1st round (best 4 of 7 games)

1st west Abbotsford Forest Kings vs. 4th east Portage la Prairie Magic

The Abbotsford Forest Kings welcomes the Magic to the playoffs with a game one blowout score of 7-1 thanks to forward Ed Bram who made 2 goals, 6 points. Game two was the same as Forest Kings defence Luke White score 3 goals as they win it 6-1. The Forest Kings went to the Jaune Durocher Memorial Arena to finish off the Magic, as indeed they did to win game three (5-0) and game four (6-2) to sweep the series 4 games to none.

1st east Kenora Pioneers vs. 4th west Moose Jaw Wings

The defending Jade trophy champion Kenora Pioneers got a wake-up call in game one as the Wings forced it to overtime and Wings forward Joe Robin score the winner with the score of 4-3. The Pioneers turn it around in game two with a score of 3-1. In-game three and four, Kenora Pioneers did not look back as they won two more games (3-2, 5-2) as they are one win away from advancing to the second round. In-game five it was all Kenora as the Pioneers shut out the Moose Jaw Wings 4-0 to win the series 4 games to 1.

2nd west Nanaimo Sharks vs. 3rd east Brandon Buffalos

It was a back-and-forth series between the Sharks and the Buffalos. In-game one, the Sharks win it 3-1, but the Buffalos take game two with a 2-1 win. In-game three the Sharks destroyed the Buffalos with an 8-2 blowout win. In-game four the Buffalos bounced back from a blowout loss with a 4-2 win. The Sharks forward Juuso Heinola scored three goals to give them a 5-3 win and have one win away to move on to the second round. Game six was not what the Sharks had in mind as the Buffalos gave the Sharks a taste of their own medicine with a 7-1 blowout win to even the series. Game seven in Nanaimo, the Buffalos took a 2-0 lead after the first period, the Sharks got themselves back in the game by scoring four goals to take a 4-2 after the second period, in the third period, the Buffalos tooth and claw their way back as both Luke James and Paul Cole work together as they scored a goal each to tie the game as the horn sound off to end the third period and headed into overtime. 15 minutes into overtime the Sharks got themselves a powerplay, but it did not help when Jeremy Mitchell got a breakaway and scored the overtime winner and the series 4 games to 3. As the Buffalos move on to the second round, the Sharks will be practicing for the 1980 Valor Cup tournament as they are this year's host.



2nd east Fargo Owls vs. 3rd west Lethbridge Cougars

After two seasons of rebuilding, the Lethbridge Cougars have returned to the playoffs but after a 6-1 game one loss to the Owls everyone felt like the Cougars should not be in this year's playoffs. In-game two however everyone had changed their minds as the Cougars beat the Owls 4-1. The Owls take game three in Lethbridge with a 3-2 overtime win to take the series lead. Game four, five and six was all Cougars as they went on to take those three games in a row (3-1, 4-3ot, 4-2) and move on to the 2nd round with the 4 games to 2 series win.



2nd round (best 4 of 7 games)

1st east Kenora Pioneers vs. 3rd west Lethbridge Cougars

Game one was a big game between both teams as they played all the way to overtime until Pioneers forward Peter Barron scored the overtime winner to take game one with a score of 5-4. In-game two the Pioneers got a good momentum from game one and use it to their advantage as they win it 4-1 blowout win. The Cougars got themselves back on track in game three with a 4-2 win thanks to forward Jack Burk’s 3 goals, 4 points performance. The Pioneers had a big 4-0 lead going into the third period, despite the Cougars was scoring in the third but only just one goal short as the clock hit zero as the Pioneers win game four 4-3. Game five was all Pioneers as they beat the Cougars 6-2 to win the series 4 games to 1 and headed back to the Jade Trophy championship.

