1982 CIHA Off-season

 Expansion Draft

Four teams joined the CIHA (2 in the OMJHA and 2 in the AQHL) as they put their team together, hoping to get great results two to three years later. In the OMJHA, the Brantford Skyflyers didn’t take any top players in their picks, only some 2nd liners that want a crack at the 1st line. The only best pick they got is goalie Dale Hulse, the backup for the Waterloo Maroons in his third season in the league. Dale hoping to get noticed by the scouts. Orillia Lakers picked up some good forwards, but they hit a good defenceman from the Kitchener Generals, Greg Ford, who could put the Lakers on target for a deep run for the playoffs. For Rouyn-Noranda Firebirds, they got their hands on forward Rich Johansson from Manchester. Val-d’Or Monarchs' top pick was Mark Tremblay from New Glasgow, who could help lead the team to a decent first season.

Brantford Skyflyers

1. Dale Hulse, G (Waterloo)

2. Alex Darby, F (Legionnaires) 

3. Edward Murry, D (Oakville)

4. Shawn Imlach, D (Buffalo)

5. Anton Riley, D (Tor Hornets)

Orillia Lakers

1. Peter Washburn, F (Tor Neon)

2. Nick Osgood, F (Oshawa)

3. Greg Ford, D (Generals)

4. Jamie Mills, F (Barrie)

5. Frank Cole, F (Oakville) 

Rouyn-Noranda Firebirds

1. Rich Johansson, F (Manchester)

2. Leo Klee, D (Drummondville)

3. Keith Lapointe, F (Cape Breton)

4. Chris Rochefort, G (Verdun)

5. Norman York, F (Sherbrooke)

Val-d’Or Monarchs

1. Trent Yake, D (Sherbrooke)

2. Mark Tremblay, F (New Glasgow)

3. John Riendeau, F (Shawinigan)

4. Steph Raymond, G (Portland)

5. Robert Flower, D (Manchester)

1982 AQHL Draft

For the first time in 15 years (before the establishment of the CIHA), a defenceman got picked 1st overall and that D-man is Aaron Mellanby from Montreal, QC, drafted by Trois-Rivieres last season Aaron made history by scoring 40 goals in a season; by a defenceman while playing for the Montreal AAA club. Drummondville scored a forward from Chatham, NB Shawn Merkosky; he improved scoring between last season and two seasons ago while playing for the Moncton Jr C club. One of the big head turners made in the draft, New Glasgow drafted Aleksey Filimonov, a forward who lived in Halifax, NS, for most of his life after his family left their home in Moscow. But their hockey blood lives within, and he played very well; that caught many scouts' eyes. He could be the next big star in the pros, and the Highlanders is the team built for him to be part of it. The dark horse of the draft is the Sherbrooke Loups, who drafted a goalie named Timothy Moreau from Rimouski, QC, after talks that after next season, Lenny Tardif could go pro into the pro draft when he was named number 3 of the top 10 goalie prospect for the pro league with Lenny gone that could hurt themselves in the goalie department more than 2 seasons down the road.

1. Trois-Rivieres Titans – Aaron Mellanby, D (Montreal, QC)

2. Drummondville Les Rouges – Shawn Merkosky, F (Chatham, NB)

3. New Glasgow Highlanders (from Manchester) – Aleksey Filimonov, F (Moscow, USSR)

4. Portland Clippers – Tom Hislop, G (Shawville, QC)

5. Laval Tigers – Matt Nasreddine, F (Shawinigan, QC)

6. Shawinigan Voltages – John Orlando, D (Terrebonne, QC)

7. Cape Breton Warriors – Franklin Olson, D (Moncton, NB)

8. Fredericton Vikings – Wayne Daoust, F (Rouyn-Noranda, QC)

9. Laval Tigers (from Verdun) – Alan Mallaby, D (Hull, QC)

10. Moncton Bears – Shawn Metcalfe, G (Moncton, NB)

11. Sherbrooke Loups – Timothy Moreau, G (Rimouski, QC)

12. Portland Clippers (from New Glasgow) – Frank Orr, F (Saint John, NB)

1982 OMJHA Draft

With the Metros gone, the first round is only 13 teams drafting players; many teams felt different without the Metros, but they had no choice but to move on. The Generals started by presenting their new GM, William Darby, who had grand experience as a GM for the Minnesota Pro Hockey Club for 10 years. The reason for his departure from them was that he wanted to be close to his hometown of Woodstock, Ontario, and the Kitchener Generals is where he can bring them back to the glory days of winning championships. The plan begins with drafting Matthew Bellows from Hamilton, a real solid defenceman who can help the Generals with their defence issues. The Toronto Hornets took forward Tim Bear, who made a name for himself as one of the top scorers in the Metro Toronto area hockey league and could be the one the Hornets need to move them up to playoff contenders next season. Buffalo strikes a trade deal with the Toronto Neon to receive the third overall pick, and they choose Todd Zemlak as part of the improvement to the defence core in the hope of a back-to-back title for the Bees.

1. K. General – Matthew Bellows, D (Hamilton, ON)

2. T. Hornets – Tim Bear, F (Penetanguishene, ON)

3. Buffalo (from T. Neon) – Todd Zemlak, D (St. Catharines, ON)

4. Oshawa – Jason Yoke, F (Sudbury, ON)

5. K. Legionnaires – Terrence Wright, G (Orangeville, ON)

6. Peterborough – Herb Wyrozub, D (Omemee, ON)

7. Owen Sound – John Wylie, F (Mount Forest, ON)

8. Barrie – Joe Wilson, F (Markham, ON)

9. Milton – Travis Warrener, G (Brampton, ON)

10. Orangeville – Alex Richmond, F (Woodstock, ON)

11. Oakville – Vince Olson, F (Oakville, ON)

12. Buffalo – Mark O’Reilly, F (Niagara Falls, NY)

13. Waterloo – Vernon Fetisov, D (Barrie, ON)

1982 WCLH Draft

The WCLH draft this year was almost all forwards, with 10 in the first round; also, there are two players from the Euros. Saskatoon takes Matthew Goodfellow from Winnipeg to give more scoring depth within the roster. Clint Abgrall won many faceoffs during his time with the Prince George Jr.B club; that ability is what Chilliwack needs to improve compared to last season. The Surry River Dogs picked Pat Lemelin after turning heads at the WCLH training camp in Vancouver with his stick handling that could help the team move up and get into the playoffs. The Dark Horse of this year's draft was Mike Lessard from Portland, Oregon, who was named top goalie in all Oregon states for the second year in a row; it was good enough for the Forest Kings to pick him and could lead them back to the top of the mountain.

