hat Tigers.
In June 2005, construction began on a replacement arena in downtown Oshawa, the General Motors Centre. The last Generals game in the Civic was held October 29, 2006, versus the Kingston Frontenacs, in which the Generals won 8-6.
===Championship teams===
The Oshawa Generals won five J. Ross Robertson Cups as OHL champions during their tenure at the Civic; in 1966, 1983, 1987, 1990, and 1997. Oshawa also won 1990 Memorial Cup.
The Oshawa Legionaires, another junior team from the Metro Jr B League won three regular season titles. The first in 1975–76, then two more in 1977–78, and 1978–79, led by the coaching of Mike Keenan, and the playing of Dale Hawerchuk.
==External links==
*City of Oshawa Recreation Complexes
*Oshawa Generals
*www.ohlarenaguide.com
Category:Ontario Hockey League arenas
Category:Indoor ice hockey venues in Ontario
Category:Defunct indoor ice hockey venues in Ontario