1st west Abbotsford Forest Kings vs. 3rd east Brandon Buffalos

Last year the Forest Kings swept the Buffalos because of how dysfunctional the Buffalos were at that time, now the Forest Kings must keep their “A” game up because Brandon won the season series over Abbotsford 3-1. In-game one Abbotsford wins it in a not-so-easy way 5-4 in overtime.  The Buffalos Jeremy Mitchell 2 goals 4 points gave the team a big game two wins over Abbotsford 5-3.  Game number three the Forest Kings Ed Bram scored a hat-trick for a 4-2 win to take this series lead. Ed Bram scored a hat-trick again with a 5-3 Forest Kings win to take three games to one lead. The Buffalos bounce back with the help from both Luke James and Paul Cole who scored a goal and 2 assists each to give Brandon a fighting chance to get back into the series with a 4-2 win. In-game six the Buffalos really show what they got in a big way as Jeremy Mitchell, Luke James and Paul Cole combined 9 points as they even the series with an 8-4 win. Game Seven Both went back and forth until 5:39 left in the third period where the Forest Kings Luke White scored the tiebreaker. After that, the Forest Kings held on as the clock turned to zero and the game is over as the Forest Kings win game seven 6-5 and headed to the Jade Trophy finals winning the series 4 games to 3.

1980 Jade Trophy Finals

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

Battle of top dogs as the best team from the west the Abbotsford Forest Kings takes on the top team in the league and the 1979 Jade Trophy Champion the Kenora Pioneers. Game one was all defence as both teams barely made the total of 10 shots (6 by Pioneers, 4 by Forest Kings) in the first period, in the second period both teams made more shots than the first but at the end of the period the score is the same 0-0, the third period came and went as both teams headed to overtime. 10:38 in the first overtime Luke White had the puck but three Pioneers players were all over him until Luke pass the puck to an open Ed Bram and scored the overtime winner as the Forest Kings takes game one 1-0. The Pioneers did not show any weakness after the overtime loss with a 4-2 game two victory to even the series one game apiece. In-game three the Pioneers kept the momentum going on their end with a 5-1 win thanks to Peter Barron's 2 goals, 4 points showing. Behind two games to one the Forest Kings got themselves back in the series thanks to Luke White’s 3 goals 6 points to help the Forest Kings win game four 7-4. When it comes to game five with the series tied up whoever wins it can have the best chance of winning the series, on this game five the Forest Kings took themselves to the next level with a big 4-3 overtime win to give themselves one win away to win the Jade Trophy championship. Knowing very well that the Pioneers are in the same position as the Fargo Owls was last year but unlike the Owls, the Pioneers show that they have not run out of gas yet as they take game six with a 4-2 win and headed to game number seven. Game seven in Kenora, the Pioneers had a 3-1 lead going into the third period when Luke White scored two unanswered goals and Ed Bram scored the game-winner with just 0:47 left, even with an extra attacker was not enough for the Pioneers as the game is over and the Abbotsford Forest Kings celebrate as they are the 1980 Jade Trophy Champions winning game seven 4-3 and the series 4 games to 3.





Next Post: 1979-80 OMJHA Season

Round 1

Hero Division

1st Barrie Admirals vs. 4th Kitchener Generals

It is a rematch between the Barrie Admirals and the Kitchener Generals from last season's Hero Division finals. Game number one, Generals Patrick Herbco scored 3 goals in the first period, but in both second and third period, the Admirals came back scoring 4 goals and with 0:39 left in the game, Admirals Seth Samuel scored an empty netter as Barrie took game one 5-3. In-game two, the Generals forward Dave Ward was the one that scored 3 goals, in the second period, Admirals Herb Max-Louis scored two goals to make it 3-2, with 1:48 left in the third, Admirals Adam Hunter scored his first junior career playoff goal to tie the game and then the third period came to an end with the score of 3-3, twelves minutes into overtime Herb Max-Louis scored the first hat-trick of his junior playoff career as the Admirals win game two in overtime 4-3. The Generals Patrick Herbco scored 3 goals 7 points to win a game three win over the Admirals 7-5. Before game four happened, the Generals got some bad news, both Nick Hooker and forward Mike Stanley got called up by their own representative pro hockey teams (Nick with Toronto and Mike with the Edmonton) as both those teams are making a playoff push. With two players gone, the Generals would rework the lines to keep the momentum going, but that did not happen as the Admirals took game four 5-2. Patrick Herbco may score 3 goals for the Generals, but it was not enough as the Barrie Admirals win game five 6-3 and win this series 4 games to 1.

