The GWMHL’s first expansion since 1999 is well underway, as the two new teams — the Clarington Coyotes and Hershey Bears — began making their Expansion Draft selections. The process is expected to take some time as teams update their protected lists with every selection.
Kicking things off, Hershey selected versatile forward C Chandler Stephenson from the Winnipeg Falcons. Stephenson joins a growing roster that already includes promising 2020 draftees like Carter Verhaeghe.
Author Archive
The Expansion Draft begins
In Uncategorized on June 2, 2021 at 11:36 amDave Atkinson (1964-2021)
In Uncategorized on May 18, 2021 at 2:00 pmGWMHL founding member, former commissioner, and most passionate supporter Dave Atkinson passed away at his home in Washington on May 10, 2021. He was 57 and is survived by his wife and two sons.
Dave was a good friend to many in the APBA Hockey community and a linchpin of the NHL hockey disk team, devoting countless hours of his time to allow others to enjoy this hobby. It’s impossible to imagine this community without him. Dave’s passion, commitment, and rigorous standards may be unmatched in the APBA Hockey world. The GWMHL family misses him deeply. This league and, most importantly, the friendships we’ve formed through it stand as a tribute to his memory. Good travels, Big Dog.
El Dorado Wins the Cup!
In EDH, News on May 15, 2021 at 4:23 pmThe upstart West Virginia River Rats didn’t make it easy, but the El Dorado Lynx weathered a late push and closed out their series in six games with a 4-2 home win to take the 2021 championship.
It’s been nine years since Lynx superstar Alex Ovechkin last hoisted the cup. The winger scored a crucial third-period goal in the deciding game to help stave off West Virginia’s comeback bid.
Congratulations to the Lynx and their GM, Chuck Shaeffer, on an excellent season and playoffs!
Playoff Preview: Round 2
In Uncategorized on April 25, 2021 at 4:26 pm#1 EL DORADO LYNX (53-19-10) vs. #3 PITTSBURGH HORNETS (40-33-9)
Regular season series
EDH won 3-2-1
Top scorers
EDH: Ovechkin (81, 74-23-97), O’Reilly (82, 18-77-95), Connor (82, 28-38-66), Petry (82, 16-41-57)
PIT: Smith (82, 41-44-85), Meier (82, 39-37-76), Malkin (60, 27-49-76), Duclair (72, 43-26-69)
Goaltending
EDH: Rask (48, 2.12, .933), Price (34, 3.48, .906)
PIT: Murray (41, 3.42, .899), Mrazek (41, 3.68, .894)
It took the Pittsburgh Hornets a third-period comeback in game 7 to complete its minor upset over Baltimore. Now they face El Dorado, which has been sitting idle since making short work of Winnipeg. The Lynx actually struggled with the Hornets somewhat during the regular season, and will need to work hard to stop Pittsburgh’s clutch scorers Timo Meier and Reilly Smith, who each had five goals in the first round. But considering El Dorado’s depth and vastly superior goaltending (although Matt Murray more or less saved Pittsburgh’s postseason in the end), it will take a really special round for Pittsburgh to stop the Lynx’s march to the finals.
#1 VANCOUVER NIGHT TRAIN (54-17-11) vs. #3 WEST VIRGINIA RIVER RATS (47-29-6)
Regular season series
VAN won 5-1-0
Top scorers
VAN: Lindholm (82, 42-54-96), Stone (75, 31-61-92), Barzal (82, 22-63-85), Palmieri (77, 38-35-73)
WVR: Draisaitl (82, 44-82-126), Laine (79, 29-64-93), Aho (82, 48-35-83), Nelson (82, 27-47-74)
Goaltending
VAN: Jarry (39, 2.76, .915), Rittich (29, 3.28, .895), Driedger (14, 2.33, .932)
WVR: Francouz (33, 3.56, .901), Markstrom (27, 2.77, .918), Saros (22, 2.95, .907)
The Night Train were able to overcome a 1-1 home split in their series against Boston while #2 seed Delta could not manage the same in its series, dropping three straight on the road to be ousted by the River Rats in 5. Oddly enough, Vancouver dominated the season series with West Virginia, winning five of six games, all in the third quarter, including two dominant road wins. Yet, on paper, the River Rats have a number of advantages: more solid goaltending (the Night Train were forced to white-knuckle their way through a David Rittich start in game 6 while the Rats got sensational netminding from Pavel Francouz and Jacob Markstrom in round 1), better special teams, and better top-end talent. Still, the two-way, uptempo, puck-moving game that led Vancouver to such great regular season heights should once again be on display, if they can only shut down Draisaitl and Aho.