1. Saskatoon - Matthew Goodfellow, F (Winnipeg, MB)

2. Chilliwack – Clint Abgrall, F (Prince George, BC)

3. Surrey – Pat Lemelin, F (Red Deer, AB)

4. Medicine Hat (from Fargo) – Henry Richardson, F (Edmonton, AB)

5. Nanaimo – Isaac Schmidt, F (Regina, SK)

6. Brandon – Clarence Langkow, D (Moose Jaw, SK)

7. Abbotsford – Mike Lessard, G (Portland, OR)

8. Moose Jaw – Kurt Lscroix, D (Seattle, WA)

9. Portage la Prairie – Mark Daneyko, F (St. Paul’s MN)

10. Swift Current – Jake Benoit, G (Calgary, AB)

11. Medicine Hat – Max Gustafsson, F (Umea, Sweden)

12. Kenora – James Matthews, F (Kindersley, SK)

13. Billings – David Lemay, F (Fargo, ND)

14. Lethbridge - Anders Krzysztof, F (Berlin, Germany)

News

The Canadian International Hockey Association Announced that the Medicine Hat Hawks will be the host for the 1983 CIHA Valor Cup tournament. Medicine Hat tops the votes to be the host over Lethbridge, Swift Current, Billings and Fargo. With such great news, Hawks owner Jack Grin could offer deals with the city about putting good money into a new arena soon to replace the old Medicine Hat Auditorium.

Many from other leagues were shocked over the Burlington Metros departure, which means there is a whole new voting to determine which OMJHA team to host the 1984 Valor Cup Tournament; the candidates are Oshawa, Orangeville, Oakville, Barrie, and Buffalo.

The CIHA is in talks of putting patches on teams to represent their own leagues; normally, patches are on the upper left chest; however, others wish to have them on the shoulders, which most teams don’t have secondary logos on them, for now, the tenth-anniversary Valor Cup patch will be on the Medicine Hat Hawks jersey and three other teams that make it to the tournament.

There were other talks that all three leagues could make their season from 50 to 60 games, but the increase won’t happen until the 1985-86 season if the votes are unanimous. As of the 1982-83 season, all players must have visors on their helmets to protect their eyes from injuries. Lastly, the league decided to go with a trial run with long pants from a company called “Lite-sonic” that was made only for roller hockey, but they sold it to six CIHA teams, the Manchester Americans,  Val-d’Or Monarchs, Peterborough Bolts, Toronto Neon, Kenora Pioneers and Moose Jaw Wings will wear them 1982-83 season.

Rumours about the Manchester Americans cleaning house became true as John Rome let go of everyone in the office and started building it from scratch by hiring Nick Yankton as the team’s GM, who had good GM experience in the lower tier junior A team in Concord, New Hampshire. Nick wasted no time as he had a good knowledge of the Manchester hockey program and hired Randy Reinhart, who was a big star in both Manchester Minor Pro and Boston Pro club’s heyday in the ’60s; Randy started coaching many teams and stacking up wins along the way with his coaching skills and bringing his assistant coach Trever Wales and goalie coach Mitch Zachary into the mix the Americans will have a good run down the road.

With both Val-d’Or Monarchs and Rouyn-Noranda Firebirds ready for their first season to start in the 1982-83 season, a new team is ready to set up shop, and that is the town of Charlottetown P.E.I. They will be ready for the 1983-84 season as they announced they are called the “Charlottetown Greens,” named after the Island’s story, Anne of Green Gables. The team’s colours are green, blue, and red; they will show off the logo and the jerseys next year off-season.

The Rouyn-Noranda Firebirds showed off their logo and the jerseys at the re-opening of the upgraded Centre Firebird as it once had a seating cap of 1000, now 3000, as team owner Vincent Maurice presented to the crowd team’s GM Willie Bouhard, Head Coach Frank Allen and some players that got picked up from the expansion draft. The logo is the bird's head with wings and a fire sitting on top of the bird’s head in red, light red, yellow and black. The jerseys have thick stripes on the arms and hem with thin black trims in red, gold, and black.

Bill Lamoureux, the owner of the Val-d’Or Monarchs, is ready for their inaugural season by showing off their gear. The Monarch's logo is the giant “V” with an “M” on top of it in navy as the team’s colour. The jerseys have simple trims, nothing too over the top.

With the Metros no longer part of the league, it is now a 15-team league, including Brantford Skyflyers and Orillia Lakers. As for the division, the Skyflyers are part of the Hero division, while the Lakers are in the Steel division.

From ending one drama to the next one, it’s the Kitchener Legionnaires, as they haven’t received any total payout from the league’s bank, just part of it. Once again, questions were all over Tom Van Ryan as he has been dodging reporters and owners about these problems which if he doesn’t find a way to fix it, chances are the Legionnaires will fold after the 1982-83 season.

The Micmacs could leave Milton soon as Harold MacFarland is planning on retiring, but his plans on handing over the team to his son Mitch MacFarland turned upside down as Mitch offered a GM deal from the Calgary Pro Hockey Club after spending 8 seasons with the club as assistant GM if he signs this deal than Harold will put the team up for sale to any local business will have 1 or 2 years to buy and keep the team in Milton if not he will sale to anyone that will buy and move the team to their own location.

The only good news for President Tom Van Ryan was he contacted two businessmen named Isaac and Abram, the Wall brothers, putting a team in Niagara Falls; they are working on getting land to build an arena for a team to play in.

The Brandford Skyflyers showed off their set. Angle stripes on the arms while the hem are normal, all in green and white.

The Orilla Lakers have four shades of blue to represent water. All four blues are on the home jersey. On the road jersey, however only show three, the only forth blue you can see on the road is the trim around the numbers.
 

After letting go of Edward Gore, the Saskatoon Cats looked for a new head coach. They got themselves a former Saskatoon Cats top player, Shawn Billiton, who was part of the Cats dynasty that won three titles in a row from 1966, 1967 and 1968 (years before the Est of the CIHA); after the juniors, he had success in the pros winning 3 pro hockey championships with the Montreal Pro hockey club in the 70s, then he went on doing coaching jobs around the Quebec City area in hopes of getting a job with an AQHL team, but it didn’t happen until a job open from the Cats came in, and he took it. “I am happy to return to a team where I got my career started in the biggest way possible; once I get my staff put together, the build for a dynasty begins.”

With being named the host of the 1983 Valor Cup Tournament, the Medicine Hat Hawks are putting together their roster better than before. “All I can say is the pressure is on for us to enter the tournament with momentum on our side; if our season doesn’t go well, we will be in trouble.” Hawks GM Leon Franklin said in an interview with a local radio station.

1982 CIHA Valor Cup Tournament

Round Robin

Fans came together from all over Canada and even the U.S.A. for this year's tournament in Sherbrooke, Quebec. The Lethbridge Cougars top the tournament with a perfect six wins for a 1st place finish. Coming in 2nd place is the tournament host Sherbrooke Loups, as they are 2-3-1 with a total of 5 points, mainly with a 4-2 win over the Highlanders. The Buffalo Bees lost four games to the Cougars and the Loups, but they got two critical wins over New Glasgow to finish 3rd place and move on to the semi-finals. Ending the tournament last is the New Glasgow Highlanders; even though they got one win, it isn’t enough as the tournament rules go that you need two wins to advance.

Semi-Finals

The Cougars got a bye to the finals, meaning they will see who will face them. The Loups have beaten the Bees twice in the round-robin, but in the semi-finals, the Bees got payback as Floyd Currie made 2 goals and 4 points to lead the Bees to a 6-3 win and have a date with the Cougars for the Valor Cup.