2nd Burlington Metros vs. 3rd Oshawa Diamonds

Both teams got eliminated in the first round last season, one of them will more likely advance to the second round, and both are determined to do whatever it takes to win this series. The Oshawa Diamonds drew first blood thanks to their rookie goalie Simon Gibson who stepped up big time as he made 48 saves out of 50 shots to lead them to a 4-2 game one win. The Diamonds did it again in game two, but it took 2 overtimes to win game two, 3-2, thanks to Ian Henry, who scored the O/T winner. Game three The Diamonds dominated the Metros with a big 8-2 winner. The Diamonds got some bad news: their goalie Simon Gibson suffered low blood sugar that the coaches were concerned about his heath, so they put him on the IR list and used backup Johnny Barron. The Metros took it to their advantage as they beat the Diamonds 4-2 game four wins to avoid the sweep. Burlington Metros kept their momentum going as they won game five 6-2 thanks to Matthew Walton and Nick Ryan, scoring 3 goals each. In-game six, the Diamonds had a big lead 5-2 going into the third period when Mike Mellon got his game back after going cold mid-way into the season from injuries with scoring 3 straight goals to tie the game. 12 minutes in overtime, Mike Mellon scored his fourth goal of the game for an overtime win 6-5, and the Metros came back from being down 3 games to none to force game seven. After recovering from having a scary low blood sugar Simon Gibson is back at the net for game seven and held his ground big time as Ian Henry did not score any goals. Still, he did make 3 assists as the Oshawa Diamonds avoided a disaster at the hands of the Metros 3-1 game seven win and the series 4 games to 3.



Steel Division

1st Waterloo Maroons vs. 4th Kitchener Legionnaires

Fans got themselves a match-up that they have been waiting for. In the playoffs, the last time that both played each other in the playoffs was the 1969 Smyth Cup championship. Since then, they have not crossed paths in the playoffs until now. The Maroons take it 4-3 despite the Legionnaires giving them a run for their money. The Maroons win game two but in overtime 3-2 after blowing a 2-0 lead in the third period. In-game three, the Legionnaires finally got themselves a win over the Maroons 5-3 thanks to forward Rick Backs 1 goal, 3 points. In game four, the Maroons had a hard time with the Legionnaires, trailing 4-2 going into the third period forward. Adam Newhook and Larry Arsenal scored a goal to tie the game and held on until the clock hit zero to end the third period. 10 minutes in the first overtime defence Collin Mitchell scored the overtime winner for the Legionnaires to even the series two games apiece with a 5-4. In-game five, the Maroons Larry Arsenal’s 7 points (3G, 4A) performance was just what the Maroons needed as they won it big 7-3. The Legionnaires cannot find any answer as the Maroons win game six 5-2 thanks to Larry’s 3 goals, 4 points as the Waterloo Maroons win the series 4 games to 2 and move on to the Steel Division finals.



2nd Owen Sound Arrowbirds vs. 3rd Orangeville O’s

The Owen Sound Arrowbirds coming in this year playoffs red hot mainly have the best chance in winning this series over the Orangeville O’s, but one problem or make that three problems, their top three players (D – Calvin Comrie, F – Andrew Beagle, and G – Alex Myers) got called up to the pros so the Arrowbirds could have a hard time. The Arrowbirds fear came to life as they struggled big time and lost game one to the O’s 4-2. The O’s took the Arrowbirds down again, winning game two 3-1. In-game three, the Arrowbirds had the lead 3-1 after the first two periods, but everything went downhill in the third period where the O’s scored three straight unanswered goals, all made by forward Shane Lane as the O’s won it 4-3. The Orangeville O’s goalie Jack Glenn was a brick wall all game as the O’s shut out the Arrowbirds 2-0 to complete the sweep 4 games to none.