Playoff Preview: Round 1
In Uncategorized on April 5, 2021 at 6:27 pmThe 2021 Gump Cup Playoffs are upon us! Here’s a look at the four series that are about to get underway.
Plante Conference
#1 EL DORADO LYNX (53-19-10) vs. #4 WINNIPEG FALCONS (37-35-10)
Regular season series
EDH won 4-1-1
Top scorers
EDH: Ovechkin (81, 74-23-97), O’Reilly (82, 18-77-95), Connor (82, 28-38-66), Petry (82, 16-41-57)
WPG: Pettersson (81, 40-57-97), Hoffman (82, 37-50-87), Pacioretty (82, 35-47-82), Suter (82, 6-54-60)
Goaltending
EDH: Rask (48, 2.12, .933), Price (34, 3.48, .906)
WPG: Kuemper (34, 3.03, .916), Merzlikins (31, 3.26, .901), Allen (17, 3.36, .912)
Winnipeg held off Salem to hang onto the final playoff spot in the Plante, earning the privilege of facing one of the league’s most formidable teams. The Lynx finished second overall on the strength of its twin MVPs, Tuukka Rask, who led most major goaltending categories, and Alex Ovechkin, who shattered his personal best with 74 goals in 81 games. The smart money is on Rask starting all of El Dorado’s games, but Winnipeg is likely to go with a two- or even three-man platoon, so they can ride whichever goalie is hottest. Also to its credit, the Falcons got excellent offense from its top three forwards, Mike Hoffman, Elias Pettersson, and ex-Lynx vet Max Pacioretty. But El Dorado’s depth at the wing and on defense are undeniably superior. The Falcons have a monumental task ahead of them.
#2 BALTIMORE CRAB (49-29-4) vs. #3 PITTSBURGH HORNETS (40-33-9)
Regular season series
PIT won 4-2-0
Top scorers:
BAL: Scheifele (82, 28-57-85), Killorn (80, 39-35-74), Schwartz (82, 29-42-71), Burns (82, 18-51-69)
PIT: Smith (82, 41-44-85), Meier (82, 39-37-76), Malkin (60, 27-49-76), Duclair (72, 43-26-69)
Goaltenders:
BAL: Grubauer (42, 2.99, .909), Koskinen (40, 3.62, .901)
PIT: Murray (41, 3.42, .899), Mrazek (41, 3.68, .894)
It’s been half a decade since Pittsburgh made the playoffs, but standout performances by some unlikely players (newly minted 40-goal men Reilly Smith and Anthony Duclair for two) propelled them into the third seed. But they could have their work cut out from them against second place Baltimore, who also missed the playoffs last season but prior to that had made four straight appearances, including their championship year in 2016. Led by Mark Scheifele up front and Brent Burns and rookie Cale Makar on the blueline, the Crab had the league’s second most effective powerplay (24%). Although Pittsburgh’s goaltending was fairly poor during the regular season, the Hornets were notably able to outscore their problems, potting 32 goals against the Crab and winning four of six meetings.