Valor Cup Finals

Lethbridge Cougars vs. Buffalo Bees

First Period: The Bees gave the Cougars a sting as they scored first by William VanDean and Greg Dahlstrom, who scored a goal five minutes before the period ended. The Bees took the lead with a score of 2-0.

Second Period: Within six minutes, the Cougars bounced back as Jack Burk and Karl Fuhr each scored a goal to tie the game up; it would take almost four minutes left into the period for a goal to be made, and that’s what Jack Burk did with his second goal of the game to break the tie, and as the period ended the Cougars know that come the third period it’ll be a war.

Third Period: With the Cougars leading 3-2, the Bees were shooting all over Greg Finley as he was a brick wall for the Cougars; over the other end, Sam Dempsey was holding his end very well for a rookie goalie, 1:10 left into the final period the Bees choose to pull Sam for an extra attacker, halfway to the bench Sam got hit on the helmet from a puck and a referee called too many men on the ice penalty which gave the Cougars a powerplay, and took advantage as Jack Burk scored his third goal and the Cougars celebrates as the clock hit zero with the score of 4-2 and for the second time in team history the Lethbridge Cougars are the CIHA Valor Cup Champions with Karl Fuhr hoisted the cup. At the same time, Jack Burk hugs the Valor Cup MVP trophy.

1982 WCLH Playoffs

 

Round 1

1st west Lethbridge Cougars vs. 4th east Moose Jaw Wings

In game one, the Wings had the Cougars on the ropes with a 4-0 lead going into the third, but Jack Burk made 2 goals and 4 points to tie the game 4-4. 12:17 into overtime, Wes Roy scored the O/T winner in front of a sold-out crowd in Lethbridge as the Cougars win game one 5-4. After game one, it all went downhill for the Wings as they barely scored at least 3 goals within the last three games. As the Lethbridge Cougars swept the Wings and moved on to 2nd round. The Cougars win the series 4-0.

1st east Kenora Pioneers vs. 4th west Abbotsford Forest Kings

The Kenora Pioneers got their revenge on the Abbotsford Forest Kings from last season 2nd round playoffs, it may take them six games to do it but to the Pioneers' head coach Chuck Patton it was well worth it as the two losses they took were overtime. The Pioneers win the series 4-2.

2nd west Billings Trains vs. 3rd east Portage la Prairie Magic

Both teams will do anything to win their first playoff series, but it was all Trains in the first three games. With the series 3-0 in their hands, the Billings Trains believes they are going to win game four, but the Magic have other ideas as they forced overtime and won game four; in games five and six, the Magic are on a roll with wins to force game number seven. Both went back and forth all the way to the 3rd overtime with 2:23 minutes left with a 5-5 tie game when Frank Colton scored the winner as the Trains punched their ticket to the 2nd round. The Trains win the series 4-3.

2nd east Swift Current Battalion vs. 3rd west Medicine Hat Hawks

This series was a back-and-forth in a weird way as each win was shutout; in game seven, the Battalion got the last shutout over the Hawks with a 2-0 win to win the series and move on to the 2nd round for the second year in a row. The Battalion wins the series 4-3.

2nd round

1st west Lethbridge Cougars vs. 2nd east Swift Current Battalion

A rematch from last year’s playoffs became the same this year, only this time the Battalion won both games one and two, but after that, it was all Cougars as they blew them away four straights to win the series and move on to the Jade Trophy finals. The Cougars win the series 4-2.

1st east Kenora Pioneers vs. 2nd west Billings Trains

Game one was a not-so-pretty one for the Pioneers as referees made many bad calls throughout the game as the Trains took it 5-2; 4 out of 5 goals the Trains made were powerplays. The Pioneers turned it around as they dominated the Trains in four straights to win the series and head off to the Jade Trophy finals again. The Pioneers win the series 4-1.

Jade Trophy Finals

1st west Lethbridge Cougars vs. 1st east Kenora Pioneers

The Kenora Pioneers, in their third Jade Trophy final in four years, are hoping for a second title in team history, while the Cougars, making their second straight finals, are gunning for a back-to-back. In game one, the Pioneers had the Cougars right where they wanted with a 4-2 score until late in the third, Jack Burk scored two goals for the Cougars to tie it up 4 a piece, and five minutes into overtime, Cougars Karl Fuhr scored the O/T winner to take game one 5-4. It was the same in game two, The Pioneers had the lead, the Cougars tied it up, forced overtime, and the Cougars won it in overtime, but the difference is it took 12 minutes into the O/T and scored by Wes Roy. The Cougars stomped the living daylights out of the Pioneers with a 9-1 game-three win; Karl Fuhr and Jack Burk scored a hat-trick in that game. In game number four, the Cougars scored five goals in the first period and held on to that lead until the Pioneers rookie Jason Classen scored a hat-trick. Still, it wasn’t enough as the clock hit zero, and the Lethbridge Cougars won game four 5-3, the series and the 1982 Jade Trophy championship for the second year in a row. At the press conference, Cougars' head coach Edward Smith said, “Tonight we celebrate, tomorrow we rest up, and the next day we are heading to Sherbrooke for the 1982 Valor Cup tournament. The Cougars win the series 4-0.

1981-82 WCLH season

Both the Chilliwack Alpines and Surrey River Dogs debut facing each other on Oct 2 and Oct 3, 1981, as part of the home and home games between both teams. The crowds in both towns have jam-packed the arenas so well that there are talks that some businessman around the B.C. area wants to have a team in their own town. In an interview with James Name, there are talks but have no plans for expansion until the 1983 off-season.

The Lethbridge Cougars top both the west division and the whole league for the second season in a row with a crop of youth that are hungry for wins and show great results, lead by Jack Burk, who really stepped up as the captain of the team just like Cliff Burns in the late 70s. “This the year we will win both the Jade Trophy and the Valor Cup; we got this lock on.” Cougars head coach Edward Smith said at the press conference. Fans in Billings are seeing great results as they put together the right players to make the winning team and finished 2nd place, hoping for a deep run in the playoffs. After two years of missing the playoffs, the Hawks are back in it thanks to their new number 1 goalie Sam Abbot who made 26 wins out of 35 games this season; 6 of them were shutouts was good enough for Medicine Hat Hawks to finish 3rd place. Finished 4th place was the Abbotsford Forest Kings despite losing some of their top stars who led the team in winning the Valor Cup two seasons ago, but they still got some good players in their roster that helped them earn 57 points and head into the playoffs. The Nanaimo Sharks finished 5th place, with lots of players leaving the Nanaimo Sharks ranging from pros to Euros leagues and with more players set to leave after this season, the Sharks would start the rebuild from the ground up. Rounding off 6th and 7th place are the new teams, the Surrey River Dogs and the Chilliwack Alpines.