Hero Division Finals

1st Barrie Admirals vs. 3rd Oshawa Diamonds

Both teams entered their sixth season in the OMJHA, and one of them could win this series and head to their first ever Smyth Cup Championship appearance. The Barrie Admirals is determined to go to the championship, but the Diamonds have other ideas as they take game one 4-1 in front of a sell-out Barrie Forum. The Admirals bounce back from their loss in game one with a big game two wins 5-1 to even the series one game apiece. The Admirals kept their game going in game three with a 4-2-win lead by forward Dylan Bouchard 3 goals 4 points. In-game four, the Admirals had a 4-1 lead but 10:29 left in the third-period Diamonds forward Ian Henry made 3 points (1 G, 2 A) to tie the game, and the Diamonds held on until the clock hit zero and headed into overtime. Admirals forward Michael Campbell scored the winner with 3:44 into the overtime as Barrie Admirals are one away to punch the ticket to the championship with the game four 5-4 win. In-game five in Barrie, the Admirals goalie Jake Wilson let just one goal behind him early in the first period, but after that, he was making saves, defence James Colby scored a goal to tie the game in the second period, and in the third period Michael Campbell scored the game-winner as the Admirals win game five 2-1 and making their first Smyth Cup Championship appearance with 4 games to 1 series win.



Steel Division Finals

1st Waterloo Maroons vs. 3rd Orangeville O’s

The Waterloo Maroons got a chance of a lifetime to advance to the Smyth Cup finals for the first time since 1974, where they lost to the Burlington Metros. While the Orangeville O’s in their 3rd season part of the league have odds against them as the Maroons swept them in the season series, all four games the O’s lost to the Maroons were blowouts. Game number one, the Maroons Larry Arsenal made 5 points (1 G, 4 A) to give the team a big win over the O’s 6-2. Larry Arsenal did it again but only 4 points (2 G, 2 A) in a 5-3 game two win in Waterloo. In Orangeville, the Maroons got terrible news, Adam Newhook hurt his right shoulder and is out for game three, which the O’s took full advantage of as Shane Lane made 5 points (2 G, 3 A) as the O’s take game three with a 6-2 win. In-game four, the O’s did it again, this time winning it 4-2 and 3-2 in game five. Game six, however, was all Maroons as Adam Newhook came back from his shoulder injury that took longer than he expected made a big 6 points (2 G, 4 A) as the Maroons beat the O’s 7-2 to even the series and force a game seven. Waterloo is where the chance of going to the Smyth Cup championship is on the line; through the first period and the second period, both went back and forth as the score is 4-4 going into the third period. The O’s scored early to take the lead, but with 0:12 seconds left in the third period Larry Arsenal scored to tie the game and the clock hit zero and both the Maroons and the O’s headed to overtime. The first overtime had many close ones, but goals were made as the horn sounded off to end the first overtime. In the second overtime with 5:33 left, the O’s Ron Green got a penalty for elbowing which the Maroons believed that this was it they were going to win, but out of nowhere, the O’s Will Stell took the puck, got the breakaway and scored the overtime winner with the score of 6-3, winning the series 4 games to 3 as the Orangeville O’s in their 3rd year in the OMJHA are going to 1980 Smyth Cup championship.



1980 OMJHA Smyth Cup Championship

Barrie Admirals vs. Orangeville O’s

This year's finals were hugely different; with no Legionnaires nor Generals, it is the Admirals and the O’s, as many did not expect one of those two to be in the finals at all. In-game one at Barrie, the Admirals did not take the O’s lightly as Michael Campbell scored two key goals to give the Admirals wins 3-1. In-game two, the Admirals goalie Jake Wilson made 56 saves out of 58 shots to provide the admirals with a 5-2 win to keep the series in their hands. The Orangeville O’s showed some life in game three with a 4-2 lead going into the third period when the Admirals Dylan Bouchard who was on a cold streak since game four of the Hero Division finals, went hot as he scored two straight goals to tie the game up and send it into overtime. Dylan would score his third goal of the game with 6:23 into the first overtime to give Barrie a 5-4 win and have the chance to win it all in game four. In Orangeville, the Admirals kept their foot on the gas pedal as they blanked the O’s 5-0 game four wins as the Barrie Admirals won the series 4 games to 0 and received the Smyth Cup. The Admirals would celebrate in Barrie the next day, rest up the following day, and get themselves ready to head over to Nanaimo B.C. for the 1980 Valor Cup tournament.



