1979 AQHL Playoffs

1st Round

1st Verdun Knights vs. 8th Moncton Bears

Game one at the Verdun Arena is jam-packed as the Knights forward Josh Lucas scored three goals for a 5-2 win over the Bears. The Bears played poorly as they lost game two 7-1 to Verdun as three Knights players scored 2 goals. In-game three at Moncton, the Bears played better, but it wasn’t enough as the third period started it all Knights; for forward Max Victor, it was a career day for him after a slow season this year, with 3 goals and 4 assists as he led the Knights to an 8-2 win. The Bears had a hard time scoring as Knights goalie Nick Leflamme was a brick wall, taking 62 shots all game, not one puck passed by him. The Knights completed the sweep with a 4-0 shut win and 4 games to 0 series win to end the Moncton Bears season.

2nd Cape Breton Warriors vs. 7th Fredericton Vikings

The Fredericton Vikings shocked the crowd at the sold-out Warriors Arena with a 3-1 win in game one and a 3-2 win in game two. At the John Haskell Arena in Fredericton, the Vikings had a 3-0 lead going into the third period when Warriors rookie forward Luke Davis made 1 goal and 2 assists to tie the game and head into overtime. Over 9 minutes in the overtime, Luke Davis passed the puck to defence Shane Abrams, made the shot and scored as the Warriors got themselves back in the series with a 4-3 game three-overtime win. Thanks to the big overtime win in game three, the Warriors would continue their way and beat the Vikings three straight games, 4-2 in game four, 3-1 game five wins, and 2-0 in-game six series 4 games to 2.

3rd Sherbrooke Loups vs. 6th Laval Tigers

The Patinoire de Sherbrooke was full as fans witnessed one of the best games the Loups fans have ever seen as both Christian Dupont and rookie Josh Winters both scored three goals to give the Loups a big blowout win over the Tigers 8-2. Since the blowout loss, the Tigers had a hard time turning it around as they could not even score more than one goal as they lost both game two and game three with scores of 5-1 and 6-1. At Laval, the Tigers did more than score more than one goal, they also won game four with a score of 3-1, and lastly, they avoided being swept as they kept their season alive. Tigers head coach Chris Oliver was please with his team’s performance, “We may win game four, for us we have a long way to go, but to them (Loups) we are on borrow time.” The Tigers hope to play well like they did in game four, but the Loups had other ideas as they take game five 4-2 over the Laval Tigers and take the series 4 games 1.

4th New Glasgow Highlanders vs. 5th Trois-Rivieres Titans

The Highlanders shocked the Titans by winning game one 3-1 and 4-2 in game two. The Titans bounce back from a back-to-back loss at New Glasgow by winning games three and four but not the way they had in mind as both ended in overtimes with 3-2 and 4-3. Led by Jaune Fredette, who scored 2 goals and 4 assists as the Titans win game five 7-5 and could have a chance in ending the series in game six. The Titans' hopes of going to the next round got delayed as the Highlanders blank them in a big way with 7-0. Throughout both the first period and the second period, it was back and forth with a 4-4 tie score going into the third period. 5:07 left the Highlanders had the lead by one goal, but the Titans found a way to score two unanswered goals and hold on until the clock hit zero as they beat the New Glasgow Highlanders 7-5 and won the series 4 games to 3.

2nd Round

 1st Verdun Knights vs. 5th Trois-Rivieres Titans

The Verdun Knights show their fans why they are at the top of the league by routing the Titans in the first two games of the series with 6-1 and 5-2. The Titans turn it around at Trois-Rivieres as they tie the game 3-3 going into overtime. Ten minutes left overtime Titans Jaune Fredette scored the O/T winner 4-3 as they got themselves back in the series. The Knights took game four on cruise control with a 5-1 victory and one win away from advancing to the Bronz Cup championship. The Titans fought tooth and claw in games five and six. Both ended in overtime 3-2 and 2-1. The first two periods show that the Knights had the Titans on the ropes. Still, in the third period, the Titans played rough to even dirty as Titans' defence held both Josh Lucas and Max Victor to the point where they argued with the referees for not calling penalties and got ejected; after that, the Titans went on to win the game seven with the score of 3-2 and moving on to the Bronz Cup finals with a series victory four games to three.

