1979 WCLH Playoffs

1st Round (best 4 of 7 games)
1st east Fargo Owls vs. 4th west Nanaimo Sharks
The Sharks entered in Fargo with hopes of at least giving the Owls a hard time and getting payback from losing the Jade Trophy finals last season, and the Sharks did until the 3rd period where Owls forward Kirk Cooper scored two straight goals as the Owls took game 1 with the score of 4-2. Game 2 at the Fargo Center with fans at capacity as the Owls wins it 4-1 thanks to Dick Bartram, who made three straight goals. Far west in Nanaimo, the Sharks turn themselves around after losing two games in Fargo as Sharks overage star Kenta Takamachi did not score any goals but did make six assists as Nanaimo claimed game three with a 6-2 win over the Owls. The Owls had been kicking themselves since losing game three, trialling behind 4-2 Owls Justin Ash scored two big goals with 1:36 left in the 3rd period, the clock went zero as the 3rd period ended as both teams headed to overtime. After two overtimes heading into the 3rd overtime, Dick Bartram made one of the most challenging shots that some never thought would get in the net, but it did as the Owls won game four 5-4 in three overtimes. Back at Fargo, it was all Owls as Dick Bartram, Jack Moore, and Justin Ash each scored two goals as the Owls took both game five 6-3 and the series four games to 1.

1st west Abbotsford Forest Kings vs. 4th east Brandon Buffalos
Game 1 in Abbotsford, the Forest Kings, took this game in their hands as Grey Bushey scored four goals and four assists in a 9-1 blowout over the Buffalos. The Buffalos had something going in the first 10:00, but penalties by both Luke James and Paul Cole both argued each other inside the penalty box; what worse for both, they did not know that their penalties had already been expired by almost 3 minutes over. After that, the Forest Kings won game two 5-0. All five of those were powerplay goals. The first two games in Abbotsford Arena were filled with fans; at Brandon Rink, it was almost empty as fans lost faith in the Buffalos after an embarrassing first two-game loss. Paul Cole did step his game up with one goal and two assists, and so did Luke James with his two goals and one assist, but it wasn’t enough as Abbotsford won game three 8-6. Two days before game four, both Luke James and Paul Cole had an interview as they still blaming each other, the coaches, to even their teammates, including goalie Max Van-Kelly, the blame on Max became the straw that broke the camel back, Max requested and approved to sit out game four along with five other top players, the coaches scrambled to borrowed some players from Jr.B level to play the game. Both the 1st and 2nd periods were all Forest Kings leading the game 5-0. During the 2nd intermission, both Luke James and Paul Cole were trying to be leaders, but it didn’t work out as some Jr.B players walked out of the locker room, leaving the two behind. In the 3rd period, nothing changed at all; as the final minutes started to tick away, some of the Buffalos fans began to chant, “THANK YOU, ABBOTSFORD!” “THANK YOU, ABBOTSFORD!” Across the empty arena, as the clock hit zeros, the game ended with the score of 9-0, and the Buffalos season was over. Many fans are happy and hoping that the higher-ups can do something about the team and hopefully get rid of both Luke James and Paul Cole for good. As the self-destruction of Brandon Buffalos hit the news, the Abbotsford Forest Kings celebrated their 2nd first-round playoff series win in 3 years, and the first series sweeper won 4 games to 0.