Next Post: 1979-80 AQHL Season

1980 AQHL Playoffs

Round 1
1st Verdun Knights vs. 8th Fredericton Vikings

The Knights top the league in a big way. While the Vikings squeeze themselves into this season's playoffs, the odds for the Vikings are not in their favour as the Knight swept them in the season series. In games one and two, the Knights pick up where they started in their season series with the Vikings as they took the first two games 6-2 and 4-1. In the last two games, the Knights finished off the Vikings by winning game three 6-2 and game four 7-2 to win the series 4 games to none.

2nd Cape Breton Warriors vs. 7th Trois-Rivieres Titans

Last season both battled for the Bronz Cup. This season it is all about who will move to the 2nd round. Luke Davis scored two goals in-game one to give the Warriors a 4-1 win over the Titans. In-game two, the Titans were scoring, but it was not enough as Shane Abrams made 4 assists to give Cape Breton a 5-3 win. Trois-Rivieres Titans found no answers for games three and four as the Cape Breton Warriors took them down (5-2, 7-3) to complete the sweep 4 games to 0 to move on to the 2nd round.  

3rd New Glasgow Highlanders vs. 6th Portland Clippers

The New Glasgow Highlanders made their 2nd playoff appearance and hopes of getting their first playoff series win. While the Portland Clippers made their return after missing last season's playoffs and hopes of a playoff series win since 1974 playoffs. Games one and two were Highlanders (4-2, 6-1) as Jaune Poulette made 10 points (3G, 7A) to give the Highlanders two games to none lead. In Portland, the Clippers turn it around in the third period to force overtime, but the Highlanders Kyle Patrick scored the overtime winner 4-3 to take three games to none lead. In-game four, the Clippers did it again, but this time Frank Logan scored 2 straight goals to give the Clippers a 5-3 game four win to try to stay alive in this series. Back at New Glasgow, the Highlanders took game five into their hands as Jaune Poulette scored 2 goals, Kyle Patrick scored two goals as well the biggest was Guy Dubois made 4 assists, the highest in his hockey career as New Glasgow won it 5-2 and move on to the 2nd round for the first time in team history with the series win 4 games to 1.

4th Sherbrooke Loups vs. 5th Moncton Bears

Fans came together in the jampack Patinoire de Sherbrooke as the Loups were ready for what they are hoping for a deep playoff run one last time before saying goodbye to the old barn, but the Bears have other ideas. The Bears played very well in game one as they held the Loups off with a 4-2 win. In-game two, the Loups got revenge as they blanked the Bears 5-0 to even the series one game apiece and headed over to Moncton. In-game three in Moncton, the Bears and the Loups battled all the way to overtime. In the end, Bears forward Andrew Jones, who has been quiet all season, made some noise in this series and scored the overtime winner as Moncton took the series lead with a game three win 3-2. Game four was just like game three, it went all the way to overtime, and just like game three, Andrew Jones scored the O/T winner 4-3 to take the series lead three games to one. In Sherbrooke, the Loups are in a hole going into game five, but they are not going down on their turf as Christian Dupont leads the Loups with 5 points (2G, 3A) in a 6-3 win to force game six after the game fans stood up and gave the Loups a standing ovation as the Loups heads to Moncton for game six in hopes to force a game seven. Even thou the Loups got more goals than the Bears in this series, it was not enough as Moncton beat the Loups 3-1 game six win, thanks to Andrew Jones 3 goals to end the Loups season and move on to the 2nd round with the series win 4 games to 2.

