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OATES GIVES THANKS TO
WAXERS Reflecting on those years, which began in the 1979-80 season, the 36-year-old Weston native was thankful for the opportunity the Waxers gave him in enhancing his hockey career. At the same time, the Waxers appreciated his services by retiring the uniform number 10 he donned in Markham.
"It's obviously a great feeling," Oates said prior to a morning pre-game skate his club took part in at Maple Leaf Gardens on Saturday. "I heard of Steve (Thomas) getting his number retired. But he's a Markham boy. I never thought about it happening to me because I wasn't from Markham. It's a huge honour." Oates' arrival to Markham came about rather by accident. Playing his midget hockey in Schomberg, Oates did not get drafted by any major junior A club. However, the Waxers gave Oates a tryout and he began his first season with the Waxers playing for their Junior B affiliate Port Credit during the 1979-80 season. That same year, the Waxers summoned Oates to their lineup with six games remaining. He then became a fixture with the team for the following two seasons. "Given my age and where my hockey career was going, I was going nowhere at the time. But playing for the Waxers gave me a vehicle to go to college (Rensselaer Polytechnical Institute in Troy, New York) and then to the pros." The all-time leading scorer with the Waxers, Oates' best season was in 1981-82 when he amassed 55 goals and 106 assists. During that season, Oates centred a line which included Toronto Maple Leafs' left winger Steve Thomas and right winger Billy Atkinson. Oates said that particular season brought back a lot of fond memories. "In my last year there we set a record for goals. We had a good team and Steve (Thomas) and I both had good years. Steve finished with a flurry of goals. It was a lot of fun." Thomas, who also has his Waxers' uniform number 16 retired, felt Oates' recognition was well deserved.
"Anytime a player gets 161 points in 43 games it's much deserved," Thomas said. "He's incredible. He played the same way back then as he does now in the NHL. He's such a great passer. He'd put the puck on my stick almost every opportunity that I had." Reminising on their time with the Waxers, Thomas recalled one incident that stood out. "I got suspended by the league for one game late in the season but I needed nine goals to set the Provincial Junior A goal scoring record at that time. The record I believe was 68 goals." "In my last three games I got two, five-goal games and one three-goal game. Adam was instrumental in that." Conceding he spends little time in Toronto during the offseason, Oates hopes to someday make a trip to Centennial Arena to see the banner hanging from the wall honouring his retired uniform number. "I'd definitely like to see it. But right now it's hard. Markham is so far removed. I don't even call Toronto my home anymore even though my family's still there. But I definitely hope to come back some day."
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