2nd west Medicine Hat Hawks vs. 3rd east Saskatoon Cats
Led by Hawks forward, Sam Baylis scored two goals in the second period after a slow game playing in the first period, and the third period was all defence by the Hawks as they took game one 3-0. Pretty much the same as game one but this time, the Cats finally score a playoff goal since game five of the 1977 Jade Trophy championship. Forward Wayne Osbourne scored two goals, and one assist as the Cats win game two 3-0. In Saskatoon, the Cats had a 2-0 lead after the first period. Both the second and the third period were all Medicine Hat as Sam Baylis did not score goals but made four assists as the Hawks regained the series lead with a 4-2 game three win. The Cats snap themselves back in the game as defence Kyle Allen scored a goal to make it 1-0 in the middle of the second period, and the Cats defences and goalie Glenn Shaw became a brick wall as the Hawks could not find a way to score as the Cats even the series with the 1-0 game four wins. Game five back in Medicine Hat, the Hawks are hoping to retake the series lead, but the Cats had other ideas as the Cats crank the volume down with a 4-2 win in front of the sold-out crowd as the Cats could have the chance to win the series in game six. Going into game six, the Hawks knew that they must win, or they go home. Forward Paul Leonard scored two goals with two minutes left in the first period. Sam Baylis joined in the scoring with a goal of his own in the second period. The Cats forward Ian Walters scored a goal, but it was not enough as the Hawks won game six 3-1 to tie the series three apiece and head over to Medicine Hat for game seven. In the seventh game in Medicine Hat, the fans inside the Auditorium were loud as it shook the Cats badly in the first period as the Hawks top players were shooting from all different spots until the second period came. The Hawks broke through as they took the lead 4-1 at the end of the second. The third period could have been the Cats comeback, behind 5-4 forward Derrick Vale skated beside Hawks goalie Luke McIsaac tap the puck in the net, but before he touched the puck, he trips the goalie, and the referee saw it and called goaltending interference, and after that, it went downhill for the Cats as Hawks defence Herb Edwards scored an empty net as the Hawks win game seven 6-4 and win the series four games to 3.

2nd east Kenora Pioneers vs. 3rd west Moose Jaw Wings
In game one and two of the series were all Kenora as goalie Zack Mick was a brick wall shutting out the Wings 3-0 and 5-0. The crowd at the Sky Centre is as hype as ever, and rightfully so in game three, first-period Wings forward Kyle Ferrell scored two goals within the first five minutes. In the second period, defence Eric McQueen rocked Pioneers forward Curtis Samford cleanly and went to the locker room but did not come back for the rest of the game as in the third period Wings scored two more goals, and game three is in the books as Moose Jaw wins it 4-2. The Kenora Pioneers dominated games four and five with the 5-2 and 4-0 wins to finish the series over the Moose Jaw Wings 4 games to 1.

2nd Round (best 4 of 7 games)

1st east Fargo Owls vs. 2nd west Medicine Hat Hawks
Fargo dominated the Hawks in a big way in both games one and two, where Kirk Cooper scored five goals, 8 points within those two games with scores of 4-2 and 5-0. Game 3 in Medicine Hat, the Hawks, tried to turn things around with a 3-1 lead going into the third period; Owls Justin Ash scored two unanswered goals with 1:20 left in the third, the Hawks was all over the Owls Nate Benn until the clock hit zero and both teams are going to overtime, 10:33 into the overtime Dick Bartram of the Owls made one of biggest slap-shot that heard from around the world and passed by Hawks goalie Joe Wickham as the Owls came back and wins game three 4-3 in overtime. Game 4 is back in Medicine Hat; if the Hawks win, they keep the series going. If they lose and the Hawks season is over, period number one Hawks Sam Baylis and Herb Edwards both scored a goal to take the lead 2-0, second period Sam Baylis add another goal for the lead until 5:45 left in the period Owls Justin Ash scored a goal in hopes to give themselves something to work with, as the third period began it was all the Owls as they made four straight goals with the additions of Jack Moore scored the empty netter and game four is over with the score of 6-3 as the Owls sweeps the Hawks 4 games to 0 and headed to the Jade Trophy final for the third time in a row.

1st west Abbotsford Forest Kings vs. 2nd east Kenora Pioneers
The Forest Kings played very well in the first two games with scores of 4-3 and 3-2 to take the series lead in two, with the help from Grey Bushey, who scored four goals and four assists within those two games. In game three, the Pioneers made a goalie change before the game started at Kenora, which did not sit well with Zack Mick. The move by the Pioneers worked as they gave the Forest Kings a hard time all game until the clock hit zero in the third period with the score of 4-4. In overtime with 4:45 left, Pioneers back-up goalie Roger Ashton twisted his knee in an attempt to make a save, which he did, but Forest King forward Jack Littlewood got the rebound and scored the O/T winner 5-4, which put the Kenora Pioneers in a very tough spot down 3-0 in the series. Down three games to none, Pioneers head coach Leo Newton chose to put Zack Mick back starting in net; Zack was a brick wall all game with 49 shots made and saved them all. Late in the third, Pioneers Curtis Samford scored two unanswered goals to give Kenora the victory score of 2-0 to stay alive in the series. Both game five and six was all Kenora as Zack Mick was holding his ground very well with letting in just two goals in both games, while forward Jake Walters scored six goals in both games and defence Oscar Reed made four assists within those two games. Both teams will play game seven to see who will go to the 1979 Jade Trophy finals. The Kenora Pioneers came back from three games to none to force a game seven in Abbotsford. In the first, the Forest Kings did everything they could, and with 2:16 left in the first period, Forest Kings forward Shawn Naugle scored a goal to give Abbotsford a 1-0 lead after the first. As the second period started, right off the bat Pioneers, Jake Walters scored two straight goals in thirty seconds, and Zack Mick stood his ground with 35 out of 36 shots he took in two periods. Late in the third period, the Forest Kings ran out of gas as the Pioneers scored two more goals as the Kenora Pioneers became the first team in WCLH history to come back from 3 games to 0 deficit and win the series four games to 3.