Round 2

1st Verdun Knights vs. 5th Moncton Bears

The Knights are one series away from going to the finals, but the problem is both Josh Lucas and Max Victor both are on injured reserve, and Nick Leflamme got the flu, so they are short 3 stars which could be what the Bears need to get payback from being swept from last season. In-game one, the Bears had a big lead after the first period with a score of 4-0; when the second period started, the Knights fought back as rookie forward Tom Acomb made 2 goals and an assist to make it 4-3 as the second period came to an end, the third period started, and the Knights tied it thanks to defence Rob Grand-Pierre scored it, with 2:14 left in the third forward Larry Kuntz scored the game-winner as the Knights take game one 5-4. In-game number two, the Knights top three stars is still on the IR list, but the Bears had a hard time scoring goals against rookie goalie Andre Perreault was a brick wall after letting in 4 goals from game one, as the first period turned to the second period, Tom Acomb scored a goal, followed by Rob Grand-Pierre one goal to make it 2-0, as the third period ticking down the Bears did everything, they can to do to score at least one goal but Andre Perreault held on as the third period came to an end, and the rookie goalie made history by becoming the youngest goalie to earn a playoff shut-out at the age of 15, the final score 3-0. Andre Perreault may let in just 3 goals, but the Knights scored 6 goals as they take game three from Moncton 6-3. Before game four, news came out that Nick Leflamme was healthy and ready. Still, Knights head coach Nathen Giguere chose to sit him out to be prepared for the Bronz Cup championship. So Andre Perreault got the nod to start, the Bears did score 2 goals, but the Knights scored 4 goals thanks to the returning duo of Josh Lucas (2G, 1A) and Max Victor (1G, 3A) for a game four win 4-2 as the for the second year in a row the Verdun Knights swept the Moncton Bears 4 games to 0.

2nd Cape Breton Warriors vs. 3rd New Glasgow Highlanders

The battle of Nova Scotia could not be higher than ever as the winner of this series will go to the Bronz Cup championship. In-game one, the Warriors Luke Davis made 5 points (2G, 3A) in a 6-2 win. But in game two, the Highlanders take it with a 4-1 win thanks to Jaune Poulette’s 4 points (2G, 2A) game playing. In-game three, the Warriors came back on top 3-1 win over the Highlanders. The Highlanders tied the series up in-game four with a 5-2 win over the Warriors. In Cape Breton, Shane Abrams made only 3 points (1G, 2A), but it was enough for the Warriors 3-2 win to take game five. Highlanders Kyle Patrick helped the team with his 4 points (2G, 2A) performance to even the series with a 4-2 game six win. It is all come down to game seven. It was a back and forth in both the first and the second periods. Going into the third period, the Warriors had the lead 4-2 until Guy Dubois shocked everyone by scoring two straight goals to tie it up; 3:21 left into the third, Jaune Poulette scored the tie-breaker goal to give the Highlanders a lead, as the clock ticking away the Warriors pulled their goalie for an extra attacker to try to tie the game, but it was too late as the clock hit zero, the Highlanders win game seven 5-4 to win the series 4 games to 3, and for the first time in the team’s five years of existence the New Glasgow Highlanders are going to the Bronz Cup Championship.

1980 Bronz Cup Championship

1st Verdun Knights vs. 3rd New Glasgow Highlanders

The Verdun Knights are in the Bronz Cup finals for the second time in the team’s history. For New Glasgow, it is their first shot for their first championship win. In Verdun, the Knight's top goalie Nick Leflamme is back between the pipes after missing out on the 2nd round from the flu. His performance was like in round one held off shots throughout the game. Larry Kuntz scored two goals in the third period as the Knights took game one with a 3-0 shutout win. In-game two, the Highlanders kept the Knights from scoring but not enough as Max Victor scored a game-winner in a 1-0 win for the Knights. In New Glasgow, both teams’ defence held up as the third period ended and headed into overtime. Five minutes left in overtime, Larry Kuntz got a breakaway and scored the winner as the Knights win game three in overtime 1-0. Game number four was back and forth in the first period, as the second period started the Knights Josh Lucas scored two goals within a minute, after that they held the Highlanders off all the way to the end of the game and the Verdun Knights celebrated with the 2-0 game four wins, the series 4 games to 0, and Josh Lucas rise the Bronz Cup as the 1980 AQHL Bronz Cup Champions. The Knights will rest for the next two days. After that, they are heading to Nanaimo, B.C., for the 1980 Valor Cup tournament.



Next Post: 1980 CIHA Valor Cup Tournament

1980 CIHA Valor Cup Tournament

Standings:
1. Barrie Admirals
2. Abbotsford Forest Kings
3. Verdun Knights
4. Nanaimo Sharks

Story:
Before the tournament began, all four teams came together at the Nanaimo Hall with the tournament's new rules to announcements. One of the new rules is that the 4th seed team can qualify for the semi-finals if they win 2 games of the now expanded 6 games. If they cannot, they are eliminated, even winning just one game, and the first seed team moves on to the finals. Another announcement was made is the Waterloo Maroons will host the 1981 CIHA Valor Cup tournament. The next one was the Valor Star tournament, an All-star event that will start this June. Finally, CIHA President Joseph McGeorge announced that after both the Valor Cup and the Valor Star, he is no longer the CIHA President as he will hand that job over to Randy Howard, who is happy to take the role, “it is an honour to take a role to keep an eye on all three leagues, I’m excited to get to work with some of the best minds here at the CIHA.”

