The Sarnia Legionnaires are the top drawing team in Ontario Jr. 'B' hockey again this year.

Statistics released by the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League show the Legionnaires have drawn 13,516 fans so far this campaign, for an average of 1,228 per game.

The next closest team in the 25-club league is Stratford, which is averaging 836 fans per contest.

"We've got about 930 seasons passes sold to date,” said Cliff Smith, one of the club's vice-presidents. “In fact, I just sold two last night, so people are still buying our flex passes.”

The Chatham Maroons are in third place, bringing 795 spectators through the turnstiles on a typical night.
The London Nationals, who are in first place in the Western Conference standings, are averaging just 637 supporters per night.

Last year, the Legionnaires led the league with a little over 1,300 fans each time they opened the doors of the Brock Street Barn.

The club is holding its own despite the fact that the OHL Sarnia Sting have scheduled eight of their home games for Thursday nights this year, giving the Jr. 'B' club direct competition for fully one-third of its home games.

Smith thinks the Legionnaires are retaining their fans at least partly because a season ticket will get the buyer into games for just $4, making it a night out that most people can afford.

Fans are also drawn by the fact that the club is made up mostly of local players, and because the public sees management is striving to put together an exciting, competitive team, he said.

Interestingly, the defending Western Jr. 'B' champion Legionnaires are the only title-winning squad at the Jr. 'B' level that has retained its fan base this year. Last year's Golden Horseshoe circuit champs, the Stoney Creek Warriors, are dead last among the 25 teams, drawing only 157 fans a game. And the Brantford Golden Eagles, who won the Midwest loop, are averaging only 190 fans.

Smith said while the Eagles and Warriors have put good products on the ice, their marketing does not compare to Sarnia's.

"We've got a bunch of volunteers, it's not like we have some big, expensive marketing team here,” he said. “But we spend a lot of time” promoting the club.