The Kenora Pioneers top the east division for the third season in a row, and there is no slowing down for this team as they will try to get back into the Jade trophy title picture after getting eliminated from the playoffs last season. For the second time in a row, the Battalion finished 2nd with 3 wins more this season than last season; their scoring improved more than last season, and hope this season will be the one that will lead them to the Jade trophy finals. Taking 3rd place for the second season in a row is the Portage la Prairie Magic, as their goal come playoff time is getting their first playoff win after getting swept last year; they are hoping for a better run this time around, from finishing 4th place in the west division last season to finishing 4th place in the east division as the Moose Jaw Wings won 15 of their last 20 games of this season. The Buffalos had a rough season after many players left the team during the off-season, losing 15 of their first 25 games, showing no chance of heading back to the playoffs. Taking 6th was the Fargo Owls, and the Saskatoon Cats took 7th place in the division and rock bottom overall again.

The playoffs are set; the 1st place west division and defending Jade Trophy champions Lethbridge Cougars take on the 4th place east division Moose Jaw Wings. 1st place east division Kenora Pioneers battles 4th place west division Abbotsford Forest Kings in a rematch from last season’s semi-finals. 2nd place west division Billings Trains faces 3rd place east division Portage la Prairie Magic in a battle of the 1978 established club. Finally, the 2nd place east division Swift Current Battalion battles 3rd place west division Medicine Hat Hawks.

1981-82 OMJHA Playoffs

1st Round

Steel Division

1st Waterloo vs. 4th Owen Sound

The Waterloo Maroons wasted no time by taking the Arrowbirds out in four games. The Arrowbirds had a hard time scoring more than one goal during the whole series. The Maroons win the series 4-0.

2nd Buffalo vs. 3rd Orangeville

The Buffalo Bees make the most of their first playoff appearance by winning their first series win, but it took them seven games to beat the O’s, but it’s well worth it to the fans' minds. The Bees win the series 4-3.

Hero Division

1st Oakville vs. 4th Burlington

This series was back and forth until game six, where the Oaks won 6-3 to win the series but was overshadowed by controversy when the Metro owner John Lewis handed over his paperwork to league president Tom Van Ryan about moving to London, Ontario, Tom told him that there was no vote on the location at all and said to John that the Metros will be back next season, but John told him that he and other owners made a private vote and they voted him out, with that as of now the Metros are no longer part of the OMJHA anymore starting in the 1982-83 season the league will be one less team as the Burlington Metros joins the South West Ontario Hockey League as the London Metros. The Oaks win the series 4-2.

2nd Milton vs. 3rd Barrie

Even though many believe that the Admirals got this series in the bag, the Micmacs had other ideas as Jeper Nelson played better in the playoffs than in the season with 8 goals and 21 points as the Milton Micmacs won their first playoff series win since 1972 (a season before the CIHA established.) The Micmacs win the series 4-3.

2nd Round

Steel Division

1st Waterloo vs. 2nd Buffalo

Both the Maroons and the Bees went back and forth all the way to game seven, as Larry Arsenal scored four goals in the first two periods to give the Marrons a 5-2 lead. In the third period, Floyd Currie, Greg Dahlstrom, and William VanDean each scored a goal to tie the game. William VanDean had the open net to score, but the clock went to zero before the puck slid into the net. In the first overtime, both teams made shots at the nets, but both goalies kept their game up; the goalies did it again in the second overtime, keeping the pucks from going in the net. With 5:25 left in the third overtime, Floyd Currie took a risk that no defencemen would ever do, and that goes for a breakaway he did as he skated all the way to the Maroons goalie Pat Hudson and Floyd Currie scored the overtime winner; with that goal, the Buffalo Bees becomes the first American team to advance to the Smyth Cup Championship in the OMJHA history. The Bees win the series 4-3.

Hero Division

1st Oakville vs. 2nd Milton

The Micmacs had a good momentum going into the series by winning games one and two, but as game three came, it was all the Oaks as they kept on going until they finished the Macs off in game six; with that win, the Oakville Oaks are going to the Smyth Cup Championship. The Oaks win the series 4-2.

Smyth Cup Finals

Oakville vs. Buffalo

Game number one was rough as the Oaks barely got a win over the Bees, thanks to Keith Dunn scoring the overtime winner with the score of 4-3. In game two, the Bees turn their game up a notch as Sam Dempsey stops 43 out of 45 shots to give the Bees a 4-2 win over the Oaks. Sam Dempsey did it again, this time a shutout after taking 49 shots in a 3-0 game three win over the Oaks to take the series lead. The Bees played their game right once again as William VanDean scored a hat-trick in a 4-2 game four victory. In game five, the Oakville Oaks finally bounced back from losing three straight games, with both Keith Dunn and Jake Dahl scoring 2 goals each plus one more goal in an empty netter way as the Oaks forced a game six with a 5-3 win. Fans at the Regal Forum in Buffalo, New York, are going crazy for game six as they believe they are one win away from winning the Smyth Cup title. The Bees made sure that they would win it for their fans as Floyd Currie and Greg Dahlstrom held their grounds to keep the Oaks from attempting to shoot the puck at Sam Dempsey, while William VanDean scored 2 goals in the third period, as the clock hit zero game six ends with a 4-1 win. The fans celebrate as the Bees players made a dog pile on top of each other as the Buffalo Bees are the 1982 OMJHA Smyth Cup Champions and punched their ticket for a trip to Sherbrooke, Quebec, for the Valor Cup Tournament. The Bees win the series 4-2.

1981-82 OMJHA Season

 

The Waterloo Maroons dominated the league once again. For the first time since John Herbco in the 1978-79 season, a player finished a season with over 100 points as Larry Arsenal scored 50 goals and 65 assists for a total of 115 points, talks are that Larry could be eligible for the pro hockey draft after this season many staff in the Maroons club wants him to stay for one more year, but reports said that Larry will decide on his future once the playoffs are over. The big story this season was the Buffalo Bees; the first three-pick plan works, and the results show it as the Bees took 2nd place in the Steel Division and went to the playoffs for the first time since the 1977-78 season when they were the Guelph Crusaders, Bees GM Ryan Byron Jr. gave the Toronto Hornets their 3rd, 4th, and 5th round picks for a 1st round pick, reports believe that the Bees could be the team to have a dynasty pretty soon the way Junior is putting the team together the right, but some said that Ryan Byron Sr. felt different about the moves. Taking third place in the Steel Division is the Orangeville O’s after winning 7 of the last ten games to take that spot. Missing the playoffs last season woke the Arrowbirds up, and they bounced back and took the 4th place and the final playoff spot. Finishing 5th was not what Peterborough had in mind as they announced that they replaced their name. The Braves will be called the Bolts for the 1982-83 season, in 6th place Kitchener Legionnaires, as winning games isn’t the only thing they got problems with; for some odd reason, they are having financial problems as well and just like the Burlington Metros they want answers on why they haven’t received any money from the bank what so ever as Tom Van Ryan is dodging everyone with these issues. Finally, the Toronto Neon takes last place.

