2006/07 Wall of Fame

Major Midget 'AA's Clinch League Championship

The Gloucester Rangers Major Midget AA's have clinched the ODMHA League Championship and a berth in the Central Region Midget AAA Championship in Waterloo April 1-8.
A Gloucester victory over Kingston 5-4 on Saturday January 27 coupled with a Cumberland win over Kingston on Sunday January 28 gave the Gloucester Rangers the title with 2 games reamaining in the season. The Rangers clinching first place marks a remarkable turnaround season for the team which finished in seventh place last season before going on a spectacular playoff run that saw them knock off the top two teams before falling two points short in the the finals.

Major Atom 'A's Win 14th Annual Toronto IceDogs Fall Classic

The old adage "Defence wins Championships" was proven to be true, as Guy Bourque's Major Atom A team won the 14th Annual Toronto IceDogs Fall Classic during the last weekend of November, outscoring their opposition fourteen to one. That and a balanced attack with thirteen different players getting involved in the scoring over the course of the three day event.

The team opened the tournament with a 5-0 win over the Richmond Hill Stars with Brent Moran posting the shutout. They started slowly, with Ryan Holmes punching home the puck in a scramble in front of the net at 8:20 of the first period. In the second, they got two goals less than a minute and a half apart in the second, with Rebecca Leslie scoring and then Sean Bakker on the power play. Dallas Clancy scored mid way through the third and Owen Renic stuffed the final goal home with one second left to play.
The second game that day saw the Rangers taking on the Humber Valley Sharks and they picked up where they had left off earlier in the day with an impressive 4-0 win. Marc Ingram opened the scoring at 4:53 of the first, coming out from the side boards and firing a low shot on net with Jordan Stouros providing the screen in front of the net. The hard work of the line of Ryan Holmes, Rys Green-Sloan, and Shane Sauve accounted for two more goals, with Shane scoring in the first and Ryan in the third. Owen Renic rounded out the scoring in the third and Jordan Vachon posted the shutout.
Saturday morning the team was in tough against the host Toronto IceDogs. With a defensive core of Tyler Pancel, Andrew Leung, Kevin Van Dam, Nathan Guilbeault, Erica McCarney, and Sean Bakker and stellar goaltending once again by Brent Moran, the team was able to come away with a tight 2-1 win. Both of the team's goals were scored by Owen Renic. The food and the early morning game time may not have agreed with him, but he didn't let that stop him.
Their win set up a rematch against the Richmond Hill Stars in Sunday's final. The rumours around the rink were that the Stars had played a sub par game in their first meeting with the Rangers and that the team was in for an awakening. The players must not have heard the rumours, as they skated off to a convincing 3-0 win. Jordan Vachon saved his best game for the championship, posting his second shutout of the tournament. Joey Kidney opened the scoring at 3:56 of the first and Owen Renic scored with less than a minute left in the first. Joey scored the team's final goal in the third period with an end to end rush that the parents in the stands are still talking about today. What an impressive way to end an exciting weekend.

Rangers Minor Peewee 'A' Win Sudbury Silver Stick

The Gloucester Rangers Minor Peewee A team, coached by Louis Sauve, won the Sudbury Silver Stick Regional Qualifier tournament on the weekend. They swept the opposition with 4 wins on their way to victory. The boys prepared for their first game by watching a triple header of Adam Sandler movies on the bus trip from Ottawa, and stopping for lunch in North Bay to load up on carbs at East Side Mario's. The coaches were a little concerned about Friday's first game as the bus pulled into the arena parking lot only 30 minutes ahead of the opening face-off. But not to worry, the boys started fast out of the gate in the first game against Barrie, winning by a convincing 4-0 score. With a day of rest and a trip to Science North in between, they took on Kanata in their second round robin game on Saturday afternoon. It was a closely fought contest, but the Rangers prevailed 3-2 over the first place Blazers. In the semi-final the team was matched up against the Goulbourn Rams. The Rangers jumped out to a 2-0 lead on two impressive goals by Wade Kropp, but Goulbourn clawed their way back and by the end of the first period it was tied 2-2. The Rangers scored the game winning goal in the second period when Nick Dungate banked a shot off the goalie from behind the net. It was tight the rest of the way as the Ranger defence shut down the Rams attack.

