OHL Alumni Central

The 2007-08 Kitchener Rangers finished atop the Ontario Hockey League during the regular season with 110 points, earning them the Hamilton Spectator Trophy. The Rangers finished 28 points ahead of Midwest Division rival, the London Knights. The Rangers bulldozed the Plymouth Whalers, Sarnia Sting and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, losing just one game to the Hounds, enroute to a Robertson Cup showdown with the Belleville Bulls. The Bulls took the Rangers to seven games but Kitchener came out victorious.

Justin Azevedo was awarded the Eddie Powers Trophy as the OHL’s top scorer with 124 points on 43 goals and 81 assists in 67 games. Azevedo was also awarded the Red Tilson Trophy as the most outstanding player in the Ontario Hockey League. Other major award winners included goaltender Josh Unice winning the Dinty Moore Trophy and Nick Spaling winning the William Hanley Trophy.

Kitchener hosted the Memorial Cup and, despite finishing the round robin with one win and two losses, the Rangers made it to the final game against the Spokane Chiefs of the WHL. Spokane won the game 4-1 to become Memorial Cup champions. Belleville finished the round robin with two wins and loss but Kitchener had their way with the Bulls in the semi-final game, winning 9-0. The Gatineau Olympiques were the representative from the QMJHL. The infamous dropping of the Memorial Cup incident occurred when the Chiefs were receiving the trophy after beating the Rangers.

Of the players that played at least one game with the Rangers during the 2007-08 season, including those that were traded away before the playoffs, 26 are still actively playing in 2011-12. A remarkable seven each are in the NHL and AHL. Eight are taking advantage of the CHL scholarship program and are playing for teams in the CIS. Two are in the ECHL, one is in Switzerland and one is still a member of the Kitchener Rangers. Coach Peter DeBoer is now the head coach of the NHL’s New Jersey Devils.

Here’s where the 26 are playing (as of Jan. 7, 12):

The 2001-02 Erie Otters weren’t the best team during the Ontario Hockey League’s regular season, although close. However, in the Robertson Cup playoffs, the Otters won 16 games while losing just five in capturing the championship. Erie took out the Sarnia Sting, London Knights and Windsor Spitfires before facing the Barrie Colts in the Robertson Cup finals. Erie took out Barrie in five games and earned a berth at the Memorial Cup tournament. The Otters lost in the semi-final to Victoriaville in overtime. The Kootenay Ice of the WHL were crowned Memorial Cup champions in the tournament held in Guelph, Ontario.

Ten members of the 2001-02 Erie Otters are still actively playing in professional hockey today. Three were originally first round picks at the NHL Entry Draft and three are currently still playing in the National Hockey League.

Tommy Lee played goal for the Otters in 2001-02 and with the Barrie Colts in 2002-03 and 2003-04. He is currently playing for the Brooklyn Aviators of the Federal Hockey League (FHL).

Adam Munro played goal for Erie from 1998-99 to midway through 2002-03 when he was traded to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds to complete his final OHL season. Munro was a first round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks at the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, 29th overall. Adam is currently playing for Székesfehérvár in Austria’s Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL).

Chris Campoli played defense for the Otters from 2000-01 to 2003-04. Campoli was a seventh round pick of the New York Islanders at the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, 227th overall. Chris is currently playing for the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens.

Carlo Colaiacovo was a member of the Erie Otters from 1999-00 to 2002-03. Colaiacovo was a first round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs at the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, 17th overall. Carlo is currently playing for the St. Louis Blues.

Brian Lee played defense for Erie from 2000-01 to 2004-05. Lee was a third round pick of the Anaheim Ducks at the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, 71st overall. Brian is playing in Italy’s Lega Italiana Hockey su Ghiaccio (LIHG) for Vipiteno.

Brad Boyes played with the Otters for four seasons, his final being the 2001-02 season. Brad was a first round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs at the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, 24th overall. Boyes is now a member of the Buffalo Sabres.

Scott Dobben started his Ontario Hockey League career with the Otters in 2000-01. He was traded to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds during the 2002-03 season and finished off his OHL career with the Hounds in 2003-04. Scott was a fourth round pick of the Ottawa Senators at the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, 113th overall. Dobben is currently playing for the Cardiff Devils in Great Britain’s EIHL.

Olexander Karaulshuk played for the Otters from 2001-02 to 2003-04. Karaulshuk is playing in the Ukraine for Berkut Kiev.

Michal Kokavec played just one season in the Ontario Hockey League, 2001-02. Kokavec is currently playing for HC Banska Bystrica in Slovakia.

Corey Pecker began his Ontario Hockey League career with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in 1997-98 and came over to the Erie Otters during the 2000-01 season. 2001-02 was his final season in the OHL. Pecker was a sixth round pick of the Calgary Flames at the 1999 NHL Entry Draft, 166th overall. Cory is in Switzerland, playing for Olten of the Swiss National League ‘B’.

The Barrie Flyers took it all in 1952-53, they were first place in league play, won the Robertson Cup over the St. Michael’s Majors and took the Memorial Cup with a victory over the St. Boniface Canadiens. The franchise would also achieve Mem Cup success as the Niagara Falls Flyers but, so far, not as the Sudbury Wolves. One of the major factors in Barrie’s success was the play of centre Don McKenney.