Over at the Hero Division, many teams switch places this season; taking 1st place is the Oakville Oaks taking a big jump from 4th place last season. Keith Dunn leads the team well, and rookie d-man Jake Johannsson plays like he is in the pros; head coach Leon Cowern believes that the Oaks will have a deep run come playoff time. The Milton Micmacs jumped a big leap and went to the playoffs for the first time since the 1974-75 season, led by Kurt Jenkins, who made 25 goals and 89 points and would go on and win this season's Rookie of the Year award. As many top players move on to the pro level to even collages, the Barrie Admirals decline themselves down to 3rd place; both Phillip Smith and Ty Joly got their work cut out this season as talks that one of them could be traded this off-season as the Admirals shopping to improve the defences in hopes to stay afloat before thinking of rebuilding the team. With the drama between John Lewis and Tom Van Ryan to the breaking point, the Metros kept it together as they won enough games to take 4th place and headed to the playoffs. From finishing 1st place even with the Admirals last season to finishing 5th this season as the Gems did not do well as rumours are making rounds that they could start the rebuild stage come off-season, the Toronto Hornets made some good moves but not strong enough to move up the ladder, taking last place overall the Kitchener Generals on ice was poor this season but overshadowed by team owner Todd Holmes as he fired three GMs in one season. He made contact with a former GM of a pro hockey club with no word on who it is, but he will get answers in the off-season.

1981-82 AQHL Playoffs

 

1st Round

1st New Glasgow Highlanders vs. 8th Laval Tigers

The Laval Tigers hit a brick wall badly as the Highlanders took the series in their hands by sweeping them in four games; only in game three did the Tigers score one goal, while the rest all shutouts. New Glasgow wins the series 4-0.

2nd Sherbrooke Loups vs. 7th Shawinigan Voltages

The Loups thought that they got this series in the bag, but the Volts had other ideas in games one and two in Sherbrooke; the Volts won both of them, to the Loups took it as a wake-up call that the Loups turned it around and won four straight to win the series, “I hope that we don’t take any team that we play against lightly and keep our “A” game going.” Josh Winter said after game six. Sherbrooke wins the series 4-2.

3rd Moncton Bears vs. 6th Cape Breton Warriors

Last season it took the Bears six games to beat the Warriors; this time, it took only four games to beat the Warriors as they didn’t stop scoring goals and holding the offence up. The Bears would be ready for the second round hungrier than ever. Moncton wins the series 4-0.

4th Verdun Knights vs. 5th Fredericton Vikings

In game one, the Knights had a 3-0 lead going into the third period Tom Acomb suffered a sprained knee after his skate blade broke on him; five minutes later, Rob Grand-Pierre took a check very hard and headed to the locker room and didn’t came back, and Andre Perreault try to check a player miss it and crash to the boards and was out cold and got carried out. With those injuries, the Vikings took advantage and scored four unanswered goals to win game one. Since then, the Vikings would go on and take the last three games to shock everyone as they swept the Knights in four games. Fredericton wins the series 4-0.

2nd Round

1st New Glasgow Highlanders vs. 5th Fredericton Vikings

Both teams know that they are one step closer to the Bronz Cup finals, and they’ll do whatever it takes to get there. The first two games were all Highlanders; in games three and four, the Vikings got their wins, but in game five, the Highlanders won 6-5 in overtime; it took a lot out of the Vikings; in game six, the Highlanders finished the series with a 4-1 win, and for the second time in three seasons, the New Glasgow Highlanders is going to the Bronz Cup finals. New Glasgow wins the series 4-2.

2nd Sherbrooke Loups vs. 3rd Moncton Bears

This series is what everyone wants to see, a rematch from last season's Bronz Cup finals. Moncton got their payback after losing game one in overtime from Sherbrooke; after that, it was all the Bears as they won four straights to take the series, and for the second season in a row, the Moncton Bears head to the Bronz Cup finals. Moncton wins the series 4-1.

Bronz Cup Finals

1st New Glasgow Highlanders vs. 3rd Moncton Bears

With the Sherbrooke Loups out of the picture, the only way that both Highlanders and the Bears can get to this season's Valor Cup tournament is to win the Bronz Cup. In game one, Highlanders Kyle Patrick scored 2 goals, 5 points to give New Glasgow a 6-3 win over the Bears. Game two The Bears fought back to win 4-3 overtime. The Bears Andrew Jones scored a hat-trick to take game three 5-2 over the Highlanders. In game four, the Highlanders turned it around with the help of Roman Klatt held his ground by letting in just one goal as New Glasgow took it 4-1. Roman Klatt held his ground again but didn’t let in any goals as the Highlanders shut out the Bears 3-0 in game five. Game six was a back and forth making shots; in the third period, Brad Edmundson scored to break a deadlock even score, and the Highlanders held on to the lead until the clock hit zero, and the game was over with the score of 3-2. The New Glasgow Highlanders are the 1982 AQHL Bronz Cup Champions; the players and coaches celebrate while in the press box, GM Ray Carter had to soak it all in after years of building this team from the ground up and finally win the Bronz Cup title and now they are going to Sherbrooke Quebec for the Valor Cup Tournament. New Glasgow wins the series 4-2. 

1981-82 AQHL season

 

The New Glasgow was the talk of the league this season, from scoring goals made by both Jaune Poulette and Kyle Patrick, holding up the blue line by Brad Edmundson in his second year, to even goalie Roman Klatt who took over the net in the second half of the season with a 17-5-3 and becoming the first rookie goalie to reach 10 shutouts in AQHL history. With the formula in place, the Highlanders finished 1st overall with the team’s best 81 points. Team’s GM Ray Carter had a moment for himself and looked back 5 years ago when his team was at its lowest point and turned it around and hopes that this season's success can lead them to a championship.

The defending Bronz Cup champions Sherbrooke Loups had a short hangover early into the season but got themselves back on track only to finish 2nd overall. With the Valor Cup tournament being on their home turf, the Loups hope to have the same success as the Waterloo Maroons did the previous season.

Being behind the Highlanders for the second season in a row, the Bears, however, won a season series with the Verdun Knights to take 3rd place. What is better for them is that Alec Dahlin was sent back from the Pittsburgh Pro Hockey Club after they went on bad losing streaks that placed them out of the playoff picture. Alec hopes that he will make one more run in this season's AQHL playoffs and bring the Bronz Cup back to Moncton.

The Verdun Knights had a good run in the first half, but the team struggled, losing ten of the last fifteen games; luckily, they finished 4th place, with some top players on the roster getting called up from Minor to Pro teams for playoffs, the Knights could have a hard time in this season playoffs.

With good draft picks and trades, the Fredericton Vikings expected to win enough games to make it to the playoffs, but everyone did not expect them to finish 5th place at all, and the Vikings showed everyone how they are a real contender by beating the Verdun Knights three of four season series matchups. Many believe that they are the dark horse come this season's playoffs.

Finishing in 6th place is the Cape Breton Warriors; after losing some top players in his second season, Neil Eaton was named captain of the team. It was very hard for him to lead them to the top despite being the league's top scorer, but it only ended with a record of 23-20-7. Lucky for them, they won 10 of the last 15 games in order to make it to the playoffs. If not, they would be out of the playoff picture.