1979 Jade Trophy finals
 1st east Fargo Owls vs. 2nd east Kenora Pioneers
In an all-east division final in Fargo, the Owls are ready to claim their third straight title; however, the Pioneers had good momentum going after their seven games series they went through as the Pioneers shocked both the Owls and the fans in the Fargo Center as Kenora win 1-0 game one overtime. The Owls tried to find a way to break the wall of Pioneers Zack Mick, which in the second period they did and by the end of the second, the Owls were in the lead of 1-0, third-period things got rough for the Owls as the score was 1-1 with 34 seconds left Owls Justin Ash set up a move that threw Zack Mick way off from his position then Justin pass the puck to a way wide open Jack Moore to finish the job but just when Jack just about to shoot when he felt a pain shot right up his right leg only to discover he twisted his right ankle despite he fought through the pain and shoot the puck it missed the net as the buzzer sounded to end the third period in a tie and for the second game in a row it will be decided in overtime, four minutes into the overtime Jake Walters took the puck and put it in the net to give the Pioneers a 2-1 overtime win to take 2 games to none lead over the defending Jade Trophy champions. Game three at the Kenora Arena is jam pack full as the fans are all hype for the Pioneers to win it all, as all three periods came and went with a score of 2-2 tie going into the overtime, after two overtimes with 10:40 into the third overtime Kirk Cooper after making 22 shots all game his 23rd shot was the overtime winner as the Owls win 3-2 in three overtimes. Back in Kenora, the game was back and forth as the game was tied 1-1, and once again, both teams headed to overtime, but 2:15 into the first overtime defence Pat Colts dumped the puck down in hopes to help Pioneers forwards make the change which did more than that, Owls Nate Benn was going to get the puck when it curves away from the boards, slid passed Nate and went into the net as Pat’s clearing the puck became the game-winner as Kenora wins game four 2-1 and just one win away from becoming the Jade Trophy champions. The Owls is hoping to turn things around mostly in hopes to win game five in Fargo; all game was all goaltending magic between Owls Nate Benn and Pioneers, Zack Mick, as they stopped every shot, as the third period came to an end, it was a 0-0 tie which once again both are going to overtime, first overtime was Nate Benn out save Zack 15-10, but Zack one up on Nate in the second overtime 20-10. Before the third overtime began, Zack was on top of Nate in saves with 67-59, but it all came to an end as Owls Justin Ash scored the winner 1-0 in three overtimes; Zack’s 74 saves would be a record, but in WCLH rule that the only way to make official is that the Pioneers win that game, with the Owls win Nate’s 68 saves will be the official record. “We did great in this game, but we didn’t finish the job as they did; all we need to do is to rest up and ready for game six in Kenora.” Pioneers head coach Leo Newton said at the press conference. Just like games three and four, the Kenora Arena was jam-packed for game six. The first period began the Owls tried to quiet the crowd down with a goal by Kirk Cooper. As the second period started, Pioneers Jake Walters and Curtis Samford both each scored a goal to make it 2-1, the third period was all Kenora as the Pioneers scored two more, the Owls did score but only one, the fans in the Kenora Arena was so loud that both teams did not know the clock already hit zero as the final score was 4-2. The series won 4 games to 2, and emotions poured out as the Pioneers celebrated. Traditionally, the team captain would be the first to lift the Jade Trophy, but Pat Colts decided instead of himself he had Zack Mick to skate over to receive the Trophy from James Name. The WCLH president congrats Zack and his team and wishes them luck as once they finish celebrating, they are heading over to Ottawa for the 1979 Valor Cup Tournament.