2nd Cape Breton Warriors vs. 3rd Sherbrooke Loups

Fans at the Warrior Arena were on their feet as Cape Breton beat the Loups 4-2 thanks to Luke Davis, who made 2 goals, and 2 assists in game one. The Sherbrooke Loups bounce back in game two with a 5-3 win followed by game three at the Patinoire de Sherbrooke 4-2 over the Warriors. After losing two straight games, the Warriors fought back as Luke Davis 5 goals and 7 assists within two games as Cape Breton takes the series lead with a 6-2 and 7-4. Back at Sherbrooke, the Loups had the lead 3-1 halfway into the second period until Shane Abrams surprised everyone, including his teammates, as he scored three unanswered goals. Late in the third, Shane and the rest of the defence lines held the Loups offence as the clock hit zero, and the game six is over with the score of 4-3. With that win, the Cape Breton Warriors are going to the Bronz Cup finals with a 4-to-2 series win over the Sherbrooke Loups.

1979 Bronz Cup Finals

2nd Cape Breton Warriors vs. 5th Trois-Rivieres Titans

For the third straight year, the Titans are in the finals hoping for a third title in a row; however, the Warriors had other ideas as they made their Bronz Cup appearance for the second time since 1975 as Luke Davis 4 points (1G, 3A) performance leads to a 5-2 Warriors win over the Titans. The Titans played a rough game all over the Warriors' offence as Jaune Fredette scored two goals to win 2-0. The Titans' rough, challenging style game plan works, but both ended by one goal as the Warriors win game three 3-2 and game four 2-1. The Warriors were too much for the Titans as they scored six goals in the first two periods, as the third started the crowd was singing “we are the champions” as the Warriors added three more goals as the third period comes to an end with the score of 9-2 and the series 4 games to 1. The Warriors celebrate with the fans inside the Warrior Arena with the Bronz Cup. Their next quest is the Valor Cup tournament in Ottawa, Ontario.

1978-79 AQHL Season

 

Standings

1. Verdun Knights (QUE)

2. Cape Breton Warriors (ATL)

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3. Sherbrooke Loups (QUE)

4. New Glasgow Highlanders (ATL)

5. Trois-Rivieres Titans (QUE)

6. Laval Tigers (QUE)

7. Fredericton Vikings (ATL)

8. Moncton Bears (ATL)

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9. Drummondville Les Rouges (QUE)

10. Portland Clippers (ATL)

11. Manchester Americans (ATL)

12. Shawinigan Voltages (QUE)

Story

The only team that made a jersey change is the New Glasgow Highlanders the change they did is dropping two thin stripes on the arms, hem and socks.

The AQHL has split the league into two divisions known as the Atlantic and Quebec divisions. The playoffs format is that the top two spots will be for the division winners while the rest are up for grabs.

The defending Bronz Cup champions Trois-Rivieres Titans had a rough first half of the season, mainly during road games over the Atlantic area. The Titans would get their game back on track by winning 15 of the last 25 games, but the team finished third place in the Quebec division. The team that took the top spot of the division and never looked back was the Verdun Knights, which they up their game with some good trades and their draft picks really helped very well. After all the rebuild put in, the Sherbrooke Loups is back from being on the bottom of the league for three years as they finished 2nd. The Laval Tigers' record of 23-23-4 may look off to some, but 50 points were enough to finish 4th. Both Drummondville and Shawinigan round out the Quebec Division 5th and 6th.