For the second year in a row for the Shawinigan Voltages, this time they move up from 8th to 7th with some key wins to stay as much as they can, and Trevor Corbet really did what he could after starting 40 games only to win just 20 games while having five different back goalies that ended up being sent to lower-level leagues to injuries, the Volts hope to be healthy by the time for the playoffs.

The Laval Tigers may get 22 wins, but it’s enough for them to finish 8th place and head to the playoffs after missing it for two years, they had the highest 7-game winning streak this season, and it helped them to keep pace and hope to try the unthinkable and hope to go deep.

For the second time in four years, the Portland Clippers missed the playoffs finishing 9th (18-27-5). It was painful as they had some youths just getting some good experience, but they hope next year will be their time to shine. This season for the Manchester Americans was a disaster. They had a terrible start by losing the first 20 games after that. It was downhill, they barely finished 10th, but John Rome was not a happy camper; where the Americans made bad trades, even losing some good draft picks, including the 1st round pick to New Glasgow for a forward who never even played one game as he got called up to the pros, many believe that the office is going to be clean out very soon. After squeezing in the playoffs last season, there were no improvements for the Drummondville Les Rouges as they went on finished 11th. Rounding off in last place, the Trois-Rivieres Titans as they tried to turn it around and to even avoid hitting rock bottom, but it didn’t work.

1981 CIHA Off-season

WCLH Expansion draft

The expansion draft came and went for both the Chilliwack Alpines and the Surrey River Dogs as they started to build a team that could be, one day down the road, becoming champions.

The River Dogs were focused on defence more than offence. Most of the top 5 are going into their 2nd season in the WCLH; Head Coach Alexander Adams said, “Our goal is to give them a chance to score goals as they already show that they can defend and with the rest of the staff and I will make them into scorers.”

Meanwhile, the Alpines got most of their picks forwards as they would draft defencemen and goalies at the 1981 WCLH draft. “We need good offence so we can work on developing and nurture some defencemen and goalies; that’s why in our expansion draft, we selected mostly veteran forwards; it’s a risk, but I believe in the coaching staff, we can pull it off,” Alpines GM Bert Broda said after the expansion draft.

Chilliwack Alpines

1. Eric Greiner, F (Saskatoon)

2. Rick Cofilin, F (Abbotsford)

3. Gordie Miami, F (Billings)

4. Dan Zachary, F (Moose Jaw)

5. Bruce Cornwall, D (Portage la Prairie)

Surrey River Dogs

1. Sam Abel, G (Swift Current)

2. Steve Patrick, D (Fargo)

3. Jeff Blue, D (Nanaimo)

4. Mitchell Matthiessen, D (Kenora)

5. Bill Gervais, F (Lethbridge)

1981 CIHA Off-Season

WCLH Draft

From the expansion draft to the league draft, teams try to fill the holes they lost to two new teams. Saskatoon Cats got themselves a forward that can score goals in Fred Adams, who have been under the pro hockey league scouts’ radar since he was 12 years old. The Medicine Hat Hawks took Ross Featherstone from Vancouver, that got the potential to be a top forward in the WCLH. From Seattle, WA, defence Mike Dalman has become the first Seattle native to be drafted in the top 3 and could hopefully help the Nanaimo Sharks avoid hitting last place. The draft spotlight was defence Glen Sasakamoose, a nephew of the Saskatchewan pro hockey club's current GM Herb Sasakamoose was selected by the Billings Trains to improve the results better than last season.

1. Saskatoon Cats – Fred Adams, F (Powell River, B.C.)

2. Medicine Hat Hawks – Ross Featherstone, F (Vancouver B.C.)

3. Nanaimo Sharks – Mike Dalman, D (Seattle, WA) 

4. Fargo Owls – Jack Plaxton, F (Minneapolis, MN)

5. Moose Jaw Wings – Colin Fernando, G (Moose Jaw, SK)

6. Brandon Buffalos – David Hartford, F (International Falls, MN)

7. Portage la Prairie Magic – Marc Sasser, D (Calgary, AB)

8. Billings Trains – Glen Sasakamoose, D (Prince Albert, SK)

9. Swift Current Battalion – Eric Wilcox, F (Everett, WA)

10. Kenora Pioneers – Jason Classen, F (Victoria B.C.)

11. Abbotsford Forest Kings – Aaron Boyer, D (Salem, OR)

12. Fargo Owls (from Lethbridge Cougars) – Frank Cupolo, F (Grand Forks, ND)

OMJHA Draft

This year's draft had “risk” written all over from the Bee's first three picks, a player from Alberta and picking a player from their rival territory in the southwest. The Bees took forward William VanDean, goalie Sam Dempsey, and defence Greg Dahlstrom; these three could turn Buffalo from rock bottom to the top of the mountain. The Neon made a bold draft move by picking Frank Grant from Erie, PA, a forward that had been targeted by many teams from the SWOHL, but the Neon took the chance and believed that it could lead them to championships.

1. Buffalo Bees (from Owen Sound Arrowbirds) – William VanDean, F (Niagara Falls, ONT)

2. Buffalo Bees – Sam Dempsey, G (Hamilton, ONT)

3. Buffalo Bees (from Kitchener Generals) – Greg Dahlstrom, D (Syracuse, NY)

4. Toronto Hornets – Leon Jay Jr. F (Markham, ONT)

5. Milton Micmacs – Kurt Jenkins, F (Vaughan, ONT)

6. Kitchener Legionnaires (from Toronto Neon) – Alex Aurora, D (Cambridge, ONT)

7. Toronto Neon (from Kitchener Legionnaires) – Frank Grant, F (Erie, PA)

8. Peterborough Braves – Rick Collin, G (Sudbury, ONT)

9. Oakville Oaks – Jake Johannsson, D (Edmonton, AB)

10. Burlington Metros – Leo Mair, G (North Bay, ONT)

11. Orangeville O’s – Dan Nowak, G (Ottawa, ONT)

12. Oshawa Gems – Keith Patrick, D (Beaverton, ONT)

13. Barrie Admirals – Lester Starr, D (Newmarket, ONT)

14. Waterloo Maroons – Tom Zehr, D (Parry Sound, ONT)

AQHL Draft

With the expansion draft coming next year, many teams are trying to get ready as some players on their roster could be taken by one of two new teams. The Titans took Glenn Pageau from Quebec City, who is the so-called best scorer in Quebec; it is a great pick to turn the Titans around after a terrible last-place finish. Fredericton used their pick to improve the defence core, and Ed Thibault from Bangor, ME, is just what they needed. During the 1980-81 season, scouts for the Laval Tigers told everyone at the front office that Christian Felix was the one that could help them in turning the team around. The spotlight in this year's draft was Roman and Simon; the Klatt brothers got drafted in the first round Roman will be in the net for the New Glasgow Highlanders, while Simon looks after the blue lines for the Verdun Knights.

