Edmonton Oil Kings Win 2014 Memorial Cup In Honour Of Late Kristian Pelss

The Edmonton Oil Kings dramatically advanced to the championship game of the 2014 Memorial Cup and then upset the Guelph Storm to win junior hockey's biggest prize.

The Oil Kings had to beat Val d'Or in a marathon overtime - the longest game in Memorial Cup history - during the tourney, then downed Guelph 6-3 in the final game. Henrik Samuelsson, the son of former NHL star Ulf Samuelsson scored 2 goals and assisted on three others to lead the way on Sunday.

Samuelsson and the rest of his Oil Kings teammates had a fallen teammate on their mind the entire tourney. The team fondly carried the jersey and memories of former Oil Kings' player Kristian Pelss. Two years ago Pelss was a member of the Edmonton team that won a Western Hockey League championship and lost their Memorial Cup tiebreaker in Shawinigan, Que. Last year the 20-year-old Latvian died when his car drove off a bridge in Riga.

The loss of Pelss hit the team hard, particularly the 8 remaining players who had previously played with Pelss. They dedicated this season to him.

“Everyone knows about the passing of Kristian Pelss,” Henrik Samuelsson said. “He was a good buddy of mine. I know he was watching over us today and he definitely had a part of it.”

This is the first Memorial Cup championship for this incarnation of the Edmonton Oil Kings.

For the city of Edmonton this is the first Memorial Cup championship to celebrate since 1963 and 1966. The original Oil Kings was a real powerhouse back then. In addition to the two championships they finished as runner up in 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964 and 1965.  Notable alumni include Glen Sather, Pat Quinn, Doug Messier (father of Mark Messier), Al Hamilton, Ross Lonsberry, Garnet "Ace" Bailey and manager Wild Bill Hunter (one of the founders of the WHA). Their stick boy was Swede Knox, soon to be a long time NHL linesman.

The 1966 Memorial Cup champion Edmonton Oil Kings are pictured below:

Punch McLean and the 1977 New Westminster Bruins

The New Westminster Bruins are no more, but they were once a junior hockey dynasty. Imagine that. Vancouver area fans cheering on the Bruins.

Ernie "Punch" McLean is still a legend in British Columbia. Stan Smyl was the favorite adopted son, and continued to be when he graduated to the Vancouver Canucks of the NHL. Other New West players of note include Barry Beck, Ron Greschner, Mark Lofthouse, and John Ogrodnick.

Then there was Brad Maxwell. There were some extremely high expectations placed upon Brad Maxwell's shoulders as a junior hockey star with the New Westminster Bruins.

Drafted 7th overall by the Minnesota North Stars in 1977 Maxwell was a key figure in coach Punch McLean's legendary junior team in the suburb of Vancouver. Barry Beck got most of the attention from NHL scouts (he was drafted 2nd overall in 1977) but Maxwell was every bit as coveted.

One report even mentioned Maxwell in comparisons to the incredible Bobby Orr. What Orr did for the Boston Bruins Maxwell did for the New West Bears. He was able to control the flow of the game single-handedly. He was a fine rushing defenseman, but also, like the rest of coach McLean's team, a tough as nails player as well.

"We definitely had a big team," recalled Maxwell, "and we were very tough. But I don't think we were goons. Thinking back over all the hockey games I've played in, and all the game I've watched, I've never seen anybody hurt bad in a fight. We did a lot of fighting in those years, but it was because Ernie (Punch McLean) foresaw the changing scene. He knew that big tough players were the next NHLers and that's how built his great teams."

Appearances in the Memorial Cup were the norm for the Bruins of the late 1970s. Maxwell played a huge role in the 1977 Championship, played right in the Bruins home, the Queen's Park Arena. He scored an exciting end to end goal against the Ottawa 67's to clinch the Bruins victory in the final game.

The Bruins entered the third period with a commanding 5-2 lead, but somehow watched it evaporate. The 67's tied the game at 5 and had all the momentum on their side. That's when Maxwell deflated the 67s once and for all.

Maxwell raced up the left boards. A nifty give-and-go pass with the almost unheard of Rocky Greenwood put Maxwell in on 67's goal Pat Riggin. Maxwell's shot found it's away through Riggin's legs as the fans erupted.

