The Cornwall Royals were a junior ice hockey team based in Cornwall, Ontario, Canada. The team played in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) from 1969 to 1981, and the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) from 1981 to 1992. They won the Memorial Cup three times as junior champions of Canada: in 1971, 1980, and 1981.

The Royals shared a common name with teams that played in the Quebec Senior Hockey League, the Central Junior A Hockey League.

History

From 1961 until 1969, the Cornwall Royals were successful members of the Central Junior A Hockey League (CJHL). As perennial CJHL champions, they represented that league at the playdowns for the 1966, 1967 and 1968 Memorial Cup national junior hockey championships, falling in the quarterfinals each year against the representatives from Quebec.

After an application to join the OHL was rejected, the franchise became one of the inaugural teams of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in 1969. The Cornwall Royals were one of the league's premier teams during its tenure in the QMJHL, winning three Memorial Cup titles.

For the 1981–82 season, the team transferred into the Ontario Hockey League.

The Royals suffered through many tough seasons and poor attendance after moving to the OHL. The switch in leagues alienated many die-hard fans from across the Quebec border. Seeking better fortunes, the franchise moved to Newmarket, Ontario to play as the Newmarket Royals in 1992. In 1994 the team was bought by the Ciccarelli brothers and moved to Sarnia, Ontario as the Sarnia Sting.

Championships

The Cornwall Royals are one of only 7 clubs to win consecutive Memorial Cup championships. They did so in 1980 and 1981. In total, the Royals won 3 Memorial Cups, 3 President's Cups, and 5 division titles while in the QMJHL. The Royals did not win any OHL championships.

CJHL Bogart Cup Championships: 1966, 1967, 1968

President's CupPlayoff Champions in the QMJHL.

• 1972 QMJHL Champions vs. Quebec Remparts

• 1980 QMJHL Champions vs. Sherbrooke Castors

• 1981 QMJHL Champions vs. Trois-Rivieres Draveurs

Jean Rougeau TrophyRegular season champions in the QMJHL.

• 1971–1972 96 points

• 1980–1981 90 points

West Division TrophyFirst overall in the West Division.

• 1973–1974 94 points

Lebel Division TrophyFirst overall in the Lebel Division.

• 1977–1978 100 points

• 1979–1980 88 points

• 1980–1981 90 points

• Memorial Cups

• 1972 CHL Champions vs. Peterborough Petes

• 1980 CHL Champions vs. Peterborough Petes

• 1981 CHL Champions vs. Kitchener Rangers

Coaches

Orval Tessier guided the Cornwall Royals to the Memorial Cup championship in 1972. Doug Carpenter coached the 1980 Royals, and Bob Kilger in 1981.

Marc Crawford was a former Cornwall Royals player. He won the Stanley Cup as coach of the Colorado Avalanche. He also coached the Vancouver Canucks, the Los Angeles Kings, and the Dallas Stars.

1. List of Coaches

(Multiple years in parentheses)

• 1981–82 Bob Kilger

• 1982–83 Jocelyn Guevremont

• 1983–84 Jocelyn Guevremont / Floyd Crawford

• 1984–85 Floyd Crawford / Tony Zappia

• 1985–86 Tony Zappia

• 1986–89 Orval Tessier (3)

• 1989–91 Marc Crawford (2)

• 1991–92 John Lovell

1982–83 coaches Bob Kilger, Bill Murphy, Gord Woods, Jocelyn Guevremont

Players

Award recipients

NHL alumni

Three alumni of the Cornwall Royals have been enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame, including Billy Smith, Dale Hawerchuk, and Doug Gilmour.

List of QMJHL (1969–1981) alumni in the National Hockey League (NHL) or World Hockey Association:

• Jeff Allan

• Dave Allison

• Scott Arniel

• Fred Arthur

• Reid Bailey

• Tim Bernhardt

• Fred Boimistruck

• Brian Bowles

• Richard Brodeur

• Eric Calder

• Alain Chevrier

• Bob Crawford

• Lou Crawford

• Marc Crawford

• Dan Daoust

• Jeff Eatough

• Dan Frawley

• Danny Geoffrion

• Doug Gilmour

• Dale Hawerchuk

• Blair MacDonald

• Gary MacGregor

• John Markell

• Corrado Micalef

• Bob Murray

• Graeme Nicolson

• Jim Park

• Rick Paterson

• Ron Scott

• Al Sims

• Billy Smith

• Ron Smith

• Pierre Viau

• Mario Viens

• John Wensink

• Rod Willard

List of OHL (1981–1992) alumni in the NHL:

• Scott Arniel

• Bob Babcock

• Eric Calder

• Jason Cirone

• Larry Courville

• Craig Duncanson

• Jeff Eatough

• Dan Frawley

• Doug Gilmour

• Jim Kyte

• Nathan LaFayette

• Alan Letang

• Guy Leveque

• Steve Maltais

• Owen Nolan

• Mike Prokopec

• Rob Ray

• Joe Reekie

• Ken Sabourin

• Mathieu Schneider

• Ray Sheppard

• John Slaney

• Mike Stapleton

• Jeremy Stevenson

• Rick Tabaracci

• Tom Thornbury

• Mike Tomlak

• Ryan Vandenbussche

• Michael Ware

Season-by-season results

• Quebec Major Junior Hockey League season-by-season results (1969–1981):

• Ontario Hockey League season-by-season results (1981–1992):

Legend: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against

Arenas

The Royals played home games at the Water Street Arena from 1969 to 1976. Moving across the road, the Royals played at the Cornwall Civic Complex from 1976 to 1992, and hosted the 1990 All-Star game between the OHL and the QMJHL, which the OHL won by a 3–0 score.

Notes

References

Sources