The St. James Canadians were a Canadian junior hockey team in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League until 2003, folding officially in 2004. The Canadians played out of the St. James Civic Centre, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. As the Winnipeg Braves, they won the 1959 Memorial Cup as National Junior Hockey champions. History Winnipeg Braves The Winnipeg Braves were founded in 1956 and affiliated with the Winnipeg Warriors (minor pro) of the Western Hockey League (minor pro). The Braves played regular season games at Winnipeg's Olympic Rink and won 2 Turnbull Cup Championships as Manitoba Junior Champions (1959 and 1965). The 1958-59, Braves won the Abbott Cup as Western Canadian Junior ‘A’ Champions, and were the last team from Winnipeg to win the Memorial Cup as National Champions. Under the leadership of manager Bill Addison and coach Bill Allum, the Braves defeated the Peterborough Petes coached by 25-year-old Scotty Bowman. In the championship series, the Petes won the first game 5-4, and the Braves came back to win four straight games 5-2, 5-2, 5-3 and 6-2. The final game of the series was played in Brandon, Manitoba due to the Shrine Circus appearing at Winnipeg Arena. The team included future NHL'ers Ted Green and Ernie Wakely. Roster: Pat Angers, Don Atamanchuk, Al Baty, Gary Bergman, Ernie Bradawaski, Rene Brunel, Ted Green, Howie Hughes, Allan Ingimundson, Ken King, Ted Knight, Jerry Kruk, Laurie Langrell, Wayne Larkin, Al LeBlanc, Bob Leiter, Doug Monro, Zenon Moroz, Lew Mueller, John Rodger, Paul Sexsmith, John Sutherland, Bob Wales, Wayne Winstone, Ernie Wakely, J. D. (Jack) Perrin Jr. (President), Bill Addison (Manager), Bill Allum (Coach), Jim Drury (Trainer). The Memorial Cup Championship team was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 2003, and inducted into the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame in the team category. Prior to the 1966-67 season, the team moved to St. James and changed its name to the St. James Braves. St. James Canadians During the summer of 1967, a community-minded sports group purchased the St. James Braves from Ben Hatskin. The team relocated to the brand new St. James Civic Centre, where they played as the St. James Canadians. The Canadians won the Turnbull Cup three times (1968, 1996, 1997) throughout their 35 years in the MJHL. They played until the end of the 2002-03 season. The team took a one-year leave of absence from the MJHL in 2003-04