Round-Robin
The Nanaimo Sharks started the tournament with a 2-1 win over the Barrie Admirals, the Sharks would win one more 4-2 over the Abbotsford Forest Kings, after that they went on losing the last four games to finished 4th, luckily for them, they got 2 wins which they will play in the semi-finals. The Abbotsford Forest Kings and the Verdun Knights made history by ending their matchup in a 2-2 tie. They would face each other on the last day of the round-robin where Abbotsford beat Verdun in a 4-2 must-win game to go to the semi-finals as both finished with the same record of 2-3-1 with the Forest Kings win, they are placed 2nd while the Knights finished 3rd. The Barrie Admirals lost the tournament opener to the Nanaimo Sharks, but after that, they won the rest, including a 7-1 blowout win over the Sharks to finish 1st place with a 5-1 record.

Semi-Finals
Barrie Admirals vs. Nanaimo Sharks

In the first period, the Admirals were all over Shark’s goalie Oscar Williams, 24 shots were made, and Oscar let in 4 goals as the first period ended. The Admirals were pretty much in a comfort zone. As the second period passed, the Sharks scored 2 goals, but the Admirals held on until the second period ended with a 4-2. The Admirals held their ground in the third period in a big way; as the clock turned to 1:34 left, Dylan Bouchard scored one more to complete a hat-trick, and with that, the game is over, and the Admirals is heading to the Valor Cup Championship beating the Sharks 5-2.

Abbotsford Forest Kings vs. Verdun Knights

Right off the gate, the Knights were firing shots from left to right until Josh Lucas finally scored a goal on Forest Kings goalie Frank Ford; the first period came to an end with the Knights on top 1-0. The Forest Kings came back as Ed Bram scored two goals, and the second period came to an end as the score was 2-1 Forest Kings. In the third, the Knights kept on shooting, but Frank Ford was holding his ground; as the clock was ticking away, the Knights pulled their goalie for an extra attacker to tie the game it didn’t work as Luke White flipped the puck up in the air and it slides right to the empty net, after that the third period came to an end and the Forest Kings wins it 3-1 and headed to the 1980 Valor Cup finals.

1980 Valor Cup Finals
Barrie Admirals vs. Abbotsford Forest Kings

Abbotsford had a hard time scoring against Barrie in the round-robin as the Admirals outscored the Forest Kings 9-2. In the first period, the Forest Kings may have finally found a way to outplay the Admirals as forward Jack Lazar, in his second season with the Forest Kings, scored a goal that the Admirals defence did not see it coming it raddle them good, as the first period came to an end with the score of 1-0. The second period was tight between the two teams; midway into the second, another Forest Kings player that the Admirals defence did not expect, and that would be rookie forward Ryan Wedgewood, who sneaked into a breakaway and scored to make it 2-0. Everything fell apart for the Admirals as both Ed Bram and Luke White scored two goals, and Barrie scored two goals. Still, it was too late as the horn sounded off to end the game with the score of 6-2, and the Abbotsford Forest Kings are the 1980 CIHA Valor Cup Champions. The Valor Cup MVP, Ed Bram, lifted the cup over his head in front of his teammates as the celebration began.


Next Post: 1980 CIHA off-season

1980 Off-season part 2


New CIHA President Randy Howard had been checking out all three league drafts this year, and he saw some numbers of players from Europe being drafted. He may consider putting together an import draft, but the numbers are not big enough. But if more Europe players are being drafted next year, then Randy and the trio presidents would be in a meeting about creating the import draft.

With new uniforms made by the KI-LO, all three Presidents announced that teams will have to wear white jerseys in their home games and dark uniforms for road games. The only teams that did not sit well with them were the Lethbridge Cougars, who wore their green jerseys at 90% of all their home and road games, and the Saskatoon Cats were at 90% of both home and road games in white.