Next Post: 1978-79 OMJHA Season

Last edited by AJHFTW (10/23/2021 9:02 pm)

1978-79 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. 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 from 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, 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, 2 assists was 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 one win away in 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 as 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 give 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.




Next Post: 1978-79 AQHL Season

1978-79 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. 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 headed 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. At Trois-Rivieres, the Titans turn it around 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 in 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 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 in 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 was 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.



Next Post: 1979 CIHA Valor Cup Tournament

Last edited by AJHFTW (12/31/2021 10:32 pm)

Congrats to Kitchener! I haven't commented much here but your designs are really nice. I think my favorite is the Vikings, a really nice use of purple, orange, and silver there to balance it out. Nice stuff!

1979 Off-season


1979 WCLH Draft
Portage la Prairie Magic goes local as their 1st pick is Matthew Atlas, a scoring forward who has been under the radar by many teams, but the Magic got to him before anyone else. Swift Current made goalie Reggie Mason from Calgary AB, a Battalion after their top goalie Ivan Easton chose to go pro and accept an entry contract with the Pittsburgh Pro Hockey Club. The 3rd pick made by Billings Trains is Frank Colton from Vancouver, B.C., a forward who is a scoring machine that made 37 goals, 61 points for the Vancouver Minor Junior Club would give Trains some scoring improvement.


1979 OMJHA Draft
1st pick the Oakville Oaks select from Brampton Keith Dunn, an all-around forward who can play both offence and defence, with his 70 points (25 G 45 A) performance could be what the Oaks needs after a poor 1978-79 season. Milton Micmacs picked Jesper Nelson. He plays defence very well and could show how rugged an Aurora defenceman is. Forward Nick Ryan from Peterborough got selected by the Braves, who believes that a homegrown talent could be the key to the team’s success in the future.


1979 AQHL Draft
Christian Gaudreau had been under every team’s radar, but the Shawinigan Voltage made the Hull Quebec forward their 1st pick, with his 80 points (29 G, 51 A) he made with his hometown Jr.B team went on named MVP in both season and championship. Manchester Americans decide to add some Quebec flavour to the roster, and goalie Alex Beauvillier is just what they need. Portland Clippers selected Jack Alexander, a forward from Halifax, Nova Scotia, who gave the team an excellent impression to the Clippers liking. His leadership for the Halifax Jr.C hockey club could help the Clippers get the best chance of having some good winning seasons down the road.

News


CIHA President Joseph McGeorge announced that next season will be his last year as his contract will end that year. Joseph chooses not to renew his contract as he would let someone else take over his job since 1972. Questions were up in the air of who would take the job as the CIHA President. Some names had been floating around, but Franklin Name is not on the list as his OMJHA contract will expire after the 1981-82 season, and he plans to retire. James Name has no interest in that job as he is okay with his position as the WCLH President, and Paul Name just signed an extension to be the President of the AQHL until 1985. There were talks that Randy Howard, who was head marketing for the Toronto Pro Hockey club, had excellent knowledge of the CIHA and followed it very well and hoped that being the President of the CIHA could be his future job.

During the off-season, the CIHA made one of the best deals ever with “KI-LO,” an equipment manufacture company established in 1940 ran by founder Kirk Lowden. The company thrives with pro hockey league teams wearing equipment with the company’s name on it. The company has expanded in manufacturing hockey jerseys after Kirk sold the company to his two sons Keith Lowden and Trever “Trev” Lowden. With such news, all the teams will have new jerseys to be made and ready to show them off to their fans for as early as the 1980-81 season.

With the 1980 Valor Cup host already named, the question now is who will host the 1981 tournament? So far, the three best candidates to host are Barrie, Burlington, and Waterloo. They will announce it during the 1980 Valor Cup Tournament.


