A great night, great support, and great featured guests. The seventeenth annual Acadia Axemen Celebrity Hockey dinner took place on Thursday, June 19th with headline guest and four time Stanley Cup winner Paul Coffey.
The night opened up with the master of ceremony, TSN correspondent and studio anchor, Paul Hollingsworth welcoming a crowd of nearly 500 Acadia Axemen supporters, including many Axemen alumni, as well as coaches and players from other Acadia varsity teams.
The silent auctions continued throughout the night with many great items including autographed jerseys from NHL greats and Cole Harbour natives Nathan MacKinnon & Sidney Crosby, along with jerseys & autographed photos from the featured guest himself, Paul Coffey.
Coach Darren Burns took to the stage and thanked the community for the tremendous support throughout the year, and let the crowd know how much he appreciates being a part of the valley community.Read more »
Paul Coffey averaged better than a point per game during his three seasons in junior, including a personal-high 72 assists for the 1978-79 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.
Smooth-skating Paul Coffey embodied everything an offensive defenseman could be – lightning fast, skilled playmaker, booming shot, savvy — yet still able to defend his team’s zone employing blinding speed.
Born June 1, 1961 in Weston, Ontario, after two seasons of junior, Paul Coffey was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers using their first pick in the 1980 Entry Draft. It was perfect timing for both sides – the Oilers were a highly skilled, offensively explosive club and Coffey’s skill set fit in perfectly as the quarterback of the dynamic young team.
In his second season, 1981-82, Paul led all NHL defensemen with 89 points and was chosen for the Second All-Star Team. In 1982-83, he collected 96 points, but it was his 126 points in 1983-84 that put him second only to teammate Wayne Gretzky in the NHL scoring race that year. That season, the Edmonton Oilers won the first Stanley Cup in franchise history.
On his way to helping lead the Oilers to their second straight Stanley Cup, Paul Coffey won the Norris Trophy as the National Hockey League’s best defenseman and was selected to the First All-Star Team in 1984-85, a feat he replicated in 1985-86 in a season that can only be considered extraordinary. Coffey finished third in scoring with 138 points, including 48 goals.
Prior to the 1986-87 season, Coffey was traded to Pittsburgh, where he was able to further his exploits. In both 1988-89 and ’89-90, Paul cracked the
Paul Coffey had a solid rookie season in the NHL, recording 32 points in the regular season and leading all Oiler defensemen with seven points in the playoffs.
100-point plateau for the fourth time. Coffey helped the Penguins win their first Stanley Cup in 1990-91.
In February 1992, Coffey was moved to the Los Angeles Kings, the third of what would eventually be nine teams on his NHL resume. In January 1993, it was off to Detroit, but an injured knee hampered his play that season. By the following season, he had rebounded and not only led the Red Wings in scoring but was once again awarded the Norris Trophy as the league’s top defenseman.Read more »
His love of the game was evident each and every time he hit the ice as a member of the Halifax Mooseheads. A relentless digger in the corners, he paired that hard working mentality along with his offensive talents that have him sitting atop the franchise leaderboard in points (303), goals (119) and assists (184).
Brandon Benedict did everything his coach asked of him, and then some. The Avondale, Nova Scotia native was drafted by the Mooseheads in the 2nd round of the 1998 QMJHL Draft, and played his entire five year junior career in Halifax.
He later enjoyed a successful university career with the Acadia Axemen.
At age 32, Benedict is still playing competitive hockey in the EIHL, in fact he’s preparing for his fourth season with the Nottingham Panthers which begins in August. He said he initially moved across the pond to Belfast to play while taking his MBA.
Speaking from his childhood home in Hants County, Benedict says he’s home for a visit with his wife Kirsty and their newest addition to the family, four-month-old son Austin.
“We live in England basically from August until May, and then we split our time between Kirsty’s hometown just outside of Belfast, Ireland and Nova Scotia,” he said.
Benedict says even though soccer will always be #1 in the United Kingdom, it’s been a great place to play hockey.Read more »
Calling Chris Owens “one of the smartest and most dynamic players that’s been at Acadia in the last 25 years,” Axemen coach Darren Burns said the Newfoundlander rates up there with the best players ever at the university.
Burns says he believes Owens can take his game to the next level. Acadia grad Owens hopes he’s right.
“He’s been one of the top defenceman in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) the past four years,” said Burns. “He has been an extremely pivotal player in the programs success especially this past season.”
Burns said he felt Owens took his game to a new level this season and he can go further in his hockey career.