Find Don McKenney rookie cards on eBay, right now!

1954-55 Topps #35 - Don McKenney rookie card.

A little bit of an unsung hero in the hockey world, McKenney is not enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame but does have a pretty impressive list of achievements. He played two seasons with the Flyers, 1951-52 and 1952-53, scoring over 30 goals each season. In the days before the draft, Barrie was sponsored by the NHL’s Boston Bruins. After a year with the American Hockey League’s Hershey Bears, McKenney found his way to Boston.

In his first season with the Bruins, McKenney was the runner-up for the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year after leading Boston in points with 42 in 69 games. Each season he played with Boston, Don was typically first or second in team scoring. He led the team in 1956-57 and 1958-59.

Overall, he was in the top ten NHL point-getters four times, all between 1956-57 and 1959-60. His only major individual award was the Lady Byng Trophy in 1959-60.

He was an integral part of the 1963-64 Toronto Maple Leafs Stanley Cup victory. A late season pickup from the New York Rangers, McKenney contributed 12 points in 12 games on the way to the Cup. Previously, with Boston, he reached the finals after the Bruins finished fourth in the six team league and upset the Rangers in the first round before losing to the Montreal Canadiens in the finals. That playoff season, McKenney scored nine and added eight assists for 17 points in just 12 games.

McKenney played in the NHL from 1954-55 to 1965-66 with the Bruins, Rangers, Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings. He made it back in 1967-68 with 39 games in a St. Louis Blues uniform. He continued to play in the American Hockey League until the end of the 1969-70 season. With the Pittsburgh Hornets in 1966-67, he won another championship in yet another league as the Hornets took the Calder Cup in their final year of existence. His swan song, of sorts, came in 1968-69 with the Providence Reds, putting up 74 points and finishing eighth in AHL scoring.

Don McKenney’s rookie hockey card appears in the 1954-55 Topps series, the first hockey set produced by Topps. Although Gordie Howe’s card is valued at $1800, McKenney’s is the highest valued rookie card at $80, according to Beckett Hockey Monthly.

Don went on to coach several years at Northeastern University in the U.S., last coaching in 1990-91.

For Ontario Hockey League grad Rob Schremp, 2010-11 seemed looked like the year he’d finally crossed the mountain and became a full-fledged National Hockey League regular. However, Schremp has left the NHL and North America behind to play for MODO of Sweden’s Elitserien for the 2011-12 season.

Rob Schremp as a member of the AHL's Springfield Falcons.

Schremp played four season in the Ontario Hockey League from 2002-03 to 2005-06. He began his career with the Mississauga IceDogs and won the Emms Family Award as OHL rookie of the year in his first season, playing along side fellow American born player, Patrick O’Sullivan.

In 2003-04, after just three games with the IceDogs in which he average two points per game, Rob was traded to the London Knights. He scored 28 goals and totalled 90 points with London that season. The following year, he increased his point total to 90 on 41 goals and added another 29 points in the playoffs as the Knights won the Robertson Cup and Memorial Cup.

2005-06 was by far Schremp’s most productive in the Ontario Hockey League. His 57 goals, 88 assists and 145 points in just 57 games were all league highs. He won the Eddie Powers Trophy as the league’s top point-getter but was denied the Red Tilson Trophy as MVP which went to Wojtek Wolski of the Brampton Battalion.

In both his final two seasons in the Ontario Hockey League, Schremp played for Team USA at the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships. In both years, USA was denied the podium, taking fourth place in both tournaments.

Rob was taken by the Edmonton Oilers in the first round of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, 25th overall. In his first pro season, he played just one regular season with the Oilers while spending the rest of his time in the AHL with the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins. The following season, he doubled his total of NHL games with two. He was the ninth leading point-getter during the 2007-08 season, contributing 67 for the Springfield Falcons.

2008-09 saw him double his NHL games from the previous season again. He played four games for the Edmonton Oilers, registering his first NHL points with three assists. A trade to the New York Islanders organization in saw him finally play a significant amount of games with 44. He produced 25 points for the Islanders, including seven goals in those 44 games.

This past season, Schremp started out with the Islanders, playing 45 games. He finished the season with the Atlanta Thrashers, playing 18 more games.

Mike Duco played five seasons in the Ontario Hockey League from 2003-04 to 2007-08, although he played just five games in 2003-04. Duco played his entire OHL career with the Kitchener Rangers and ended his time in junior with a Robertson Cup as OHL playoff champions and a trip to the Memorial Cup.

The 2007-08 Kitchener Rangers hosted the 2008 Memorial Cup and made it to the final game. Unfortunately, the Spokane Chiefs won the final, 4-1. The tournament capped a fine season for Mike, scoring 32 goals during the regular season and totalling 22 points in 20 playoff games.

Duco went undrafted by an NHL club but signed with the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League. Despite a ten game stint with the NHL’s Florida Panthers in 2009-10 and two games in 2010-11, Mike has spent all his pro career with Rochester.

2011-12 will bring a change in scenery for Duco. Mike has become property of the Vancouver Canucks and will most likely play the upcoming season with their brand new AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. Prior to the upcoming season, the Manitoba Moose had been the AHL affiliate for the Canucks but with the rebirth of NHL hockey in Winnipeg, things have changed.