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The Oakville Blades fell a couple of wins shy of collecting the Buckland Cup for the third time in 2010-2011, dropping a hard-fought series to a well-rested Wellington Dukes hockey club. 

It was Oakville’s fourth straight appearance in the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) championship series, setting a provincial record for the most consecutive appearances in the Junior ‘A’ final.  By appearing in the Buckland Cup from 2007-2008 through 2010-2011 Oakville have played more regular season and playoff games than any other Junior ‘A’ team in Canada since the start of 2007, save for perhaps the back-to-back defending RBC Cup champion Vernon Vipers of the BCHL (the BCHL plays a 60-game regular season schedule compared to the OJHL’s 50). 

The club has played 308 games during that span, an average of 77 per season, and amassed a record of 229-66-13, good for a remarkable winning percentage of 0.765%.

As is the case with Junior ‘A’ hockey every season, the team will graduate a large portion of their roster and say goodbye to some household names involved with hockey in Oakville over the past few years:

Daniel Savelli (G, 1990) – Dan joined Oakville in 2009-2010 after collecting a Sutherland Cup Jr. B championship in Brantford in 2009 and immediately made an impact in Oakville.  He went 21-2-0 in his first season and helped lead the team to the 2010 Dudley Hewitt Cup championship in Sault Ste Marie, ON and the RBC Cup in Dauphin, MB.  In 2010-2011 he went 22-11-2 and played in every playoff game going 13-8-2.  Dan is still in the process of finalizing his hockey plans for next fall, but will be heading to the NCAA (DI or DIII) or CIS.

Nick Rivait (D, 1990) – Nick came to the Blades from Leamington in the Jr. B loop and played on the Dudley Hewitt championship team and RBC Cup team last year.  He was the team captain in 2010-2011 and picked up 66 points in 98 games as a Blade with 59 PIM.  Nick will be looking at both NCAA DIII and CIS offers as the summer approaches and will certainly continue his career in the fall of 2011.

Mark Corbett (D, 1990) – Mark was acquired after the Couchiching Terriers ceased operations after the 2009-2010 season and played a full year with Oakville.  Put up 4-12-16 in 46 games as a Blade and will be looking to play NCAA DIII or CIS hockey in the fall.

Pat Sitko (D, 1990) – Pat was a great acquisition during the season, picked up from the Flin Flon Bombers of the SJHL.  He reunited with Kitchener friend Kyle Cromie on the Blades back end and provided much needed offense for the playoff run.  Having played away from home in Cornwall, ON then Flin Flon, MB and now Oakville, ON, he plans on returning home for awhile before figuring out his destination for the fall of 2011.

Kyle Cromie (D, 1990) – Kyle spent the entire 2010-2011 season in Oakville after playing with both Pembroke and Brockville in the CJHL.  He was a tough competitor on D and picked up 15 assists this season in 35 games.  What many people outside the organization did not know was that Kyle made a comeback in the Georgetown playoff series months earlier than expected after cutting an artery in his wrist in December of 2010.   The injury was quite similar to that suffered by Kellan Lain during the Wellington series in 2009.

Mark McGowan (F, 1990) – Mark was household name to fans of the OJHL’s Western Division for the past four (4) seasons.  One of the best two-way players in all of the OJHL his steady play and offensive output did not go unnoticed as he received a scholarship to continue his hockey career at RPI in the fall of 2011.

Josh Ranalli (F, 1990) – A Blade from 2009-2011, Josh was an offensive threat for his entire stay in Oakville, scoring 51 goals over the past two season and totalling 117 points.  Still garnering a lot of interest from a trio of NCAA schools, he will be finalizing his destination soon for the fall of 2011.

Joel Senecal (F, 1990) – Joel was a late season pick-up from Trenton and added much needed depth at C for the playoff run.  A QMJHL veteran, he will be looking to hook-up with a CIS school for the fall.

Mark Bennett (F, 1991) – Mark, an Oakville native and former Midget AAA player in town, will be heading to Union College in the fall to play alongside former captain Jeremy Welsh and former captain Michael Ingoldsby.  Mark amassed 105 points in 118 games as an Oakville Blade.

Kyle Lysaght (F, 1990) – The lone American (Marietta, GA) on the roster, Kyle endeared himself to the Canadian fans over the past couple of seasons, battling on the ice and having a knack for finding the net.  He scored 78 goals in 148 games in Oakville – perhaps his biggest coming against Kingston in Game 6 OT to keep the season alive in late-March.  Next fall he will be returning closer to home, playing NCAA DI hockey for the Alabama Huntsville Chargers program.

While it is always emotional to say goodbye to graduating members of the team, the club is also extremely excited at the prospect of returning up to 14 players for next fall.

Defensively, the team expects back 1991 G James Prigione (Guelph, ON), 1992 D Brad Ryan (Mississauga, ON), 1992 D Matt Braun (Mississauga, ON), 1991 F/D Stephen Hickey (Ancaster, ON) and 1992 D Phil Hampton (Oakville, ON). 

Brad attended the Team Canada East evaluation camp and played extremely well all season and through the playoffs, with 1-19 for 20 points and  a +29 rating in the regular season while leading the team in plus/minus with a +16 rating in the playoffs.

Phil played for Team Canada East at the World Jr. A Challenge and turned out to be an excellent acquisition for the 2010-2011 season.

Matt Braun played his best hockey from February onward, bringing his OHL and OJHL experience from the past few seasons to the forefront and providing the Blades with some great defensive hockey with a +5 rating in the playoffs.

Stephen Hickey, who played both F and D this year is also expected back and fits in at the top of both positions on the depth chart regardless of where he plays.

Up front 1991 F’s Kyle Blaney (Burlington, ON), Stefan Thompson (Waterloo, ON), and Tyler Karius (Oakville, ON) will be back.  1992 F’s Nick Scamurra (Mississauga, ON), Lucas Tucciarone (Mississauga, ON) and Brandon Denham (Milton, ON) will also be back.  1993 F’s Braedan Russell (Oakville, ON) and Bradley Korbryn (Burlington, ON) will return, as will 1994 F Brandon Johnston (Oakville, ON).

Blaney, Thompson and Karius all played crucial roles on the top lines during the season and playoffs and should provide some of the highest powered offence in the OJHL next year as overagers.  Blaney and Karius both have a Dudley Hewitt Cup to their credit while Thompson has posted 117 PTS in 94 GMS in the OJHL and 19 PTS more in 23 playoff games this spring.

Denham attended the Team Canada East evaluation camp last fall and both Russell and Kobryn had extremely successful seasons as rookies this past year.  Both Johnston and Scamurra suffered injuries at different points in the season and will use the summer to get healthy and return to the line-up next fall in top shape, while Lucas Tucciarone provided depth on F after coming over at the deadline from the now defunct Dixie program.

The team will begin preparations for 2011-2012 starting the last week of April by holding their goaltender rookie camp and player rookie camp.  Registration information is available by clicking on the ‘Rookie Camp’ icon on the homepage.

The entire organization would like to extend their gratitude to their loyal fan base, the Town of Oakville, as well as Cogeco TV for all of their support during their inaugural season at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex.

Last but not least, a big thank you to the volunteers involved with the program and the players for another great season of hockey in Oakville on the ice.

Check the website all summer long for updated information including the team award winners, golf tournament registration, fundraising events and details regarding the OJHL heading into 2011-2012.