THUNDER BAY -- A longtime figure in the local hockey community has died.
Albert (Ab) Cava, who coached the 1967 Port Arthur Marrs to the Memorial Cup final, passed away on Thursday.
Cava joined the coaching ranks after his playing career, which was highlighted by being a 22-year-old blueliner on the Port Arthur Bearcats squad that travelled to Europe and captured the Ahearne Cup in 1962.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more exciting game than that,” Cava said in 2012 of the team's 5-3 win over Djugardens in the final, which was played in Stockholm.
He subsequently transitioned to the senior ranks, coaching the Thunder Bay Twins from 1978 to 1981, earning success in the Ontario Hockey Association senior league and competing in Allan Cup playdowns before serving as the team's president later that decade. Cava was also involved with the Colonial Hockey League's Thunder Bay Thunderhawks and Thunder Bay Senators, along with the Thunder Bay Thunder Cats when the league was rebranded as the United Hockey League.
Cava was inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame as a builder in 2017.
