1994-95 Detroit Jr. Red Wings

UNFINISHED BUSINESS ACCOMPLISHED

After coming so close to the OHL title for two seasons, the Jr. Wings figured to rebuild in 1994-95. There were several questions as the season started:

• Who would replace dominating scorers Kevin Brown and Bob Wren?
• After backing up for two seasons, could Jason Saal carry the load as a number one goaltender?
• Could the Jr. Wings find another goaltender to back up Saal?
• With Jim Rutherford moving to take over managing the NHL Hartford Whalers, could Paul Maurice effectively take over as the Jr. Wings' general manager?

In a year that featured high profile goaltenders around the OHL (Dan Cloutier, Jamie Storr, Zac Bierk, Tyler Moss and Kevin Weekes) Jason Saal answered questions about his ability to carry the load as the main man in goal early.

With Saal in goal, the Jr. Wings won their first 6 games (a franchise record), outscoring the opposition, 33-17.

DEALS, DEALS, DEALS = RACE TO FIRST PLACE

But Saal couldn't play every game. With goaltender Aaron Ellis trying to win a job with the Colorado Avalanche, rookie Chris Wilcox got the start October 8 in Niagara Falls and struggled as the Thunder handed the Jr. Wings their first defeat of the season.

Wilcox was sent to Jr. B after the return of Ellis, who struggled in 4 games.

Maurice solved the backup goaltending situation November 3 when he traded Ellis to Belleville and acquired Darryl Foster from Niagara Falls for future considerations. Foster provided excellent insurance for Saal, posting 3.38 goals against average in 18 appearances.

Maurice made another deal that seemed small at the time but had a major impact on the franchise when he acquired left wing Mike Morrone from Owen Sound for rookie centerman Steve Smith.

As the season unfolded, the Jr. Wings quickly developed into a balanced team that could play the game anyway you wanted. The team finished with a franchise best record of 44-18-4 for 92 points.

How balanced were they? The Jr. Wings had 46 points at home, 46 on the road. They weren't a flashy as the 1992-93 and 93-94 team, but better defensively. Detroit allowed a league-low 110 goals on the road. Although the Jr. Wings scored 306 goals (third best in the OHL), they didn't have a scorer in top 10 and just two (Bill McCauley and Sean Haggerty) in the top 20.

Detroit had to be good. The realigned OHL featured 6 good teams (Detroit, Windsor, Guelph, Sudbury, Kingston, Oshawa) who finished within 14 points.

The Jr. Wings fought Windsor for first place in the OHL West right down to the final couple of weeks in the regular season before pulling away. Key victories against Windsor down the stretch included 4-3 and 6-1 victories January 10th and 17th at Joe Louis Arena and then a dramatic 4-3 come-from-behind victory over the Spits before a sell-out crowd at the Joe March 5. Windsor had a 3-0 lead going into the third period but couldn't hold the lead.

Junior hockey in Detroit received a boost when the National Hockey League owners locked out their players until the middle of January. The Jr. Wings set an all-time Canadian Hockey League attendance record when 19,875 packed Joe Louis Arena February 5, 1995 in a 5-5 tie with Windsor.

Now playing its' fourth season at JLA, the Jr. Wings developed a loyal group of fans that filled the lower bowl. NHL scouts enjoyed the opportunity to watch the OHL in a big-league setting. Red Wings head coach Scotty Bowman was a regular at the games.

Looking to fill gaps in coverage, Red Wing broadcasters Dave Strader and Mickey Redmond broadcast games several games for PASS-TV. In addition, The Jr. Wings received regular coverage in the Detroit News and Free Press and found a friend in WDIV's Van Earl Wright.

Clearly, the Jr. Wings had arrived in Detroit.

As the team rolled on, several individuals enjoyed outstanding seasons. Bryan Berard's (20-55) status as the CHL's top prospect grew with every game as the rookie from Woonsocket, R.I. played with a rare combination of skill and grit.

His end-to-end rush through five players December 2 in Sault Ste. Marie to give the Jr. Wings a 2-2 tie remains one of the outstanding goals in franchise history. Rookie center Tom Buckley (30-36) proved to be an excellent compliment to McCauley (41-61) and Haggerty (40-49).

Matt Ball (35-44) was voted by West Division coaches as the Most Improved Player in the Coaches Poll. Local players Dan Pawlaczyk (24-28), Jeff Mitchell (30-30) and Scott Blair (12-24) added quality depth. Veteran Jamie Allison and Mike Rucinski continued to specialize in shutting down the opposition. Even veteran Todd Harvey - playing in the OHL while the NHL was locked out - contributed 8 goals with 14 assists in 11 games.

The OHL final trading deadline gave Maurice one last chance to bolster the team for the stretch run. A couple of weeks earlier, Shayne McCosh came back from the minor leagues to add depth to the blue line.

Maurice's final deal came January 25 when he sent defenseman Robin LaCour, left wing Dylan Seca and a draft choice to Kitchener for center Eric Manlow and left wing Andrew Taylor.

"Manlow's a solid veteran who's going to help us down the stretch," Maurice said at the time. "Taylor hasn't got a lot of ice time, but he could develop into something for the future."

Maurice proved to be right on the mark. Manlow scored 4 goals with 16 assists in 16 games. Like Morrone, Taylor proved to be a good player for a couple of years.