Sawchuk Conference
#1 VANCOUVER NIGHT TRAIN (54-17-11) vs. #4 BOSTON BANSHEES (46-28-8)
Regular season series
VAN won 3-1-2
Top scorers
VAN: Lindholm (82, 42-54-96), Stone (75, 31-61-92), Barzal (82, 22-63-85), Palmieri (77, 38-35-73)
BOS: Zibanejad (67, 58-40-98), Couturier (82, 20-52-72), Boeser (68, 19-49-68), Zucker (71, 26-40-66)
Goaltenders
VAN: Jarry (39, 2.76, .915), Rittich (29, 3.28, .895), Driedger (14, 2.33, .932)
BOS: Bishop (51, 2.89, .913), Khudobin (32, 2.90, .910)
A West Virginia road tie in one of the last games of the season vaulted them over Boston, leaving Vancouver — holder of the league’s best record this season — to face the defending champion Banshees. The Night Train were a huge surprise this season after relatively few offseason changes: they allowed fewer goals than Boston this season (240 to 243) but scored nearly a hundred more (381 to 282), and held the league’s best road record, too. The X factor here will be in goal. Boston’s tandem was solid but unspectacular, but the Night Train relied on Tristan Jarry and Chris Driedger for some big wins, yet will be forced to play David Rittich at least two games out of a seven-game series. Rittich’s shakiness against Mika Zibanejad (58 goals in 67 regular season games), Ryan Ellis (62 points in 58 games from the back end), et al., could spell first-round upset.
#2 DELTA STURGEON (48-23-11) vs. #3 WEST VIRGINIA RIVER RATS (47-29-6)
Regular season series
DEL won 4-2-0
Top scorers
DEL: MacKinnon (81, 48-53-101), Kucherov (80, 35-61-96), Ekblad (80, 10-56-66), Nugent-Hopkins (75, 23-38-61)
WVR: Draisaitl (82, 44-82-126), Laine (79, 29-64-93), Aho (82, 48-35-83), Nelson (82, 27-47-74)
Goaltenders
DEL: Raanta (38, 2.32, .925), Gibson (29, 3.53, .883), Hill (15, 3.58, .895)
WVR: Francouz (33, 3.56, .901), Markstrom (27, 2.77, .918), Saros (22, 2.95, .907)
Blessed with high-end talent, great depth, a strong D, and solid goaltending… Wait, which team are we talking about? Two high-octane teams. Draisaitl vs. MacKinnon. Kucherov vs. Laine. This promises to be a hugely entertaining series, and it could go either way. While West Virginia began the season on a tear, faded, then finished strong, Delta was a relatively consistent force, and promises to be a big test for the Rats’ Jakob Markstrom/Pavel Francouz tandem. The Sturgeon managed 44.2 shots per game during the season, outshooting opponents by, on average, a whopping 12.7. At the other end, a long series would force the Sturgeon to play all three of its goalies, and John Gibson was absolutely terrible this season. It’s not a huge weakness, but it’s one on which West Virginia’s offense may be able to capitalize.
Vancouver, El Dorado Vie for 1st as Regular Season Ends
In News on April 2, 2021 at 10:03 amThe sun set on the GWMHL’s 2020-21 regular season this week, with a flurry of late movement carrying major playoff implications.
The El Dorado Lynx finished with a commanding lead in the Plante Conference, 14 points head of second-place Baltimore. The biggest news here is the Winnipeg Falcons holding off the Salem Sabercats for the fourth and final playoff birth, ending Salem’s 13-season postseason streak. Winnipeg will make its first playoff appearance since 2016 and just its second since 2004. The third-place Pittsburgh Hornets, meanwhile, will see the playoffs for the first time since 2015. Of the conference’s playoff teams, only the Lynx made an appearance last season.
There were fewer surprises in the Sawchuk Conference, but still much movement. The Vancouver Night Train‘s wonderful fourth quarter allowed them to clinch first overall and ensure home ice advantage, while the Delta Sturgeon climbed to second place with a strong Q4 showing. The Boston Banshees, the reigning champs, sagged from second place all the way to fourth as the West Virginia River Rats clawed their way into third in a positive ending to their roller coaster of a season.
