2016 Memorial Cup Memories
As part of the Canadian Hockey League’s Memorial Cup Memories series between May 25 and June 21, CHL on Sportsnet talent including RJ Broadhead, Sam Cosentino, and Rob Faulds will recall some of their most memorable moments from tournaments over the last decade, and we’ll recap the highlights to help set the stage for 10 championship game rebroadcasts on CHL.ca.
The London Knights entered the 2016 Memorial Cup on a 13-game winning streak that counted the club’s third OHL championship and fourth appearance on the national stage in five seasons giving the feel of an unstoppable force and an early favourite to capture CHL supremacy.
Led by the talented trio of Arizona Coyotes prospect Christian Dvorak, Toronto Maple Leafs up-and-comer Mitch Marner, and 2016 NHL Draft hopeful Matthew Tkachuk – who would hear his name called sixth overall by the Calgary Flames in the coming weeks – the three combined for an astounding 119 points in the playoffs as the Knights cruised to a 16-2 showing that culminated in a four-game sweep of the Niagara IceDogs.
Under the national spotlight in Red Deer, the Knights kept up their red-hot pace, putting together a 3-0 round-robin record that saw the squad outscore its opponents by a 20-5 margin and punch its ticket to the championship final. With the WHL winning Brandon Wheat Kings bowing out first, a semi-final showdown then saw the QMJHL champion Rouyn-Noranda Huskies topple the host Rebels in a 3-1 final thanks to a two-point effort from San Jose Sharks first-round pick Timo Meier.
Earning their shot at national glory, the Huskies faced off against the Knights in the final round, playing to a tight-knit 2-2 score to set the stage for overtime in the championship final for the second consecutive year. Once again, London’s dominant trio came up big when it mattered most, registering all three goals in the deciding match including the game-winner from Tkachuk to mark his second goal of the game.
As London captured its second Memorial Cup in franchise history, the accolades continued with Marner earning the Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy as the tournament’s most valuable player helped with a leading 14-point performance, with Dvorak and Tkachuk coming up just behind at 12 and eight points, respectively. London also dominated the Memorial Cup All-Star Team ballot, with four players earning spots counting Marner, Dvorak, defenceman Olli Juolevi, who was selected fifth overall by the Vancouver Canucks only weeks later, as well as soon-to-be Calgary Flames prospect Tyler Parsons who doubled as the tournament’s top goaltender. Marner became just the second player following Brad Richards of the 1999-2000 Rimouski Oceanic to win his league’s regular season and playoff MVP honours in addition to CHL Player of the Year and Memorial Cup MVP.
Quick Hits
Tournament Scores:
May 20 – Red Deer 2 vs. London 6
May 21 – Rouyn-Noranda 5 vs. Brandon 3
May 22 – Rouyn-Noranda 2 vs. Red Deer 5
May 23 – London 9 vs. Brandon 1
May 24 – London 5 vs. Rouyn-Noranda 2
May 25 – Brandon 1 vs. Red Deer 2 (OT)
May 27 (Semi-Final) – Red Deer 1 vs. Rouyn-Noranda 3
May 29 (Final) – London 3 vs. Rouyn-Noranda 2 (OT)
Awards:
Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy (MVP) – Mitch Marner, London
Ed Chynoweth Trophy (Leading Scorer) – Mitch Marner, London
George Parsons Trophy (Most Sportsmanlike) – Francis Perron, Rouyn-Noranda
Hap Emms Memorial Trophy (Top Goaltender) – Tyler Parsons, London
All-Stars:
Forwards: Christian Dvorak (London), Mitch Marner (London), Timo Meier (Rouyn-Noranda)
Defence: Haydn Fleury (Red Deer), Olli Juolevi (London)
Goaltender: Tyler Parsons (London)
NHL Alumni:
Brandon Wheat Kings
D – Kale Clague
D – Ivan Provorov
F – Jayce Hawryluk
F – Nolan Patrick
F – John Quenneville
London Knights
D – Evan Bouchard
D – Victor Mete
F – Christian Dvorak
F – Max Jones
F – Mitch Marner
F – Kole Sherwood
F – Robert Thomas
F – Matthew Tkachuk
Red Deer Rebels
D – Haydn Fleury
D – Josh Mahura
D – Nelson Nogier
F – Jake DeBrusk
F – Brandon Hagel
Rouyn–Noranda Huskies
D – Jeremy Lauzon
D – Philippe Myers
F – Jean–Christophe Beaudin
F – Alexandre Fortin
F – A.J. Greer
F – Timo Meier
Relive the action between the Knights and Huskies on Friday’s rebroadcast streaming live at 7 p.m. ET on CHL.ca.