According to Rucinski, the Jr. Wings were a blend of talent, chemistry and hard work.

"They always told us my first couple of years we were very talented and that certainly was the case," he said. "Although we very talented (79-42-11 between 1992-94) we never made it to the Memorial Cup.

"Then my third year, they told us we were a good team but we probably wouldn't accomplish what the team did the previous years. Maybe we weren't as talented, but we were a great group with a lot of character. The third year, we made it to the Memorial Cup and it was a surprise for everybody.

"Sometimes it's not all the talent in the world. It's hard work and if the guys like each other, certain players play within their roles and do the best to their ability, things work out."

THE PLAYOFFS & A CLASSIC SEMI-FINAL

The Jr. Wings rolled through the first two rounds of the playoffs, sweeping London and Peterborough in the minimum of 8 games. The third round was a different story as Detroit met Sudbury. With the addition of Ethan Moreau and Jason Bonsignore at the trading deadline, the veteran Wolves were built specifically for the playoffs.

The first six games of the Sudbury-Detroit series proved to be as close as any series could be. Each team won in overtime in the other team's building; Detroit and Sudbury scored 19 goals apiece. The Jr. Wings avoided elimination in game six when they beat the Wolves, 2-1, before a sell-out crowd and hostile crowd at the Sudbury Arena. Shayne McCosh's goal proved to be the game wer.

Game 7 was anything but close. Morrone's well-placed elbow on Wolves' defenseman Rory Fitzpatrick late in the first period went undetected and seemed to turn the game in the Jr. Wings' favor. Detroit blew the game open on Sudbury goaltender Matt Mullin in the second period and moved to the OHL Finals with an 11-4 victory.

1 vs. 2 FOR THE ROBBIE

In the end the two top teams - the Jr. Wings (92 points) and Guelph (99 points) - met in the 1995 OHL Finals. Detroit and Guelph were similar in many ways. In 1990-91, the Jr. Wings (then the Ambassadors) won just 11 games in their inaugural season. In 1991-92, Guelph won just 4 games. But ever since, both teams were on the rise and became league powers.

Both teams featured head coaches - Paul Maurice and Craig Hartsburg - that would soon graduate to the National Hockey League. Both teams featured nine drafted NHL drafts aside. If Jason Saal was considered underrated when the season started, so was Guelph goaltender Mark McArthur.

Both teams featured good defense - Guelph led the league with 200 goals allowed, Detroit third overall (223). To summarize, both teams played the game the way it was supposed to be played.

The Guelph-Detroit final was nearly as close as the Sudbury-Detroit series.  Through five games, the Jr. Wings outscored Guelph 23-20 and lead the series 3-1. That set the stage for the greatest game in the franchise's short history.

Game 6 was a wide-open affair with Detroit going into the third period leading 4-3. But a Bryan Berard giveaway early in the period resulted in a Jeff Williams goal to tie the game.

But midway through the period, Berard made up for his mistake, following up on a scramble in front of the Guelph goal and scored to give the Jr. Wings a lead they would never relinquish.

With his team still trailing by one in the final minute, Hartsburg pulled McArthur. But Tom Buckley won a face-off in the Detroit zone in the final seconds and shot the puck down the ice. He pursued the puck deep in the Guelph end and when he nearly scored on the empty net, time expired.

The Jr. Wings won their first-ever championship on May 8, 1995.

Kamloops Bound!

It is often said that wing the Memorial Cup in the hardest championship the win. The Jr. Wings were going to find out first-hand as they traveled to Kamloops, B.C., joining the host Kamloops Blazers, the Brandon Wheat Kings and the Hull Olympiques.

The Jr. Wings split their first two games over the round robin, defeating Brandon, 4-3, and losing to host Kamloops, 5-4.

With Kamloops rolling undefeated through the tournament and Hull shut out entirely after losing to the Jr. Wings, 5-2 on May 17, Brandon and Detroit played in the semi-final May 20 for the right to meet Kamloops in the following afternoon.

In a tense, tight checking game, the Jr. Wings beat Brandon, 2-1 on a Milan Kostolny goal and faced Kamloops in the final.

The Riverside Coliseum was a sea of white as the pro-Blazers crowd was poised to celebrate a second consecutive Memorial Cup. Jr. Wing players later said playing in the finals was like playing the entire city of Kamloops.

Detroit started the game shorthanded, playing without Shayne McCosh (broken wrist) and Bryan Berard, trying to play with a bad charley horse.

The Blazers blew the game open in the second period, chasing Saal in favor of Foster, as Kamloops went on to win, 8-2.

Despite the loss, Saal and Sean Haggerty were named to the Memorial Cup's first all-star team.

The sad ending didn't diminish the accomplishments to a great season. A couple of years later, Maurice put the Jr. Wings season in perspective.

"I have a picture hanging in my office," Maurice said. "It's not a picture of us wing the championship but a picture of the crowd the day we won (May 8, 1995). It was a real special time and I remember that fondly.

"My time with the Ambassadors and Jr. Wings was one of the best times of my life, in terms of coaching. I think probably more so because a lot of people really caught on to junior hockey. I know a lot of those faces I see in the pictures and I remember the people being so loyal..."

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