With losing some players to the Pros, colleges, and even European leagues, the Nanaimo Sharks made some moves by trading their 1st, and 4th round picks for the 1981 draft to the Fargo Owls for forward Gene Petersons and backup goalie Oscar Williams. The Sharks signed another international player, this time from Finland, forward Juuso Heinola, who caught many eyes from many teams, but Juuso chose Nanaimo because it reminds him of his hometown in Helsinki.
Brandon Buffalos fans were hoping for good news, including finally getting rid of Luke James and Paul Cole. However, it did not happen as they are still on the team, and with forward Pat Clark, the team’s captain, choosing to go to college, everyone believes it will be a nightmare. Still, the Buffalos coaching staff already got a new captain name, and that player is forward Jeremy Mitchell, who became the first black player in WCLH history to be a captain for any team. Many fans fear that it will be worse than good, but Tim Woods believes it will be alright in the 1979-80 season.

Even after the James Name interview explaining the division alignment issue, many cannot accept it, but it could end soon as the WCLH is shopping locations for expansion teams. There are talks that there are two locations in B.C. what cities are going to be is unknown at this time, but it is safe to say that there are good numbers of cities hungry for a WCLH team. With that news, chances are that the Moose Jaw Wings will move to the East division.
The 1979 Jade trophy champion Kenora Pioneers lost Zack Mick to the Minnesota Pro Hockey Club and Pat Colts as he commented to the University of North Dakota. “We lost two players, but we still got many on our roster that are hungry for a second title.” Said Pioneers head coach Leo Newton.



The Herbco family is happy to hear that John Herbco has finally got drafted into the Pro Hockey League. 3rd overall by the Detroit Pro Hockey team, the club believes that John Herbco will lead Detroit to big things. While it is good news for John but bad news for the Legionnaires as they try to find a way to rebuild after losing so many good players, including John Herbco.

The Oakville Oaks hired Leon Cowern as their new head coach. Leon was an OMJHA alumnus who also was part of the 1964 Waterloo Maroons Smyth Cup run. He played only 5 seasons in the pros with no success. But when Leon took the job as an assistant coach for the Long Island minor pro club, his success skyrocketed to the top. But due to ownerships changing hands, the new guard chose not to promote him as head coach, so he went to look for a new job and right off the bat, the Oaks took him in and hoped to turn the team around.

The Oshawa Diamonds owner Patrick Tobin announced that he is in talks about selling the team to a company called “Prime Motors” that manufactures Pickup Trucks and SUVs. They have high interest in the squad after losing the bid in buying the Toronto Pro Hockey Club last year. They hope to make the purchase within two years.

The OMJHA has plans to expand again, this time going downtown Toronto as two well-established businessmen want to put together their own teams. First is Herb Pickard, the CEO of “Hornet,” a sports car manufactory company that used to co-own the Toronto International Pro Hockey Club with “Ham-Tech Radio” from Hamilton. When the merge happened, Ham-Tech bought the rest of the stock from Pickard and moved the team to Hamilton in a brand new Hamilton Ice Centre ready for a long run, meanwhile Herb and his company decided to start over with a downtown Toronto junior hockey team to bring back it’s glory days as they will house the team at the Toronto McKeough Arena that was home of the Toronto International Pro Hockey Club. Second is Chris Warner, a prominent businessman who runs “Glow City,” a neon light company that manufactures neon light signs that sells like hotcakes. Chris bought himself the old King George arena that used to be a practice facility for the Toronto Pro Hockey Club. Chris said the arena will get a well-earned makeover. Both teams will be ready for the 1980-81 season.


Paul Name and the owners had meetings in addressing some issues that needed to resolve during the off-season, one of them was making the expansion draft more strict after the Manchester Americans chose to trade away their expansion picks for late draft picks, no one didn’t expect them to go down that path at all. But it happened, and many thought that they should be punished for the moves, but according to the rules “an expansion team can trade their expansion picks for draft picks, but it can’t receive higher than the third round,” meaning if they received the first or second-round picks, they would be charged $10,000 and a loss the future first and second-round draft picks for two years.

Another issue that needed to be addressed was the 1979 Bronz Cup Champions, the Cape Breton Warriors. The team’s owner, Will Rollins, wants to give the Warrior Arena a makeover. The problem is that the team must play their home games across the river to Westmount, their arena has a capacity of 1200, but a tight schedule limited the numbers of home games there. But luckily, the Warriors can play their home games in Membertou. Will Rollins hopes the arena upgrade gets done within a year and soon pushes a bid to host the Valor Cup.

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