Anyone who was at that game still recalls the goal that gave the Bruins their first Memorial Cup championship.

"It was so great to win it in front of our hometown fans," remembered Smyl. "They were so into it, the north end gang from Queen's Park Arena and the bikers behind the Ottawa bench."

"A lot of people still talk about it. Sometimes when you're sharing memories it just seems like yesterday."

The Bruins were, more than anything, a group of hard workers, remembers Smyl. "We were so successful as an organization because we always played together. There was no superstar who carried the game. We were a team."

Mark Lofthouse gave a lot of credit to the talented core of defensemen.

"Look at who we had. Barry Beck, Brad Maxwell, Miles Zaharko, Brian Young. It was an awesome defence."

But so much of the credit had to go to the man behind the bench, Punch McLean. He instilled the tough, hard hitting style of play that intimidated the opposition on the small ice surface at Queen's Park. They emulated the NHL's Philadelphia Flyers to a large degree, leading to the copy-cat nickname the McBride Boulevard Bullies.

"McLean got the best out of the players no what size they were," said Smyl. "Players knew what they had to do, what their roles were, and they followed through and were committed. He was a player's coach."

"We were taught discipline and we were given respect. It's how I deal with situations and people now in business," says Lofthouse.

The Bruins would repeat as Memorial Cup champions in 1978 before the team's core graduated to the NHL. Of all the team members that Punch McLean coached, 41 played in the NHL totalling 5456 games played. 

But McLean is as proud of the kids who never made the NHL as the ones who did.

"Taking them away from their home and parents at that age was tough. you need to teach them discipline both on and off the ice. When kids play organized sports they learn very quickly the glory of winning and the frustration of losing. They can then take that philosophy to heart and put it to work in their business, or their life. It shows them there is a chance to win in whatever they do.

Spokane's Big Break

Congratulations goes out to the Spokane Chiefs, winners of the 89th Memorial Cup championship as the top team in all of junior hockey.



CTV NewsNet is reporting that this was actually a replica trophy as the 89 year old trophy remains in the Hockey Hall of Fame at all times.

Vancouver Giants Win Memorial Cup

The Vancouver Giants won the 2007 Memorial Cup in front of a hometown crowd as they defeated the Medicine Hat Tigers 3-1 in the Championship game on Sunday, May 27th at Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, B.C.

Hosting the Memorial Cup in Canada's third largest city was a huge success, as Vancouver set a new attendance record after just 7 matches.

The three major junior hockey leagues - the WHL, OHL and QMJHL - many of the franchises and the Memorial Cup itself are so incredibly rich in hockey history it is simply mind boggling.

I've never even truly scratched the surface on junior hockey history when it comes to my personal research. I've done some work on the World Junior Hockey Championships, but can never find enough time in the day to conquer the junior hockey history on top of it all.

So I present to you today some quick links and resources I found for those who are interested in junior hockey history.

Wikipedia - For a brief but concise look at the the history and story behind the Memorial Cup as well as a listing of all winners. You can also find links to individual Memorial Cup tournament trophies including lists of all winners, such as the Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy (MVP), George Parsons Trophy (Sportsmanship), Hap Emms Memorial Trophy (Outstanding Goaltender), Ed Chynoweth Trophy (Scoring Leader) and the Memorial Cup year by year All Star teams.

Interactive Memorial Cup - If you can't make it down to the Hockey Hall of Fame to see the famous trophy, check out this interactive model.

Also, there's a couple of excellent books to thumb through. Richard Lapp and Alec MacCaulay came up with The Memorial Cup : Canada's National Junior Hockey Championship. The book was published in 1997, so it is admittedly a bit dated but an excellent read on past tournaments.

Four years earlier Lapp teamed up with Silas White to look back at the hockey careers of some of the Western Hockey Leagues' greatest stars in Local Heroes : A History of the Western Hockey League. I thoroughly enjoy the book as it looks into individual player careers and circumstances, but it doesn't give a thorough history of the league or its' member teams.

I'd love to hear of some more online or in print resources to learn more about junior hockey/Memorial Cup history. Send me an email or leave a comment below!