After rumours turned into real news, James Name announced that two new teams would be added to the WCLH. The two teams are from B.C., one from Chilliwack and the other from Surrey. Both got arenas to play in, and the owners successfully put together a staff. The only thing left for them is the expansion draft which will happen after the 1980-81 season; after that, both teams will be ready for the 1981-82 season.


The 1980-81 season marks the Lethbridge Cougars' 75th anniversary. Once started as an amateur pro club in the early 1900s until 1939, the team lost half of the roster to WW2. To keep the team afloat, they brought in some young players younger than 18. In 1946 WW2 ended, but the amateur pro league they were part of ceased operation. They decided to change their status as a junior club with nowhere else to go and a roster full of under 18-year-old players. They played different junior leagues until, in 1950, they found a league to stay put known as the WCLH. One year into the WCLH, the Cougars won their first Jade Trophy by beating the league's first champions, the Edmonton Bulldogs; after that, they won four more titles before the league joined with two other leagues to form the CIHA. In 1975 the Cougars won their first Valor Cup championship. They will wear unique uniforms just for the 1980-81 season. After that, they will go back to their regular set.


It's official, Gerald Herbco is no longer the owner of the Kitchener Generals; the ownership belongs to Todd Holmes, it took four years for Todd to finish the purchase of the team, and with Todd now the team owner, the OMJHA rules go if became the owner of a club that person cannot be GM nor coach of the team with that Todd announced that Tyler Shaw will be the new G.M. of the Kitchener Generals, Tyler used to be assistant G.M. with the Barrie Admirals. The Generals will move forward into the Todd Holmes era without Patrick Herbco as he chose to commit to a pro hockey career as he got drafted by the Ottawa pro hockey club 5th overall.
The Kitchener Generals are not the only team that the ownership changed hands; it was announced that Patrick Tobin has sold the Oshawa Diamonds to Prime Motors, and the President of Prime Motors said in an interview that they are going to rename the team after the 1980-81 season, many fans felt that they should keep the name. Still, at the same time, they understand because Hornet Co. got a vehicle named Diamond.

The day after the OMJHA draft, Franklin Name felt ill after meeting with doctors; he was diagnosed with heart disease. Two days after that, Franklin announced that he was stepping down from his job and named Tom Van Ryan the new President of the OMJHA. Tom is a big-shot lawyer from Toronto who got a good knowledge of the league, but many other owners felt that he is being too distracted over his vision of adding more teams which shows that within two weeks in his job, he said two teams for the 1982-83 season the locations are Brantford and Orillia. Many owners questioned his focus on growing the league than helping teams that had financial problems.

One team that is having financial issues is the Burlington Metros; despite sell-outs, games to even making a profit but for some odd reason, they are losing money which angered the team's owner John Lewis who demands answers on what is going on with the bank company, but Tom Van Ryan told John that everything will be okay and will find answers soon. There are signs that John Lewis could be jumping off the OMJHA wagon and joining the SWOHL; if that happens, it would be a big blow to the league in a bad way.

Paul Name got some good news; he found some businessmen putting some good money into building new arenas for Val-d'Or and Rouyn-Noranda. If things go well, both could start in time for the 1982-83 season. Many questions "what about other cities outside of Quebec?" so far, only one and that one is from Charlottetown P.E.I. the town still got a minor pro hockey team there, but after the 1981-82 season ends, that team will relocate elsewhere, and the town will join the AQHL for the 1983-84 season.
The Sherbrooke Loups office just moved into their brand-new arena named the Arena Commemorative de Sherbrooke (Sherbrooke Memorial Arena), with a capacity of 4000. It could add more seats to the arena if they want to. Allen Poulette Jr is happy with the new arena. "Today is a great day; ever since I took over the team from my father, my goal was for this team to get a new arena to be built, and I did just that now with the team being rebuilt to be the top team in the league we will have a good run in our new arena." Allen Jr. said in an interview with the Sherbrooke Post. The team will also enter their new arena with a new look as the KI-LO jersey deal is required league-wide. The Loups took advantage of it along with other teams across the leagues, as their set will be showcased during the 1980 CIHA Valor Star Tournament.

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