Cape Breton Warriors took the top of the Atlantic Division with their 35-13-2 72 points to show it. The New Glasgow Highlanders finally showed significant results as their top players played very well, mainly Shawn Oakley. He will be eligible for the Pro Hockey Draft after this season as he made 38 goals, and 76 points to lead the Highlanders to 2nd place in the Atlantic. Both the Vikings and the Bears battle to see who finished better. In the end, the Vikings take 3rd while the Bears finish 4th. The Portland Clippers had a lousy season where they suffered a 20-game losing streak and could not bounce back as they finished 5th. Manchester Americans had it even worse with 33 losses and finished last place. What more egg on the face for the team, owner John Rome did not renew his liquor licence to sell beers in the Manchester Forum; without it, the attendance has been under an average of 400.

As the season came to an end, the playoff matchups caught many eyes first seed Verdun Knights face eighth seed Moncton Bears, second seed Cape Breton Warriors take on the seventh seed Fredericton Vikings, third seed Sherbrooke Loups is back in the playoffs as they play the sixth seed Laval Tigers. Lastly, the fourth seed New Glasgow Highlanders battles fifth seed the defending Bronz Cup champions, the Trois-Rivieres Titans.

1979 OMJHA Playoffs

 

1st Round (best 4 of 7 games)

Hero Division

1st Kitchener Generals vs. 4th Burlington Metros

After two years of missing the playoffs, the Metros would make the most of it as Matthew Walton scored 2 goals as they pulled an upset over the Generals with the score of 3-1 in Kitchener. Game one loss was a wake-up call for the Gens as Patrick Herbco made 4 assists as they took game two over the Metros 4-2. In-game 3 in Burlington, the Gens made a big win 5-1 made by Patrick Herbco 2 goals, defence Nick Hooker 3 assists, and goalie Grey Hughes made 47 saves. The Metros had the lead by 2 goals going into the second period when Nick Hooker scored 2 straight goals, then in the third period, Patrick Herbco scored with 1:21 left in the third to break the tie as the Gens won game four 4-3. Back at Kitchener, it was all Generals as they beat the Metros 4-2 to finish the series 4 games to 1.

2nd Barrie Admirals vs. 3rd Oshawa Diamonds

The Barrie Admirals took the first two games of the series with the scores of 3-2 and 4-2, thanks in large to forward Herb Max-Louis, who made 4 goals 5 points within those two games. At Oshawa, the Diamonds won those two games to tie the series up 2 apiece with the scores of 3-1 and 2-0 as Diamonds goalie David Wellington made 67 saves and one shutout. Back at Barrie, both the Admirals and the Diamonds went back and forth until the third period came to an end with a score of 2-2. Five minutes in overtime, Admirals forward Seth Samuel scored the overtime winner as Barrie takes game five 3-2. The Admirals had one goal in mind, a win in Oshawa that had never been done in three years and Herb Max-Louis made it happen as he scored a hat-trick in the third period as the Admirals wins it 5-1 and headed to the Hero Division finals with the series win 4 to 2.

Steel Division

1st Kitchener Legionnaires vs. 4th Owen Sound Arrowbirds

In Kitchener, the Legionnaires took the first two games with scores of 6-2 and 7-4. John Herbco scored only 2 goals but made 10 assists in those two games. The Owen Sound Arrowbirds had no chance in games three and four as John Herbco and the Legionnaires beat them 8-2 and 6-2 led by John’s 4 goals, 6 assists as they swept the Arrowbirds in four games.

