Scott Radley: Sunday marks the Bulldogs last regular-season home game until, well, we’re not sure

If your memory is strong, you might remember the night the Hamilton Bulldogs played their first regular-season home game as an Ontario Hockey League team.

It was Sept. 26, 2015. They beat the Oshawa Generals 4-3 that evening.

Trent Fox got the first goal. Stephen Harper and Justin Lemcke got the first assists. Brody Morris had the first fight. Charlie Graham was in net. Maurizio Colella got the winner. George Burnett was behind the bench.

You might not even remember some of those names. And no, it wasn't that Stephen Harper. It was the other one. The one from Burlington.

That was 2,723 days ago. On Sunday at 2 p.m., they play their last.

Oh sure, there will be a couple playoff games this spring. Hopefully more. And three years from now they'll - Probably? Maybe? Fingers crossed? - be back from Brantford. Though that city is clearly making a big push to keep them long term. So we'll see.

But for now, this is the end of an era. Which is admittedly a cliche. But it's also true.

I'm going to be a little choked up on Sunday," team owner Michael Andlauer says. It's emotional."

It's not hard to understand why.

This stretch of hockey has generally been terrific. Two Ontario championships. Two appearances in the Memorial Cup. One Hamilton Spectator Trophy as the top team in the regular season, something no other team from this city ever accomplished before. An outdoor game.

They'll even finish with a winning record at home in the regular season (122-112 heading into the weekend).

Having a junior team in town gave a platform to local stars like Arber Xhekaj, Brandon Saigeon, Nicholas Caamano and Nathan Staios. It allowed other Hamilton guys like Isaac Nurse, Mark Duarte and Marco Costantini to stay at home and shine. And it introduced us to a bunch of future stars long before they ever hit the NHL. Guys like MacKenzie Entwistle, Arthur Kaliyev, Matt Luff, Ben Gleason, Robert Thomas and Mason McTavish.

On top of all that, it gave team president Steve Staios a chance to show he could be an outstanding executive - three of his first five first-round picks were drafted by NHL teams and one more (Logan Morrison) wasn't but he's had a 100-point season and was the MVP of last year's playoffs - and provided a place for John Gruden and Jay McKee to flex their coaching muscles.

The one thing that never happened? The team never managed to produce a first-round pick in the NHL draft. It's had good players, but for whatever reason could never get over that hump.

Maybe Brantford will get that plum.

Of course, it wasn't all smooth sailing. There were some losing seasons and there have been six head coaches in seven years. That's not ideal. But if you're grading a franchise on the entirety of its work, the Bulldogs have to get a B+ at least. Maybe an A-. Rising to an A+ if they somehow pull the all-time miracle of miracles and win another championship a couple months from now.

It isn't a perfect grade. No team gets that. But it's really, really good. Most other franchises in the league could only dream of matching it.

And now it's done.

After Sunday, they finish the schedule with five games on the road. Then head into the post-season, likely against Peterborough but potentially against Barrie or North Bay.

There will be some home games in the post-season. They way they're going, they might even grab home-ice advantage in the first round. But with the feeling of uncertainty around this team and its future, Sunday afternoon is special. Because who knows when they'll be back for another regular season game?

Hopefully it won't be another 2,723 days. Or more.

Scott Radley is a Hamilton-based columnist at The Spectator. Reach him via email: sradley@thespec.com