1. Trois-Rivieres Titans – Glenn Pageau, F (Quebec City, QC)

2. Fredericton Vikings – Ed Thibault, D (Bangor, ME)

3. Laval Tigers – Christian Felix, F (Terrebonne, QC)

4. Manchester Americans – Ted Dill, G (Plattsburgh, VT)

5. Drummondville Les Rouges – Garry Cambridge, D (Saint John, NB)

6. Verdun Knights (from Shawinigan Voltages) – Frank Young, G (Verdun, QC)

7. Portland Clippers – Paul Gamble, F (Moncton, NB)

8. Cape Breton Warriors – Mike Gamble, F (St. John, NL)

9. Moncton Bears – Eric Gall, D (Halifax NS)

10. Manchester Americans (from Sherbrooke Loups) – Kevin Gassoff, F (Quebec City, QC)

11. New Glasgow Highlanders – Roman Klatt, G (Cornwall, ONT)

12. Verdun Knights – Simon Klatt, D (Cornwall, ONT)

News

CIHA

Many had been waiting for news of who is hosting the 1982 Valor Cup tournament; after numbers of votes by owners, GMs, and even coaches that were, the tournament is officially headed to Sherbrooke, Quebec, just beating Cape Breton by just one vote. “It’s an honour to have this tournament here and play in a brand-new rink!” Allen Poulette Jr said at the press conference after his team was named the 1982 Valor Cup tournament host.

Reporters ask about when the next Valor Star tournament is; CIHA president Randy Howard said that they have no plans for now, but he said that come the 1984 off-season, they’ll consider putting the tournament back up for 1985, the location is either in Toronto or in Montreal there are some talks that some teams are placing bids to host the tournament.

AQHL

With the additions of 2 new teams for the 1982-83 season, both teams presented their new names. They are called the Val-d’Or Monarchs and Rouyn-Noranda Firebirds. Both teams will be in the Quebec division, making the total number of teams in that division 8 while the Atlantic division stays at six; the word is over at P.E.I. the contract between Charlottetown Arena and the Minor pro hockey club ends after the 1981-82 season became official after negotiations fell through, once their season ends the city will put good money in giving the arena some upgrades mainly the press boxes as one was torn down last year after it fell apart and landed all over some empty seats during the off-season. There is also a local businessman who has a high interest in owning a team; history tells that he’s been trying to buy an AQHL team but failed to do so, but he hopes that he gets a team in P.E.I this time.

The town of Moncton got some great news from the Bears. The team is getting a new arena after the Reese brothers purchased land that once was an old town hall that got burned down many years ago, and it has been empty since then. That will change as the Reese Brothers show off the blueprint of what the new arena would look like, and the number of seats is where everyone thought it was unthinkable. This new arena will have 5000 seats. The new arena will be built and ready for the 1984-85 season.

OMJHA

The Peterborough Braves lost one of the club members, Michael Hawk, the club president, as he passed away peacefully. He had a great 15 years of his pro hockey playing career, including becoming the first Indigenous hockey player to win a pro hockey league MVP title, making a pro hockey league record of 50 goal season 5 years in a row and getting inducted into the pro hockey hall of fame. In 1977 he was named the team’s president, and the reason for naming the team the Braves after an all-indigenous army group that served in World War II. With his passing, the owner of the club, Nathen Runnels, announced that the 1981-82 season would be the last for the team to be called the “Braves” as they would open a “name a team” contest; the reason is he felt that he can’t move forward with the current name no matter what.

During the Valor Cup tournament, the Oshawa Gems revealed the new logos and new colours for the 1981-82 season; the feedback about the new look was so bad that the owners decided to go ahead with the new name but scrap the new look and just keep the current look from the beginning the same for now.

The 1981 Valor Cup Tournament was so successful that Guy Perry is in talks with the city of Waterloo about putting in good money to build a new arena in hopes of hosting any future Valor Cup tournaments to increase the city's economies in a big way.

WCLH

With two new teams added for the 1981-82 seasons, both the Chilliwack Alpines and the Surrey River Dogs are put in the west division, with that the Moose Jaw Wings are now in the east division, so no one can question anything about why the Wings was in the west division what’s so ever.

The league is now at 14 teams; many ask, “Will more teams be added?” WCLH President James Name said, “As of right now, we are laying low on it, but some businessmen are talking to some of their hometowns about putting good money on upgrades to even building new arenas.” One of them is Thomas Hendricks, a former promoter for a wrestling company called “Edmonton Championship Wrestling” (ECW), who made many top stars that many other wrestling promotions want to get their hands on; recently, his promotion has been losing money after many of his top stars have been taken by big-time wrestling promotions one of the most significant loss was his number 1 star Scott Chambers signed with Frontier Wrestling Federation, with that signing Thomas decides to close his promotion and invested his money in to bring a WCLH team in his hometown Red Deer, Alberta.

Jersey Changes

Lethbridge Cougars: After the team’s 75th anniversary season, the Cougars returned to their previous seasons with the addition of coloured yokes on both home and away sets.

Peterborough Braves: For the 1981-82 season, the team is wearing a memorial patch to honour Michael Hawk, the team’s first president of the club; after that, the team will reveal their new name for next season.

New team’s jerseys

 Surry River Dogs: A round corner square logo with a “SURRY” above the dog sitting with navy and light blue stripes behind it with orange trim around it, the logo on the road is vice versa. The jerseys got a thin orange stripe and a thick stripe on the cuffs and the hem. The nameplate is just one solid colour, but the numbers are light blue with navy and orange trims that stay the same on both the home and the road.

 Chilliwack Alpines: A diamond shape with the letter “A” on the top and underneath it a mountain upside down in sky blue, grey, and a touch of green trim for a logo. The home and road design has two thick stripes with a thin green stripe. The team was going to have sky blue pants, but after the team did a photo shoot on the ice, it looked like they were wearing white pants, so the team changed them to green.

1981 CIHA Valor Cup Tournament

 

Many came for this year's Valor Cup tournament at the Maroon Auditorium in Waterloo, Ontario, as four teams battled for a chance of becoming the 1981 CIHA Valor Cup Champions. The host team, the Waterloo Maroons, started hot in a big way and finished the round-robin perfect 6-0-0 record with 12 points thanks to Larry Arsenal, who made a record of 18 goals, 36 points, and made a record of scoring 3 goals in every 6 games in what everyone calls it “the six hat-tricks,” also Pat Hudson made history by getting 4 shutouts out of his 6 wins but also set a record for the fewest goals against with only letting in just 3 goals. The WCLH’s Lethbridge Cougars may lose 2 games to the Maroons, but they won 4 games, including 2 key overtime wins over the Loups, as they finished 2nd place, but Jack Burk kept the team in the tournament with 9 goals and 20 points. Sherbrooke Loups got 2 wins, but those came from the Oshawa Diamonds. The rest are losses, with 2 heartbreaking overtimes by the Cougars and 2 ugly, painful losses to the Maroons. The Diamonds played very poorly, barely scoring only 3 goals and finishing in last place with 6 losses. The rule goes that they are eliminated if the 4th seed team does not win at least 2 games. With that rule, the Maroons would get a bye in the semi-final, moving on to the finals waiting for who wins the Cougars Loups semi-finals.