West Virginia’s Leon Draisaitl took the scoring crown, with 126 points, one of five players to reach the century mark this season. Alex Ovechkin of El Dorado had another monster quarter to reach 74 goals on the season, the most by a large margin. It was the sniper’s career-best total, and he becomes just the 10th player in league history to pass the 70-goal mark. Ovechkin’s teammate, Tuukka Rask, led the major goaltending categories with a 2.12 GAA, a .933 save percentage and 32 wins. Charleston rookie Dominik Kubalik led all freshmen with 74 points, but even more remarkable was Baltimore defenseman Cale Makar‘s 67 points as he became a key part of the team’s resurgence.
El Dorado Takes Top Spot Entering Q4
In Uncategorized on February 22, 2021 at 10:24 amThe El Dorado Lynx, led by Alex Ovechkin and his 24 goals in the schedule’s third quarter alone, have vaulted past the Vancouver Night Train to take the first overall spot in the league as the GWMHL enters its final 18 games. The Lynx went 9-1-2 at home and 8-3-1 on the road, and scored a league-best 112 goals. Ovechkin leads all goal-scorers with 56.
El Dorado sits atop the Plante Conference, well ahead of Baltimore and Pittsburgh. The third quarter did see Winnipeg turn in a solid 13-7-4 record, enough to move them just past Salem. With only two points separating them, the fight is on for that fourth and final playoff berth.
Vancouver, meanwhile, went 15-5-4 against some tough competition in the quarter, but the real news in the Sawchuk Conference is West Virginia. After a sparkling start to their season, and a middling second quarter, the Rats are fading, going 9-13-2 in Q3. Thanks to strong efforts from both Boston and Delta, West Virginia has now dropped from second place at midseason to fourth, and are just 4 points ahead of fifth-place Ice Harbor, putting their championship hopes in serious peril.
Despite that, it’s the Rats’ star forward Leon Draisaitl turning in the best individual performance of the season so far, and he’s already passed the 100-point threshold with a whole quarter left to play. Farmington’s John Carlson leads all blueliners with 67 points, while Charleston’s Dominik Kubalik has a healthy lead in the rookie scoring race with 62 points and 34 goals. El Dorado’s Tuukka Rask boasts an all-star-worthy .933 save percentage, albeit in just 30 starts. Boston’s Ben Bishop leads all goaltenders in wins (28) and shutouts (4).
Playoff Races Take Shape as GWMHL Reaches Season’s Midpoint
In News on December 23, 2020 at 9:22 amJust in time for the holidays, the GWMHL finished its second quarter yesterday. The halfway point means the mid-season free agent draft is coming, as well as the trade deadline, but most of all it’s a chance to see some bonafide playoff races begin to form.
In the Plante, El Dorado (26-10-4) solidified its hold on first place, 9 points ahead of second-place Baltimore (23-16-1). But a race for the third and fourth spots is already taking shape, as Pittsburgh (19-15-6) and Salem (20-19-1) are barely ahead of Charleston (18-19-3). Winnipeg and South Side are both within striking distance, too.
The Sawchuk race saw West Virginia (27-11-2) come down to earth a bit in the second quarter, making way for a surprising Vancouver club (26-9-5) to narrowly take the top spot. The reigning champs in Boston (25-13-2) are right in the mix, as is Delta (21-12-7). It’ll be an uphill climb for any of the other teams to make a push for a spot, as fifth-place Ice Harbor (20-19-1) trails by 8 points.
