OHL grads lead UNB to perfect regular season

By Matt Tidcombe / CHL

Just when you think you’ve seen it all at the University of New Brunswick, Gardiner MacDougall’s team finds a way to create more history.

MacDougall, who led the Saint John Sea Dogs to a 2022 Memorial Cup championship, steered the Reds to a perfect 30-0 regular season in the U Sports’ Atlantic University Sport (AUS) division. The Reds roster is entirely made up of 25 CHL alumnus.

“It’s something we didn’t really think of,” admitted former Saint John and Val-d’Or defenceman Kale McCallum. “Our plan at the start of the year is to win a national championship … we focused on the process and this is one of the outcomes it led to. It’s crazy to think about it but we’re all still hungry because there’s more to do this season.”

Across 30 contests, the Reds scored 172 goals at an average of 5.73 goals per game. Former Ottawa 67’s forward Austen Keating led the AUS in scoring with 50 points while his 23 goals were tied for the second most among all U Sports skaters.

McCallum led all U Sports defencemen with 42 points in his first full season at UNB.

“The majority of the guys in U Sports have all played junior in the past,” Keating said at the Canada’s National Junior Team selection camp where he captained a U Sports all-star side in a two-game exhibition. “Every guy is working as hard as they can to get their education but also move on to the next level.

“When you come to UNB you’re expected to compete for national championships.”

UNB had a couple of close calls; they needed overtime in a pair of games (Oct. 14 and Nov. 3) while in their 27th game of the year, they trailed St. FX 3-2 with under four minutes to play before Keating levelled the scores and Saginaw alumnus Brady Gilmour had the game-winner with 50 seconds to play. All in all, UNB only played in five one-goal games this year.

“There’s a lot of great players and great teams throughout the league,” Gilmour said in December while with the U Sports all-star team.

The Reds’ current roster features many standout CHL alumnus; Nicolas Savoie helped Quebec to a QMJHL and Memorial Cup championship last season while Colton Kammerer captained Hamilton to an OHL title in 2022. Keating was the recipient of the OHL’s Leo Lalonde Trophy as the OHL overage player of the year in 2020 while Cape Breton alumnus Adam McCormick won the Kevin Lowe trophy the same year as the QMJHL’s top defensive defenceman.

“Gardiner has done an unbelievable job of bringing guys in from all over the CHL and bringing in top notch players but also top notch people,” McCallum said. “It’s a league that’s getting better and you’re seeing a lot of guys graduate from here and they’re going to play pro hockey after.

“There’s top notch talent in this league.”

And as the top supplier of talent to U Sports, the CHL has had a direct hand in that development.

“It’s the best junior league in the world,” McCallum said. “The amount of guys that they move on to pro and the amount of guys that get drafted, it’s a dream come true to play in the CHL and the QMJHL.

“It’s done wonders for me; it gives you the opportunity to play against the best players in Canada and all of the world.”

The AUS playoffs get underway Feb. 14 as UNB seeks its sixth straight AUS title. The Reds will however have a first round bye after their record-breaking season.

The 2024 University Cup will be held in Toronto from March 14-17. The Reds are defending champions after a 3-0 victory over Alberta last year.

25 CHL/14 OHL alumnus lead UNB to perfect regular season

Goaltenders

Griffen Outhouse (Victoria Royals)
Samuel Richard (Rouyn-Noranda Huskies)
Tanner Somers (Acadie-Bathurst Titan)

Defencemen

Colton Kammerer (Sarnia Sting, Hamilton Bulldogs)
Patrick Kyte (Halifax Mooseheads, Chicoutimi Sagueneens)
Kade Landry (Barrie Colts, Hamilton Bulldogs)
Kale McCallum (Saint John Sea Dogs, Val-d’Or Foreurs)
Adam McCormick (Cape Breton Eagles, Acadie-Bathurst Titan)
Sam McGinley (Regina Pats, Swift Current Broncos)
Justin Nolet (Sarnia Sting, Kitchener Rangers)
Nicolas Savoie (Quebec Remparts)

Forwards

Camaryn Baber (Saginaw Spirit, London Knights)
Nicholas Blagden (Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, Moncton Wildcats, Saint John Sea Dogs)
Macauley Carson (Sudbury Wolves)
Benjamin Corbeil (Drummondville Voltigeurs, Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, Baie-Comeau Drakkar)
Brady Gilmour (Saginaw Spirit)
Austen Keating (Ottawa 67’s)
Sam King (Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, Charlottetown Islanders)
Cole MacKay (Soo Greyhounds)
Sean McGurn (London Knights)
Cody Morgan (Kingston Frontenacs, Windsor Spitfires, Flint Firebirds, London Knights)
Isaac Nurse (Hamilton Bulldogs)
Mike Petizian (Kitchener Rangers)
Emmett Sproule (Erie Otters, Peterborough Petes)
Jason Willms (Barrie Colts, London Knights)