Semi-finals

Lethbridge Cougars vs. Sherbrooke Loups

Both teams are aiming for a date with the Maroons; as the first period started, the Loups came firing shots at Cougars goalie Shawn Hoff like crazy until 3:31 left in the first, the Loups finally scored a goal made by Shawn Thomas, as the first period ends there is a shoving match between the two then Shawn Hoff fell and twisted his blocker arm, with that questions are up in the air on if Shawn can be 100% for the second period. As both teams came back on the ice, on the Cougars' end, the goalie that standing in front of the net was not Shawn Hoff but Greg Finley, the son of the Cougars' GM Frank Finley, the Loups believed that this was an easy scoring spree, but as the second period pass the 10:00 mark, it became opposite as Karl Fuhr, Jack Burk, and Wes Roy each scored a goal for the Cougars. When the second period ended, it was 3-1. In the third period, the Loups couldn’t find a way to score as Greg was a brick wall and holding his ground solidly as the Cougars added two more goals before the third ended. The clock hit zero to end the game with a 5-1 Cougars win, and they are headed to the Valor Cup Finals to face the Waterloo Maroons.

Valor Cup Finals

Waterloo Maroons vs. Lethbridge Cougars

During the national anthem, Maroons Larry Arsenal and Cougars Jack Burk were eyeing each other. As the puck dropped, both were determined to outplay one another Larry may not be as good as Jack, but Larry has teammates helping him out more like Larry helping them as he made three assists in the first period to take a 3-1 lead. The Cougars bounced back by scoring two goals, but 20 seconds after a 3-3 tie game, Larry scored a goal to give the Maroons a 4-3 lead as the second period ended. In the third period, the Cougars ran out of gas as the Maroons added three more goals, two of them were by Larry Arsenal, as the Maroons celebrated along with the fans at the Maroon Auditorium, winning the 1981 Valor Cup Championship with the score of 7-3. Larry lifted the Valor Cup along with the MVP award of the tournament.

1981 AQHL Playoffs

 

1st Round

1st Verdun Knights vs. 8th Drummondville Les Rouges

The Drummondville Les Rouges made an ugly history as they went through all four games without scoring a goal. Even thou the Knights blew the Les Rouges in the first two games (7-0 and 9-0), the last two were more painful for Drummondville as the total shots on goal in those last two games was 14 (game 3: 9 shots, game 4: 5 shots) as the game clock hit zero the Verdun Knights win the series in four games all shutouts.

2nd New Glasgow Highlanders vs. 7th Shawinigan Voltages

The Highlanders played very well in the first three games until, in game four, the Volts came back from a 3-0 score midway through the second period. Then Christian Gaudreau scored the overtime winner for the Volts. In game five, the Highlanders' Kyle Patrick scored a hat-trick to finish off the Volts for a win and the series 4 games to 1.

3rd Sherbrooke Loups vs. 6th Portland Clippers

The Clippers knew that they had no chance of winning the series, but that didn’t stop them from giving the Loups a hard time in all four games, all of them in overtime, including game four when Christian Dupont scored two goals to tie the game to force overtime for the fourth game in a row, late into the second overtime Christian Dupont scored the winner and give the Loups the four-game sweep over the Portland Clippers.

4th Moncton Bears vs. 5th Cape Breton Warriors

Both teams went back and forth in the first four games, going into game five with the series tied at 2 games apiece. The Bears Andrew Jones scored two key goals to give them a win. Andrew Jones would score two more goals, including an overtime winner to win game six and the series over the Warriors 4 games to 2.

Round 2

1st Verdun Knights vs. 4th Moncton Bears

The Verdun Knights were on top of their game as they took games one, two, and three in a dominant way. Going into game four, the Knights believe they got this series in the bag, leading the whole game 3-0 when a minor penalty on the Bears became an event that everyone calls “the murdering two minutes” as Andrew Jones 1 goal, 3 points game playing help the Bears tie the game headed into overtime and the Bears forward Alec Dahlin scored the winner to stay alive. Thanks to the OT win, the Bears would keep going by winning games five and six to force game seven. The last game of the series, and a lot of pressure was on the Knights to finish the series, but however, rookie goalie Seth Taylor was a brick wall all game letting in just one goal as the Bears scored two goals to take the lead, as the clock ticks away the sold-out crowd at the Verdun Arena were in a state of shock and witness the Verdun Knights season came to an end as the Bears became the first team in AQHL history to win a playoff series after being down 3-0 to win the series 4 games to 3.

2nd New Glasgow Highlanders vs. 3rd Sherbrooke Loups

In game one, both teams battled all the way to the third overtime as Josh Winter scored the winner for the Loups. After game one, the Highlanders took both games two and three, but bad news hit the team as four key players have been called up by both the pro and minor-pro hockey teams as they’re making a push for the playoffs. The Loups would take games four and five in a close game, but as game six came, the Loups rookie goalie Lenny Tardif was a brick wall, and the fans at the Arena Commemorative de Sherbrooke celebrated as the Loups won game six 4-0 to win the series 4 games to 2 and punch their ticket to the 1981 Bronz Cup Championship.

1981 Bronz Cup Championship

3rd Sherbrooke Loups vs. 4th Moncton Bears

Lenny Tardif and Seth Taylor are both rookie goalies got a lot to prove by playing like veterans that could lead their team in winning this year's Bronz Cup Championship. The Sherbrooke Loups are prime and ready, while the Moncton Bears had a big momentum swing after coming back from a 3-0 deficit to win the series. In game one, both teams battled all the way to the last minute of the third period, tied 2-2 until the Loups Christian Dupont scored the tiebreaker to give the Loups a 3-2 win. Game two was the same as game one but tied at 3-3. Both headed into overtime, and 12:48 into it, the Bears took the win thanks to Alec Dahlin setting up a play that led Andrew Jones to score, and the series is even at 1. At Moncton, the Loups got one goal in mind “win games three and four,” and that is what they did as they took a 4-0 lead after the first period. The Bears scored goals but not enough, as the Loups took game three 4-2. In game three, the Loups did again by taking a big 4-0 lead after the first, but unlike game three, the Bears tooth and clawed their way back to tie it and force overtime. The first overtime didn’t resolve, nor did the second not end anything. 7:19 left in the third overtime Loups got themselves in a pickle as two players of theirs ended up in the penalty box, so the Bears got a 5-on-3 powerplay; everything was all Bears shooting until Lenny Tardif got the puck and flicked it over both defencemen and out of nowhere defence Shawn Thomas sneak pass by them got the breakaway and beat Seth Taylor for a 5-4 third overtime win. As game five began, both teams were firing shots at each other at the end of the second period, it was tied 2-2. In the third period, the Loups scored two key power-play goals. The Bears did everything that they could to get back in the game, but it wasn’t enough as the clock hit zero, and both the Loups and the fans at the Arena Commemorative de Sherbrooke celebrated as the Loups won game five 4-2 to take the series win 4 games to 1 and Josh Winter lifted the Bronz Cup over his head as the Sherbrooke Loups are the 1981 Champions, and for the first time since 1974 they going to the Valor Cup tournament and hopes to win it all like they did before.