Along with his teammates, West Virginia’s Leon Draisaitl cooled off a bit but still holds a healthy lead in the points race with 64. Delta’s Nathan MacKinnon put up 28 points in the second quarter to take second place with 59. Alex Ovechkin of El Dorado leads all goal-scorers with 32. Farmington’s John Carlson has a whopping 45 points, first among defensemen, although Vancouver has four blueliners in the top 10 as they’ve driven the team’s success so far. And finally, Charleston freshman Dominik Kubalik leapfrogged past Baltimore’s injured Cale Makar to take the rookie scoring lead.
River Rats Seize Early Season Lead with Monster First Quarter
In News, WVR on November 16, 2020 at 7:36 pmThe West Virginia River Rats, who had one of the league’s worst records last season, made a huge splash to start the 2020-21 season, going 18-2-0 and scoring 114 goals in their first 20 games. It’s early, but that high-octane offensive output, led by a dominant top line of Leon Draisaitl, Sebastian Aho and Patrik Laine, puts the Rats on pace to shatter league records by season’s end.
In the Plante Conference, the usually competitive Parry Sound sagged to a very disappointing 6-12-2 start, leaving an opening for both Baltimore (13-7-0) and Pittsburgh (12-6-2) to put themselves into the top four in the conference. Salem (12-8-0) made up for its anemic offensive start (57 goals) by allowing just 49 while El Dorado (13-6-1) also had a strong start.
No team in the Sawchuk was remotely as good as West Virginia, but the first quarter saw good starts from defending Gump Cup champ Boston (14-5-1), thanks to sparkling play by Ben Bishop. Vancouver (13-4-3) had a surprisingly good showing, putting the team a few points ahead of cup contending division rival Delta (11-6-3). Adirondack fans were shocked to see its team limp along to just 3 wins in the first 20 and the league’s worst record.
Draisaitl leads all scorers after 20 games, with a jaw-dropping 45 points. Linemates Aho and Laine are third and fourth, respectively, and Aho leads all goal-scorers with 20. San Jose’s Mitch Marner is a distant second behind Draisaitl in the scoring race, with 33 points. Baltimore’s strong quarter was largely driven by its blueline, which featured three players — Brent Burns, Anthony DeAngelo and rookie Cale Makar — scoring at a point-per-game pace. Also of note, Vancouver’s two Sheas, Weber and Theodore, are one-two in defenseman goals with 10 and 9. Makar’s 20 points give him a five-point lead in the rookie scoring race.
Boston’s Bishop has three shutouts already, along with the best stats (2.39, .920) of any of the goalies who have seen more than half of their teams’ games so far.
Salem Takes Second Straight Title
In BOS, News on March 29, 2018 at 7:01 pmEntering game 7 of their Gump Cup Final series, the Boston franchise was looking for its first championship since 1998. At stake for Salem: A second straight title and its fifth in six years.
The Sabercats opened the scoring early, Jeff Carter feeding Gustav Nyquist and the puck bouncing in off the post in a goal that was emblematic of what was to come for the Banshees.
Salem carried that lead into the second period, and then carried the game away with trio of goals in just three and a half minutes — first, Bo Horvat beat Matt Murray on a 2-on-1 with Paul Byron, then Patrick Marleau made Zdeno Chara pay for a costly minor with a PP goal, and Logan Couture scored on a breakaway. Horvat would add another goal later in the period, and just like that, in front of a shocked Boston crowd, the dynasty held a 5-0 lead.
The third found the Sabercats playing a cautious game — they would manage just two shots on Murray all period — and Boston pouring it on. But for most of the period, either Fredrik Andersen or bad puck luck (like a Nick Leddy post and an Artem Anisimov whiff on a rebound) got in the way.
With 3:48 left, Alexander Wennberg finally solved Murray after Ryan Ellis cut off a Horvat clearing pass. Then Charlie Coyle split the D to make it 5-2 with under two minutes remaining. But it was, to put it mildly, way too little, way too late. Salem hung on to secure the big 5-2 road victory in game 7 and another banner for its rafters. The Cats are getting older now, but they showed they had at least one more life in them.
Gump Worsley Memorial Hockey League 