In the Sunday final, the Rangers and Blazers faced off in a repeat of the earlier round robin game. This time, the Rangers put the pressure on from the outset and kept the intensity throughout the game. The Rangers scored on the second shift of the game as Derek Varrin turned the Blazer defence inside out and slid a pass to Wade Shields, who made no mistake. J.P. Sauve was knocked out of the game a while later with a hit from behind into the boards. The teams shut each other down in the second period, but as the game worn on the Ranger fans got louder and louder. Their cheering paid off late in the 3rd period when Chad Robillard passed it back to Colin Soulsby at the point, who slid it across to his defence partner Nathan Avery who let go a howitzer off the near post to make it 2-0. The final was 3-0, with the third goal scored into an empty net. The Rangers stormed off the bench with sticks and gloves reaching the ceiling as they dog piled goalie Dylan Angus.
Coach Louis was proud of every one of his players for the intensity with which they played every shift. It was truly a team victory with everyone contributing their best.
As the regional qualifier winner, the Rangers now move on to the North American International Silver Stick Finals Tournament in Newmarket, Ontario January 18-21, 2007. They will be matched against the host Newmarket Redmen and 4 other regional qualifier champions from Canada and the United States.

Minor Bantam A's Sport the "Champs" Ring

Sean Rutherford's Minor Bantam A boys were grinning ear-to-ear heading out of the dressing room Sunday afternoon showing off they're new jewellery.... the "Official Kingston Ambassador Cup Champs" pewter ring.
Superb team play throughout the weekend paid off to give them their first tournament victory of the season. Friday night facing the Meadowvale Mohawks, our Rangers made it look easy, with a 6-2 win. Justin Tourigny was on fire scoring a hat trick with Patty Foget, Jamie Quinn and Nick Desantis each netting singles. Saturday morning, while struggling with tight scrutiny from the Kingston officiating, they took on Oshawa snagging another win 4-1. Third game saw the Ice Dogs up 2-0 going into the third period, but the Rangers battled back to tie it up and get the nod for the final on Sunday. Facing a local rival Capital Crusaders in the final, the Rangers had no problem pulling off a 3-1 champion victory with Simon Berthelotte scoring 2 and Scott Turner 1.
The "D" played outstanding and Andrew DeChamplain making back to back toe saves held our 3-1 lead.
Looking at the low goals against for the weekend it's obvious our defensive play and continual solid goaltending makes the Rangers a team to be reckoned with. Coach Sean was very pleased with the entire team contributing to the success, including the great parent cheerleaders in the crowd... especially the singing dads!

It was a wonderful tournament where the team met 5 different teams. For those who were not able to be with us, the weekend win was the result of great goaltending, excellent passing and puck handling. The team played and presented themselves with true Ranger pride. Excellent team work boys!

Major Atom 'AA' Take KMHA 'AAA' Shootout Tournament

The Major Atom 'AA' Gloucester Rangers started the 2006-07 season off in impressive fashion by capturing the AAA Shootout Tournament this past weekend (Sept. 8-10) in Kanata. They ended the preliminary round with a 3-1 record, good for first place out of the six team field.
Gloucester then avenged their only loss to the Ottawa Sting by soundly stinging Ottawa 4-2, advancing to the finals against the host Kanata Blazers. Kanata, riding a high of their own by way of a semifinal shootout victory, jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead. The Rangers clawed their way back, ending regulation tied at 2 with the momentum clearly shifting in their favour. Gloucester held the advantage through the first 4 on 4 overtime and entered the final 3 on 3 session clearly in charge. Backed by solid goaltending, speed and patience beyond their years, the Rangers finally capitalized after numerous chances with a Pat White shot from the high slot with 4 seconds to go. The expected pandemonium ensued on the ice and in the stands after an unbelievable finish.
Kudos to the boys for a fantastic effort and to the coaching staff for maintaining focus and managing 3 days of exciting hockey. It's interesting to note that in this tournament the Rangers were the least penalized team, posted an excellent 2.00 goals against average, and placed 3 players in the categories of top ten points, goals, and assists leaders, winning first in points and goals! An excellent start and definitely a foreshadowing of good things to come for this season!