“I feel he can definitely make the jump to the AHL next year, but it will take a lot of work,” the coach said. “The bottom line is when a player dominates at a level I feel he deserves a shot at the next level. That’s where Chris is at in his career.” Read more »
Jun 02, 2014 – 22:00 GMT Written By: Albert, France of en.letitan.com
The QMJHL’s Acadie-Bathurst Titan have nominated Kris MacDonald as assistant coach for the 2014-2015 season. MacDonald, from Prince Edward Island, will replace Kevin Desrochers behind the bench.
Kris is a former Titan player from the 2005-2006 season. He played with the University of Acadia from 2007-2010 and completed his university career with UPEI in 2010-11. He was coaching at the Midget AAA level in Saskatchewan at the Notre-Dame College and is happy and ready to make the jump to the Québec Major Junior Hockey League.
McFarland was Oshawa’s assistant coach for 2 seasons (Terry Wilson, OHL Images)
The Kingston Frontenacs believed they underachieved this season. Their rivals down Highway 401 in Oshawa overachieved, so there’s a clear rationale for taking from the competition.
Say whatever you want about what has to go on behind the scenes before an OHL team turns to someone still on the good side of 30 years old to fill a key job. Entrusting Kyle Dubas, who was only 25 on his start date, as its general manager has worked out wonderfully for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, who recently won their division for the first time in six seasons. Now it appears Frontenacs GM Doug Gilmour, coming off a stomach-punch playoff loss where a 3-0 series lead evaporated, is turning to 28-year-old Paul McFarland as the club’s head coach.
Former Acadia Axemen Jonathan Laberge captured the France Division 1 Championship this year with the Lyon Lions. This was Jonathan’s first year with the Lions, after spending 5 seasons with the Acadia Axemen last season.
Laberge turned in a strong regular season with 26 points in his clubs 11 games and a team leading (+/-) of +19.
The 22nd Annual BLG Awards: CIS athlete of the year nominees announced
(HALIFAX, N.S.) – Canadian Interuniversity Sport and national law firm Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (BLG) announced Tuesday the eight finalists for the 22nd Annual BLG Awards. Acadia men’s hockey player Liam Heelis is the AUS’s male nominee for male athlete from universities affiliated with CIS.
The BLG Awards were established in 1993 to recognize the top female and male athletes from universities affiliated with CIS.On Monday, April 28, the eight national nominees will be honoured at the EPCOR Centre’s Jack Singer Concert Hall in Calgary. One female and one male winner will receive a $10,000 post-graduate scholarship, while all finalists will return home with a commemorative gold ring.
The 2014 awards show will premiere nationally on Sportsnet 360 on Thursday, May 15, at 9 p.m. EDT. A replay is scheduled for Sunday, May 18, at 1 p.m. EDT, also on Sportsnet 360.
The BLG Awards are based on athletic accomplishments, outstanding sportsmanship and leadership. Each of the 54 CIS schools selects one female and one male athlete of the year. From these nominees, one female and one male athlete are chosen within each of the four regional associations: Atlantic University Sport (AUS), Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ), Ontario University Athletics (OUA) and Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CWUAA). To be eligible, a student-athlete must have competed in a CIS sport for a minimum of two years and cannot be a previous recipient of a BLG Award.
Heelis adds to his hardware for the year; Gibbons awarded the Kevin Powell Memorial Award
From Left to Right: Coach Darren Burns, MVP – Liam Heelis, Defensive Player of the Year – Chris Owens, Most Improved Player – Travis Randell, Co-Rookies of the Year – Geoff Schemitsch & Michael Clarke (Michael is not in the picture)
The AUS Champion Acadia Axemen hockey team wrapped up the 2013-14 season with the announcement of their team awards at the Annual Fred G. Kelly Awards Night hosted by the Department of Athletics.
The award for Rookie of the Year for the 2013-14 season went to co-winners Geoff Schemitsch and Michael Clarke.
A standout first year defenseman, Geoff Schemitsch played a big role on the team’s back end. Good offensively and responsible defensively, Geoff is a smooth skating defenseman and a player to watch for years to come. This season Geoff was named to the AUS All-Rookie team.
Michael Clarke flew under the radar the entire season. Scoring nine of his 12 regular season goals in the second half of the season, Clarke was one of the Axemen’s top goal scorers. A strong and physical player, Michael shoots the puck like a pro and plays a complete two way game. With great hands, Michael has the ability to take control of a hockey game.
Second year centerman Travis Randell was named the Most Improved Player of the Year. A great leader that can play in all situations, Travis is a centerman that has the ability to produce and play a sound defensive game. While Travis had three goals in the regular season – all three in the second half of the season, he also scored three important goals in eight playoff games including two eventual game winning goals.Read more »