2nd Orangeville O’s vs. 3rd Waterloo Maroons

The O’s had played well in the season against the Maroons, but in this game, they played poorly as they lost game one badly to the Maroons 8-0. After the disaster game one loss, the O’s bounced back from it and won game two over the Maroons 4-1 thanks to the O’s defence Ron Green with 3 assists and a goal. Ron Green kept his game going with 2 goals, and 4 assists as the O’s beat the Maroons 6-2 to take the series lead. Orangeville went to Waterloo with a 2-1 series lead and hoping to come out with a 3-1 series lead; that did not happen as the Maroons wins it 7-3 to tie the series 2 apiece. At Orangeville, the O’s win game five 6-2 to regain the series lead thanks to O’s forward Pat Henn with a hat-trick. The Orangeville O’s got the win they needed with the score of 5-2, O’s Ron Green’s 2 goals, and 2 assists were the reason. The Maroons' season ends, and the O’s moving on to the second round with the series-winning 4 games to 2.

2nd round (best 4 of 7 games)

Hero Division finals

1st Kitchener Generals vs. 2nd Barrie Admirals

The Admirals did not play well as the Generals beat the living daylights out of them with scores of 4-1 and 3-1. In the first two periods, the Gens was all over the Admirals goalie Lenny Ronald who is a brick wall holding up 31 shots within those two periods. In the third period, Herb Max-Louis scored 2 goals and an assist as the Barrie won game three 3-0. Both Admirals and the Gens played all the way to the end of the third period with a score of 3-3. In overtime, Gens Patrick Herbco scored the overtime winner as the Generals won game four 4-3 and were one win away from making a trip to the Smyth Cup finals for the third time in a row. After the game four overtime lost, the Admirals could not find a way to recover from it as the Generals took the game and win it 4-0 to finish the series in 4 games to 1.

Steel Division finals

1st Kitchener Legionnaires vs. 2nd Orangeville O’s

At Kitchener, the Legionnaires blew the O’s out of the water with an 8-2 victory thanks to John Herbco’s 4 goals and 4 assists performance to take game one. John Herbco made another 8 points game with 2 goals and 6 assists as the Legionnaires won game two, 8-3. At Orangeville, the O’s scored 5 goals, but the Legionnaires scored 2 more goals as they took 3 games to 0 series lead with a 7-5 win. The O’s season came to an end as they lost game four 5-2 to the Legionnaires. With the 4 games to 0 victory for the fourth year in a row, the Kitchener Legionnaires are going to the Smyth Cup Finals.

1979 Smyth Cup Finals (best 4 of 7 games)

Kitchener Legionnaires vs. Kitchener Generals

The Town of Kitchener is in a celebratory mood as the Kitchener Memorial Centre is jam-packed for the Smyth Cup Championship between the Legionnaires and the Generals for the third year in a row. The Legionnaires started good and never looked back as they took game one with a score of 5-2 John Herbco took the top star of the game with 1 goal and 4 assists. The Gens found their groove back as they took game two with the score of 4-2 thanks to the star of the game Patrick Herbco with 2 goals and 2 assists. In-game 3, the Generals started extremely hot in the first period as Patrick Herbco scored 3 goals along with Nick Hooker 1 goal to make it 4-0. In the second period, forward Keith Oats scored a goal to give the Legionnaires some life in this game to make it 4-1 as the clock hit zero to end the period. As the puck dropped to start the third, John Herbco scored 2 goals to make it 4-3; with 1:11 left in the third, Legionnaires pulled their goalie out for an extra attacker when Nick Hooker thought he dumped the puck down, but defence Jake McJack caught the puck, drop it to his stick and pass it to John Herbco and score to tie the game at 4, with that the buzzer sounds the end of the third period, this one is going overtime. Back and forth, the two teams went, but at 5:37 left in the overtime, John Herbco got the breakaway and scored the winner as the Legionnaires took the series two games to one with a 5-4 overtime win. Two days after the epic overtime win, the Legionnaires kept the momentum going as they won it 3-1 with Keith Oats 2 goals giving him the top star of the game. It’s now or never for the Generals to bounce back as Patrick Herbco scored 2 goals in game five, but his brother John Herbco made 4 assists as the Legionnaires win it 5-3 to not only win the series in 5 games but become the 1979 OMJHA Smyth Cup Champions and will head over to Ottawa for the Valor Cup tournament.